Carbonara-Style Nduja Pasta

A Calabrian spin on a Roman classic using nduja, a spicy, spreadable salami from Calabria. Spicy, creamy and satisfying!

(Note: A short video of this recipe is available on my Instagram page.)

I remember first spotting nduja (n-duya) as a special ingredient at a local restaurant, guessing that it might be an exotic spice blend like za-atar or dukkah. At the time it didn’t make a strong enough impression on me to order the item on the menu that featured it (pasta with spices didn’t sound like a compelling pairing to me). But after that first encounter nduja seemed to appear everywhere. I continued to ignore the universe’s not-so-subtle nudge to give this “spice” a chance until a pasta video stopped me in my tracks.

Nduja isn’t a spice blend but rather a salty, spicy, spreadable salami from the Calabrian region of Italy. I’m a big fan of Calabrian chilies–a little dollop of the crushed chilies (jarred in olive oil) added to most dishes is instantly better–and it’s the heart of this sausage.

Typically, nduja is eaten as a spread over bread, used as an add-in on pizza or as flavor enhancer for red sauces or eggs. I did finally try that pasta dish featuring nduja at my local restaurant but it wasn’t my favorite application (which I attributed to my issue with the red sauce in that particular dish rather than the nduja).

The pasta I came across on social media was prepared Carbonara-style, with eggs, Parmigiano-Reggiano and black pepper so when I found nduja at the new Eataly Silicon Valley this summer, I knew that I’d be preparing it the same way.

Replacing guanciale in classic Carbonara with nduja adds a bold Calabrian kick to the Roman classic. A generous use of pasta water along with the eggs creates a silky, creamy “sauce” that mellows the rich, salty sausage to keep the finished dish from being cloying. I warn you that this is not an everyday pasta dish but if you like pasta carbonara and you feel like a treat or something different, this nduja version is worth giving a try.