Guanciale is the ingredient that adds flavor to our carbonara. Over the years it has often been confused and mistaken with bacon, another cut of meat obtained from the pig but very different. The guanciale is obtained from the cheek while the bacon, as the word itself says, from the belly of the pig. This salami is produced in various Italian regions such us Abruzzo and Lazio where we can find the historical and famous productions, but also in Molise, Calabria, Tuscany and Umbria. In the kitchen the guanciale is very used especially for its flexibility, as a consequence of it we will find it among the appetizers, the first and second courses and even raw as normal salami.

However, he reached the fame thanks to three Roman recipes that see it as the protagonist: Gricia, Amatriciana and our beloved Carbonara. Walking around the restaurants we saw how each chef has his own technique to make the guanciale crunchy to the right point, this is a fundamental step to make our dish so special, there are those who cook it in its fat, who uses a hot iron pan, who removes the fat part before browning, someone was successful, someone less, it’s up to you to try the carbonara you think you might prefer and let us know your final thought!