Sausage Carbonara Pasta

This easy Sausage Carbonara Pasta puts a delicious twist on classic carbonara with savory Italian sausage, crispy bacon, pasta, and a rich, creamy sauce. It’s a comforting, flavorful dinner that’s ready in no time!

If you love this recipe, also try this Brie Pasta with Bacon to change things up!

I love pasta in any form. White sauce, red sauce, green sauce – bring them all on!

Pasta carbonara is a little bit different. While you do have a sauce, it is more of a silky, light sauce, made basically from egg yolks.

Now, I went down a rabbit hole reading about all things carbonara. There are definitely some purists out there, claiming carbonara has no cream, and is only pasta, pork, eggs, and cheese. And some will go as far as to say it has to be Pecorino Romano.

I’m definitely not here to ruffle any feathers, but from my limited research, it seems as though the no cream rule is more of a recent trend. Many Italians have grandmothers who always used cream.

While I do know that an egg only sauce is delicious, I decided to stick with the cream version here for a few reasons. First, it’s much easier to get the sauce right. Your chances of ending up with scrambled eggs is much, much smaller when cream is involved. And second, a fully egg based sauce is good for about 5 minutes, and when you have a family that tends to eat at different times, this just doesn’t work.

So whether it’s fully traditional or not, it is delicious, and that is what really matters. And it’s fast, and even with the cream, still only takes 8 ingredients. It’s fancy enough for date night at home, and easy enough for a weeknight dinner!

Ingredients

• Linguine: This is a dish that you can really use any pasta. (Mostly.) I used linguine, but spaghetti is a very traditional choice for carbonara. You could also use a short cut pasta like rigatoni.
• Bacon: Traditional carbonara uses guanciale, which is an Italian pork product. We are not sticking with traditional here, and are using what is easy to find at the grocery store, which is bacon.
• Sausage: The original recipe that I posted here used sausage links, and then the sausage was rolled into small balls. I decided to simplify things, and skip the rolling. I also used bulk Italian sausage, but sausage links will also work. Just remove the casing before adding.
• Egg Yolks: You will need 4 large egg yolks.
• Cream: I used heavy cream. You can just skip the cream and use extra pasta water, but I find that by using cream, it makes the recipe a little more foolproof.
• Parmesan: I will always go for freshly grated parmesan over anything pre-grated. It takes a little more time to prep, but not much!
• Lemon Zest: The lemon zest brings in a fresh lemon flavor. You can skip it, but I find that it pairs well and freshens up an otherwise heavy dish.
• Parsley: Fresh parsley brings in some freshness, as well.

How to Make Sausage Carbonara Pasta

STEP 1: Start your pasta water, and once boiling, add the pasta. While that is cooking, start cooking your bacon in a large skillet. You want to cook it until it starts to render its fat.

STEP 2: Once that bacon starts cooking, add in your sausage. Continue to cook, breaking up the sausage, until the sausage is cooked through and the bacon is crisp.

STEP 3: When your pasta is cooked, before draining the pasta, reserve a large mug full of the pasta water. In a bowl, combine the egg yolks, cream, parmesan cheese, lemon zest, and parsley. Whisk this together well.

STEP 4: Return the pasta to the pot you boiled it in. Add the egg yolk mixture and start stirring vigorously,

STEP 5: Continue to stir until the pasta is coated with a silky sauce. The heat from the pasta will gently cook the eggs. If it gets too dry, add in some of that pasta water that you reserved.

STEP 6: Add in the cooked bacon and sausage. Mix to combine. You can add more parmesan and parsley when serving, if desired.

Tips and Tricks

Don’t forget to save some of that pasta water when draining the pasta. It is important for making the sauce and keeping the pasta from being too dry.

This sausage carbonara does not make for the best leftovers, but if I think I’ll have leftovers, I save even more of that pasta water. Then, when reheating, you can add pasta water if it’s too dry. The pasta will start to break up some, but this at least saves the leftovers.

Want to add a little bit of heat? Use spicy Italian sausage or add in a pinch or two of red pepper flakes.

More Pasta Recipes

Chicken Pasta Milano
Creamy One Pot Spaghetti with Meatballs
Penne Pasta Bake

LOOKING FOR MORE FREE RECIPES?
Subscribe to my free recipe newsletter to get new family friendly recipes in your inbox each week! Find me sharing more family-friendly inspiration on Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram.

Sausage Carbonara Pasta

5 from 2 votes

Author: Deborah Harroun

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes minutes

Servings: 6 servings

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: Italian

Print Pin SaveSaved!

This easy Sausage Carbonara Pasta puts a delicious twist on classic carbonara with savory Italian sausage, crispy bacon, pasta, and a rich, creamy sauce. It's a comforting, flavorful dinner that's ready in no time!

1x2x3x

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 lb linguine pasta
• ▢ 1/2 lb bacon chopped
• ▢ 1 lb Italian sausage
• ▢ 4 large egg yolks
• ▢ 1/2 cup heavy cream
• ▢ 2.5 oz grated Parmesan cheese
• ▢ zest of 1 lemon
• ▢ 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
• ▢ Extra parmesan and chopped parsley for serving, optional

Instructions

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt generously, then add the pasta. Cook according to the package directions. Before draining, reserve a large mug full of the pasta water.
  1 lb linguine pasta
• Meanwhile, add the bacon to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until it starts to release its fat, then add the sausage. Continue to cook, breaking up the sausage, until the sausage is cooked through and the bacon is crisp.
  1/2 lb bacon, 1 lb Italian sausage
• In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, cream, parmesan cheese, lemon zest, and parsley.
  4 large egg yolks, 1/2 cup heavy cream, 2.5 oz grated Parmesan cheese, zest of 1 lemon, 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
• After draining the pasta, return it to the same pot. Add the egg mixture to the hot pasta and vigorously stir the pasta and the sauce. The heat will gently cook the eggs. It should form a silky sauce after stirring for a minute or two. If the sauce becomes too dry or stiff, add some of the starchy pasta water to loosen it up.
• Add the sausage and bacon to the pasta. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Serve topped with extra parmesan and parsley, if desired.
  Extra parmesan and chopped parsley

Recipe Notes:

Adapted from Jamie’s Italy

The original recipe printed here had you rolling the sausage into small balls, then cooking them that way, giving you almost little meatballs. I decided to simplify and skip rolling the sausage into balls.

I used bulk sweet Italian sausage, but you can also use links. Just remove the skins before adding the sausage and breaking it up.

Nutrition information provided as an estimate only. Various brands and products can change the counts. Any nutritional information should be used as a general guide.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 838kcal (42%), Carbohydrates: 61g (20%), Protein: 42g (84%), Fat: 47g (72%), Saturated Fat: 19g (119%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g, Monounsaturated Fat: 22g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 230mg (77%), Sodium: 1290mg (56%), Potassium: 482mg (14%), Fiber: 4g (17%), Sugar: 5g (6%)

Keywords: pasta carbonara, sausage carbonara