Spaghetti Squash Carbonara (4.5g Net Carbs!)

This Spaghetti Squash Carbonara is a delicious low-carb pasta meal made with a handful of simple ingredients for a flavorsome dinner that all pasta lovers adore. Bonus, one serving of these Spaghetti Squash Keto Carbonara brings only 4.5 grams of net carbs, so you can safely indulge in this pasta dish on a keto diet with no guilt.

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Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

4.5gNet Carbs

Spaghetti Squash Carbonara is a keto pasta meal made with a handful of simple ingredients for a flavorsome keto dinner with only 4.5 grams of net carbs.

Author: Carine Claudepierre

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 10 minutes mins

Total: 25 minutes mins

Yield: 8 servings (3/4 cup)

Serving Size: 1 serving

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4.59 from 12 votes

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Ingredients

US Customary – Metric

• ▢ 1 whole Spaghetti Squash baked, pulled apart into spaghetti – about 6 cups of spaghetti
• ▢ 2 teaspoons Olive Oil
• ▢ 14 oz Pancetta roughly chopped
• ▢ 3 Garlic Cloves peeled, crushed
• ▢ 2 Egg Yolks at room temperature
• ▢ 2 Eggs
• ▢ 4 oz Finely Grated Parmesan
• ▢ 2-3 tablespoons Lukewarm Vegetable Broth for a silky sauce
• ▢ ⅓ cup Heavy Cream
• ▢ 1 pinch Salt and Pepper adjust to your liking

Instructions

Cook the Spaghetti Squash

• Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a large baking tray with parchment paper. Set aside.
• Trim the ends of the squash, poke holes all over its skin using a fork.
• Cut the squash halfway lengthwise, scoop out all the seeds with a spoon and discard the seeds.
• Place each half of squash flesh down on the prepared baking tray.
• Bake for about 30-45 minutes or until you can easily scrape out spaghetti strands from the vegetable using a fork. The outer flesh may cook faster than the inside. If so, scrape out the cooked spaghetti and keep baking the remaining part that is hard to scrape out until soft enough. Always use oven mittens to do this as the vegetable is quite hot.
• Place the cooked spaghetti strands in a large mixing bowl to cool down for 10 minutes while preparing the pasta sauce.

Carbonara Sauce

• Slice the pancetta roughly into pieces.
• Heat olive oil in a non-stick large frying pan or skillet – large enough to fit the spaghetti squash strands as you will add them into this pan later in the recipe.
• Cook the pancetta for 3-5 minutes or until crispy, tossing often. Add the chopped garlic. Stir in the cooked, hot spaghetti strands into the skillet. Toss with the crispy pancetta and cook for 1-2 minutes until the spaghetti strands are well combined and flavored. Stop the heat. Cover with a lid.
• Meanwhile, microwave the broth for 30-50 seconds, or just until lukewarm. Set aside.
• In another bowl, beat the egg yolks, egg, and finely grated Parmesan until well combined.
• Remove the lid from the pan (make sure you turn off the heat!) and quickly add the Parmesan egg mixture to the pan. Always make sure the pan is not too hot and you work fast, or it cooks and scrambles the eggs!
• Keep stirring to evenly cover the pasta with the sauce. Finally, add a splash of lukewarm stock to loosen the sauce and make it silky – optional.
• Bring back to low heat and stir in heavy cream. Cook 1-2 minutes, until just hot, taste the sauce, and add salt or pepper to taste.
• Plate up with extra Parmesan on top and chopped fresh herbs of choice.

