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This is the most creamy and delicious homemade alfredo sauce that you will ever make! It’s a tried and true recipe that will take all of your favorite pasta dishes to the next level.
This is my most popular recipe for a good reason! If you love alfredo as much as I do try this Creamy Garlic Shrimp Alfredo Pasta, Instant Pot Chicken Alfredo Pasta or Asiago Garlic Alfredo Pasta.
Best-Ever Alfredo Sauce
This is probably one of my favorite recipes here on the blog. (It’s a reader-favorite, too!) If there is one thing I can always count on my family to eat it is my homemade alfredo sauce over pasta. With alfredo sauce this creamy, cheesy, and flavorful, it’s so hard to resist!
We recently had some company over for dinner and I made these Chicken Bacon Garlic Alfredo Roll Ups. They are always are a huge hit! This homemade alfredo sauce really makes any dish shine. It’s thick and creamy, coats pasta perfectly, and the flavor is out of the world. It is restaurant quality that you can make right at home!
Ingredients You Need to Make It
You only need a few simple ingredients to make the BEST alfredo sauce. This sauce just has a smooth, creamy texture that melts in your mouth. For the best possible flavor, using the freshest ingredients is key! Fresh parmesan cheese grated off the block is one of those key ingredients. This will create a smooth textured sauce rather than a grainy one.
- Butter: Both unsalted or salted work for this alfredo sauce recipe. If using salted butter, then just adjust the extra salt you use or omit it entirely.
- Heavy Cream: A must-add so your sauce is rich and creamy.
- Cream Cheese: My secret ingredient! This adds a nice, thick consistency to your alfredo sauce.
- Minced Garlic: For the best flavor, use fresh garlic.
- Garlic Powder: Because you can never go wrong with too much garlic! Add some of this in so your sauce has a little extra savory flavor.
- Italian Seasoning: My favorite blend of herbs! They make the sauce smell and taste amazing.
- Salt and Pepper: Add both to taste.
- Grated Parmesan Cheese: Using freshly grated parmesan cheese is best. Powdered cheese will create a grainy texture and does not melt through when heated. This is because of all the preservatives that are added.
How to Make Alfredo Sauce From Scratch
Not only does this alfredo sauce recipe use super simple ingredients, but it’s so quick and easy to make! Simply combine all of your ingredients in a skillet and achieve creamy, cheesy goodness. It’s so good!
- Whisk Dairy Ingredients Together: In a medium saucepan add butter, heavy whipping cream, and cream cheese. Then cook over medium heat and whisk until melted.
- Add In Seasonings: Add the minced garlic, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper. Then continue to whisk until smooth.
- Stir in Cheese: Add the grated parmesan cheese.
- Thicken Your Sauce: Bring to a simmer and continue to cook for about 3-5 minutes until it starts to thicken.
- Toss With Pasta: Toss alfredo sauce with your favorite pasta! I always go for fettuccine noodles to make the best fettuccine alfredo ever!
How Many Cups Does It Yield?
When you are done making your alfredo sauce you will be able to fill a tall canning jar. This is about 14 to 16 ounces (1 pound) of pasta or 2 cups of sauce. I like to reserve a little sauce on the side for dipping breadsticks in.
Alfredo Sauce FAQ
This thick, cheesy, and flavorful sauce is a reader favorite for good reason! These are a few common questions I get asked, I hope they help you create the homemade alfredo sauce of your dreams!
- Can I Make Alfredo Sauce With Milk Instead of Cream? Adding milk is always an option. You will end up with a lighter and less thick consistency but it will work. Half and half is another option you can use. If you need to thicken your sauce up a little more, then add 1 to 2 teaspoons of flour until you reach your desired consistency.
- How Do I Make My Sauce Thicker? When adding cream cheese, slowly cut chunks of cream cheese as you are stirring. This helps create a thicker and creamier sauce. You can also use a roux by using an equal amount of butter to flour, about 1 teaspoon.
- Is This Alfredo Sauce Gluten-Free? This recipe is considered gluten-free! It has an amazing flavor without substitutions.
- Is Alfredo Sauce Made With Cheese? This is a cheese-based pasta sauce that is rich in flavor. It does not harden like cheese though.
- Can I Make it Dairy-Free? There are substitutions to make this dairy-free but I do not recommend it if you are looking for an authentic alfredo sauce. Having dairy in the recipe makes it rich, creamy, and smooth. If you absolutely must, then swap out the heavy cream for a dairy-free creamer or nut milk and use dairy-free or vegan cheese crumbles. Keep in mind that the texture may end up slightly different.
- What Protein Can I Add? Alfredo sauce goes so well with chicken or fish. Try this crispy parmesan chicken or garlic brown sugar salmon!
Tips and Variations
I think this sauce is even better than any restaurant that I have been to and the best part is- you can make it yourself! It’s thick, creamy, and rich. The perfect sauce for your favorite pasta. I know that you will quickly agree that it is the BEST! This will be a recipe that you make again and again, just like I do!
- Use a Whisk: Avoid separating your alfredo sauce when mixing it by whisking it together rather than stirring with a spatula.
- Cook Low and Slow: The most important rule is to not overheat your alfredo sauce. Slowly add ingredients on a low heat and for a short period of time. Melted cheese will break and separate once it gets too hot leaving your cheese clumpy. Do not boil or overheat. Boiling will separate and ruin the alfredo sauce. If you are worried about overheating, then add your parmesan with the heat off. This will also prevent clumping!
