Spaghetti Carbonara with Shishito Peppers and Miso

Vibrant colors and smells of fresh peppers are one of the best things in summer kitchen.

My favorite is shishito pepper. This small pepper is perfect peppery balance of bitterness and sweetness.

In this carbonara recipe, miso is the key ingredient to bind everything together. The chopped blistered shishito peppers along with miso will add peppery flavor and sweet bitterness to the creamy carbonara sauce.

I feel bacon suits better here than pancetta because of its sweetness.

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Spaghetti Carbonara with Shishito Peppers and Miso

Course Main Course

Cuisine Japanese

Keyword Noodle, Pasta

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 2 servings

Equipment

• Food Processor (optional)

Ingredients

• 5 ounces shishito peppers divided
• 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 whole egg, large
• 2 egg yolks, large
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (1 ounce/30 grams)
• 1 tablespoon white miso
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 3 ounces bacon cut into 1/4 inch strips
• 6 ounces dried spaghetti
• Kosher salt to taste

Instructions

• Bring a large pot of generously salted water to boiling.
• Divide shishito peppers between 3 ounces and 2 ounces. Set aside 2 ounces peppers for later use. Heat a saute pan over high heat, and add olive oil. When the pan is hot, add 3 ounces shishito peppers; cook turning occasionally until blistered in spots. Be careful peppers might pop. Remove from heat.
  
• When peppers are cool enough to handle, , cut to discard the stem and place peppers in container of food processor. Cover and process until finely chopped, scraping the side as necessary. Scrape off the chopped peppers from the container into a bowl.
• Crack a whole egg into the bowl of chopped peppers; add egg yolks, heavy cream, Parmigiano-Reggiano, miso, and freshly ground black pepper. Mix everything using a fork until evenly incorporated. The mixture should look like chunky paste.
• Add bacon to a saute pan over medium heat; cook until lightly browned and crispy. Remove the bacon and set aside; keep the rendered bacon fat in the pan and add 2 ounces shishito peppers and cook turning occasionally until blistered in spots. Remove the pan from heat.
• Meanwhile, add the spaghetti to the boiling water; cook until al dente. Give it stir gently to keep it from sticking if necessary. Reserve some cooking liquid; drain the pasta. Add the spaghetti to the pan; pour the egg mixture and toss everything and stir vigorously with a tong until the sauce becomes creamy and coats the spaghetti evenly. Add splashes of pasta water if necessary. Season to taste with salt. Serve with crispy bacon and freshly ground black pepper on top.