Tools

Getting Started What Is Keto? Macro Calculator Sweetener Converter Intermittent Fasting    Keto    Fruits Keto Vegetables Keto Flours Fighting Keto Flu Healthy Sweeteners

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Baking Sheet

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Kitchen Knife

Mixing Bowls

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NutritionServing Size: 1 serving

Yield: 8 servings (3/4 cup)

Nutrition

Serving: 1 servingCalories: 357 kcal (18%)Carbohydrates: 5.2 g (2%)Fiber: 0.7 g (3%)Net Carbs: 4.5 gProtein: 14.4 g (29%)Fat: 30.9 g (48%)Saturated Fat: 12.3 g (77%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 4.1 gMonounsaturated Fat: 12.6 gTrans Fat: 0.1 gCholesterol: 148.5 mg (50%)Sodium: 589.5 mg (26%)Potassium: 196.4 mg (6%)Sugar: 1.5 g (2%)Vitamin A: 472.9 IU (9%)Vitamin B12: 0.8 µg (13%)Vitamin C: 1.4 mg (2%)Vitamin D: 0.8 µg (5%)Calcium: 190.4 mg (19%)Iron: 0.8 mg (4%)Magnesium: 19.2 mg (5%)Zinc: 1.5 mg (10%)

Ingredients and Substitutions

All you need to make this Spaghetti Squash Keto Carbonara recipe are a few simple ingredients:

• Spaghetti Squash – that’s your pasta replacement. A regular whole squash spaghettis contains about 6 cups of cooked spaghetti strands.
• Pancetta – or regular cured ham.
• Olive Oil – Prefer extra-virgin olive oil.
• Eggs – learn why eggs are keto.
• Egg Yolk
• Parmesan Cheese – The grated Parmesan version is what melts the best in the sauce. Learn how to pick low-carb cheese.
• Heavy Cream – The classic carbonara sauce doesn’t use cream, but in a keto carbonara sauce, we want the sauce to be super fulfilling, so a touch of cream ups your fat, keeps you full, and makes the sauce silky smooth. And heavy cream is keto-friendly.
• Vegetable Broth or beef broth – This is optional but a great way to loosen the sauce.
• Salt and Pepper – Pancetta is already salty. Add salt to taste.

How To Make Keto Carbonara

Read my full detailed explanation of how to cook spaghetti squash for full details.

1. First, preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Next, line a large baking tray with parchment paper and set it aside.
2. Cut the sides of the spaghetti squash, and using a fork, poke the skin of the vegetable many times, all over.
3. Next, cut the squash halfway lengthwise. Finally, use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and discard them.
4. Place the two halves of spaghetti squash, and flesh down onto the baking tray.
5. Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until you can scrape out the spaghetti flesh with a fork and form spaghetti strands. Sometimes, the vegetable cooks faster in the center, so scrape out these vegetable strands first, set them aside in a bowl, and keep baking the remaining vegetables until cooked through. It’s a good idea to check the cooking process after 30 minutes every 10 minutes to avoid overbaking the vegetable.
6. Cool the spaghetti strands down in a mixing bowl.
7. First, chop the pancetta into pieces. Then, heat olive oil in a non-stick skillet and cook the pancetta until crispy – about 3-5 minutes.
8. Add the spaghetti squash strands in the pan and stir to evenly flavor the vegetable strands with the pancetta – about 1 – 2 minutes.
9. Turn off the heat, cover the pan with a lid, and set it aside while making the sauce.
10. In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs, egg yolk, and parmesan cheese. Pour the sauce over the spaghetti strand in the skillet, making sure your pan does not overheat, to avoid cooking the eggs and forming lumps. The trick to making a delicious smooth spaghetti carbonara sauce is to quickly stir the egg mixture into the noodle without heat to create a lukewarm sauce that shines. If you like, add a splash of lukewarm vegetable broth to loosen up the sauce. This is optional, but if you like your carbonara sauce thinner, go for it!
11. Now put the heat back to low, stir in cream and cook until hot. To serve this keto pasta carbonara as an authentic Italian dish, top the plate with fresh chopped herbs and extra parmesan.

Storage

This recipe can be stored for up to 2 days in an airtight container in the fridge. You can also freeze the recipe and thaw it in the fridge the day before serving. Rewarm the spaghetti carbonara in the microwave until hot or in the saucepan, adding some extra cream if needed.

Frequently Asked Questions

I’ve listed below the answers to the most common questions about this recipe.

More Healthy Pasta Recipes

Below I listed more healthy pasta recipes you may want to try next time:

Zucchini Noodles With Pesto

Alfredo Greek Yogurt

Zucchini Lasagna

Keto Spaghetti Squash Alfredo-Style