Chef Big DA high-viscosity breakfast masterpiece featuring cold-smoked guanciale, poached eggs, and a black pepper-pecorino hollandaise on toasted brioche.
Cold smoke the thick-cut guanciale for 30 minutes using cherry wood or oak pellets. Keep the temperature under 80°F to ensure the fat doesn't render yet—we want flavor infusion, not cooking.
Use a smoke tube for the most consistent cold smoke in a standard offset or pellet grill.
In a stainless steel bowl over a simmering water bath (bain-marie), whisk the 3 egg yolks with lemon juice until tripled in volume and pale yellow.
Don't let the bottom of the bowl touch the water, or you'll end up with scrambled eggs.
Slowly drizzle in the warm clarified butter while whisking constantly to create a stable emulsion. Once thick, fold in the grated Pecorino Romano and cracked black pepper. Keep warm in a thermos or near the stove.
If the sauce is too thick, add a teaspoon of warm water to adjust the viscosity.
In a heavy cast-iron skillet over medium heat, crisp the smoked guanciale until the edges are golden and the fat is translucent. Drain on paper towels.
The smell of smoked pork fat is the best alarm clock in existence.
Poach the 4 eggs in lightly simmering water with a splash of vinegar for 3 minutes until the whites are set but the yolks remain liquid gold.
Place two slices of crispy guanciale on each toasted brioche half. Top with a poached egg and a generous ladle of the Carbonara Hollandaise. Garnish with chives and an extra crack of pepper.
The key here is the emulsion of the hollandaise with the rendered fat from the guanciale. If your sauce splits, you didn't whisk hard enough or your heat was too high. For the eggs, a 64-degree Celsius water bath is ideal if you have a circulator, but a gentle poach in acidulated water works for the backyard purist. Don't skip the cold smoke on the pork—it provides the structural flavor profile that cuts through the richness of the yolk.
Nutrition data is estimated and may not be fully accurate. This is not medical advice — consult a registered dietitian or healthcare professional for personalized guidance.
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