Cellar & Stove: Spaghetti Carbonara and Sangiovese/Canaiolo red blend (Italy)

In another edition of my "Cellar & Stove" segment, I'm going to be pairing an affordable and multi-purpose red wine with my own personal take on celebrity chef Marco Pierre White's spaghetti carbonara.

Chef Marco Pierre White

Marco Pierre White is a three-time Michelin Star-winning English chef, famous for being a restaurateur and author. Called the "godfather of modern cooking", he trained Gordon Ramsay, among others. Raised by an English father and an Italian mother, White has an interesting take on Mediterranean fusion cuisine which I like a lot. Today's recipe is based on his spaghetti carbonara.

Carbonara is a delicious, simple meal, made with heavy cream, eggs, spaghetti, pancetta, and parmesan. Despite its fame, no one is quite sure about the origins of the recipe. MPW's version calls for bacon, which is traditional. Obviously bacon is awesome! But in the absence of it, I wanted to see what else I could substitute to add a bit of a flair to the dish. So I settled on some thinly-sliced chorizo, which is a kind of aged and cured meat often used in Iberian cooking.

To make this recipe, you'll need:

• 1/2 cup of heavy cream (or light cream, depends on how rich you want it.)
• Pasta. I prefer whole grain Barilla, but your choice will do.
• 2 eggs. 
• Your choice of meat. I realize that the traditional is pancetta or bacon, but you can experiment. 
• Parmesan. I use Parmesan-Reggiano, in block form, and use a grater. 
• Olive oil and black pepper (optional.)
• "Better than Boullion" concentrated chicken stock (also optional.)

The dish is rather simple, and easy to make. All you need to do is mix together the cream and eggs, and toss the pasta in that mixture once it's done. Add the cheese and meat, and serve. 

Since the chorizo has a lot of salt, I'm not going to salt the water - but instead season the water using a concentrated stock. And because the starch from the pasta and concentrated stock makes a nice broth, I will retain that pasta water and make a soup later. I've also decided, as my vegetable, to add some peas for color. So first I start some water boiling, adding both olive oil and bouillon for the pasta (and plain water for the peas). I'm not going to start the rest of it just yet, and while I wait for the water to heat up, let's talk wine. Today I have chosen a rather affordable bottle of Sangiovese from Tuscany as my dinner pairing.

It's Incanto's 2011 "Vino Nobile di Montepulciano." This wine is sourced from the Montepulciano grape-growing region of Tuscany. I was first introduced to Montepulciano wine (specifically Montepulciano d'Abruzzo) when I was touring Italy in 2004 with my father. The grape itself, Sangiovese, is a purple-skinned red varietal grown extensively in Tuscany and other central Italian regions. Sangiovese and its relatives have been grown for thousands of years, but the first mention of this wine by name was in 1590. Generally,  I remember it was the table wine served most often when my father and I went out to dinner in Rome; it isn't terribly expensive but is a good varietal in my opinion. And in fact, this wine isn't totally Sangiovese - there's 10% Canaiolo tossed in there, which is a common additive in Tuscan wines.

Since the dish is very rich, thanks to the eggs and the cream and the olive oil, I wanted a wine that could cut through some of that. Traditionally, that's a job for a white like Chardonnay. But the dish is also very salty, owing to the concentrated stock, the parmesan and the chorizo, so I am looking for a bit of strength to stand up to it. Remember, if you want to serve wine with your dinner, look for parity - you want your flavors to complement one another, not clash. The wine is soft enough not to destroy the creamy nature of the dish, but it also adds some texture.

With dinner well on the way,  it's time to investigate the wine a little. It's ruby red in the glass, and has an aroma of dirt and berries. There's a tiny bit of bricking on the meniscus of the glass - expected for a wine 5 years old.

Not wanting to sample it just yet, I set it down to tend to the final steps for dinner. Like I mentioned, this dish is very quick to prepare. As the wine is sitting out, breathing, it's time to whisk together the eggs and cream and add the drained pasta to the mixture. I've also tossed in the chorizo slices. Notice there isn't any parmesan on the pasta at this point - taking my cue from MPW, I layer the dish - parmesan in the bottom of the dish, then chorizo and pasta, then more parmesan on top. Adding cheese to the sauce before mixing it with the pasta would make it clumpy.

Now that everything is mixed, it's time to plate it and serve. I think it turned out magnificently. The wine is a little dry, which I feel works well with the meal. There's a definite burst of dark berry skin (cassis) flavor in there, some wood / cedar notes, and drinks rather smoothly. I like it. The finish and aftertaste are both slightly dry but very appetizing and crisp. The dryness of the wine matches well with the cheese and chorizo.

So this is a great meal you can make at home, easily, with a lot of space for creative license. You can adjust the creaminess of the dish or the level of Parmesan to your liking, without seriously affecting the overall delivery of the dish.  And the wine is a cheap, solid choice that would pair nicely with other dishes too - roasted meats, cheeses, and stews. This bottle wasn't too expensive at all - $10.99 - with some Montepulciano wines being cheaper still. It's worth investigating for certain!

Photo of MP White, source - http://nymag.com/images/2/daily/food/07/04/23_ianderry_lgl.jpg