- Protein Choices: Grilled chicken, fish, shredded rotisserie chicken, or shrimp are great with this sauce!
- Extra Seasonings: Add in more spices and seasonings like red pepper flakes or paprika so your alfredo has a kick of heat, similar to this One Pot Cajun Chicken Alfredo Pasta.
- Different Cheese: To switch up the flavor, use half Romano cheese or asiago cheese instead of parmesan cheese.
Storing Leftover Alfredo Sauce
Alfredo sauce is a favorite at our house and I know that it won’t last long, even if I double it! Here’s how to store any leftovers so you can enjoy it again and again.
- Storing in the Refrigerator: I like to store my alfredo sauce in an airtight jar in the refrigerator. It will stay good for about 5 days. The ingredients may separate as it sits, so give it a quick stir before you use it.
- Reheating: Slowly is key! Use low temperatures and stir often. If it starts to separate, slowly whisk it back together over low heat on the stovetop. It is best not to microwave this sauce. It becomes more oily and separates just as easily, if not more.
More Amazing Alfredo Recipes
If you love everything alfredo, here are a few more great dishes to try. They’re easy, cheesy, and picky eater approved! What could be better than that? So go ahead, try them out with that tasty batch of alfredo sauce you just made!
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The Best Homemade Alfredo Sauce Ever!
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- 1 pint heavy whipping cream or 2 cups
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- ½ teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan add butter, heavy whipping cream, and cream cheese. Cook over medium heat and whisk until melted.
- Add the minced garlic, garlic powder, italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Continue to whisk until smooth. Add the grated parmesan cheese.
- Bring to a simmer and continue to cook for about 3-5 minutes or until it starts to thicken. Toss it with your favorite pasta!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
tastes sooooo good and creamy. Add like 1/2 cup of mozzerella!!
I used your recipe for the sauce, added a bag of frozen spinach, a can of drained shredded chicken, and a small container of 3 color Tortellini! It is fabulous!!
So delicious
Can this recipe be made ahead of time?
Yes, it can be made ahead of time. It will store well in the fridge for up to 5 days ahead. Do not freeze. To reheat, warm slowly on the stove top not a microwave.
One word
Three syllables
AMAZING!!!
I lost a lot of my recipes while cleaning my computer, and this is one recipes that was deleted! I am so happy I was able to find this recipe! I WILL never use canned Alfredo sauce again!
This is the best Alfredo sauce ever. My go to!!! Thanks for sharing 🤗
Just made this recipe for my daughter who orders Fettuccine Alfredo with chicken and broccoli when we go out to eat. She is a picky eater and she loved it. I will be making this regularly to have on hand for her. I don’t eat carbs so I just tasted a bit of the sauce with some broccoli and I found myself going back and forth dipping broccoli bits in the sauce over and over. I made this tonight with Chicken, broccoli and sautéed mushrooms. Cooked everything separately then mixed each portion with the different components in a big bowl before serving because my son hates mushrooms. Very simple and inexpensive meal. Next time I will make some spaghetti squash for myself. We made 4 servings and there is still plenty of sauce left.
Our family really loves this recipe and I make it at least once every two weeks. I added more minced garlic, an extra ounce of cream cheese, 1/4 cup of Romano cheese and 1/8 tsp of nutmeg. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
It’s the absolute best recipe ever for Alfredo sauce! Way better than
restaurants Fettuccine. I’ve made it several times now and everyone loves it! I was wondering how much a serving size is, it shows the calories but not the serving size.
This was wonderful! I enjoyed the recommendation of paprika as it sweetened it up. I was thinking about adding pancetta the next time to give it a little bit of saltiness and texture. If anyone has tried adding pancetta or bacon crumbles please let me know what the outcome was. Overall, very nice! Kudos!
Seriously delicious in every way with no tweaks!
Wish I could add a picture!!
Hello Alyssa!
I spell my daughter’s name same way as yours. In any case, I had half a brick of cream cheese left over from a previous recipe and was perusing Alfredo sauces on various blogs and came to see yours. I am living alone now ,, kids are away , and I halved every thing in your original recipe except for one thing… I used one half cup of heavy cream and one half cup of half and half, which already has a component of heavy cream. The cream cheese gave the sauce a different dimension and when I tell you, I am Italian ,so I wanted to see how the cream cheese would be a different taste. It worked fine. I did not use the minced garlic just the powder. The finished sauce was divine and I have a bag of shrimp , deveined and uncooked , which I will make for a guest soon and use over fettucine. I am sure I will use the full recipe as printed but still keep to the half ratio of heavy cream and half and half. Great recipe and the Italian herbs give it a nice punch. Thank you!!
I’ve been using this recipe forever and love it! The only thing I change is using half heavy cream and half whole milk and I always add a little bit of nutmeg. Family favorite!
Yummmmm made this one tonight for dinner and it’s a keeper. I had it on zoodles (keto) and my partner (carb-aholic) had it on regular pasta. We did a bite-for-bite trade taste test and it was excellent with both. He even said he’d happily eat it with zoodles next time! The sauce def carries itself; regular pasta isn’t required to make it still be great. Only change is that I cooked it a bit longer since we like thick Alfredo. Thank you!
Thank you so much for this easy, delicious alfredo recipe! I’m looking too create a variety of dishes for my family and this was an absolute hit! I will no longer look to the restaurants to satisfy my desire for creamy alfredo pasta.