Shop
My
Custom
FREE 5-Ingredient Recipe EBook
GET IT NOWIf I had to pick one favorite sauce, homemade Alfredo sauce would be it, without question. It may not be as popular as, say marinara sauce, but I’m firmly a cream sauce girl when given the choice. And this one? It’s so rich and cheesy, it will make anything you put it on 1000 times better, with instant comfort food factor. Make this easy Alfredo sauce recipe with me, and you might never buy a jar again!
Why You Need My Homemade Alfredo Sauce Recipe
- Super rich and creamy – This is seriously the best Alfredo sauce I’ve ever had, with the perfect creamy texture and cheesy, garlicky flavor. I promise you, the jarred stuff has nothing on making it from scratch.
- Quick and easy – If you’re unsure about making your own sauces, this is a great one to start with. It’s super simple and takes just 10 minutes.
- Simple, clean ingredients – Just 4 of them, plus S&P. And unlike most Alfredo sauce recipes as well as store-bought versions, mine has no flour, starches, or other thickeners. It’s naturally thickened by reducing and melting in the parmesan!
- Versatile – Of course you can toss it with your favorite pasta (or zucchini noodles if you’re like me), but there are so many more ways to enjoy this sauce! I have a whole list of ideas below. I even included it in my second cookbook just so I could add it to other dishes in the book.
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best Alfredo sauce ingredients, what each one does in my recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Grated Parmesan Cheese – Not only is this the star flavor, it also thickens the Alfredo sauce without a flour roux or cornstarch! I prefer freshly grated parm, as it melts more smoothly than the kind from the green can. Shredded parm should also work, but might take longer to melt. As an alternative, cream cheese can act as a thickener, but the flavor is completely different, so I don’t really recommend it unless you want a tangier cream sauce.
- Garlic – Use fresh garlic cloves for the best flavor. But if you’re in a rush, a tablespoon of jarred minced garlic or 3/4 teaspoon of garlic powder will work.
- Heavy Cream – Makes the sauce creamy, of course. Sometimes this is called heavy whipping cream on the carton. I don’t recommend regular milk or almond milk for my homemade Alfredo sauce recipe, as the final sauce will be too thin.
- Butter – I use this brand. Any kind is fine, but go for unsalted so you can adjust the salt better separately.
- Sea Salt & Black Pepper – Yes, I forgot them in the ingredient picture below, but I bet you know what they look like. 😉 If you don’t like specks of black pepper in your sauce, use white pepper instead.
- Nutmeg – This is a common spice in Alfredo sauce and I like a little bit in mine, but you can leave it out if you’re not a fan.
How To Make Alfredo Sauce
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Saute the garlic. Melt butter in a large saucepan (or a small pot) over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and sauté until fragrant.
- Reduce the heavy cream. Pour it into the pan, then simmer gently until the amount reduces by about 1/3.
- Thicken with parmesan. Reduce the heat and gradually whisk in the parmesan cheese, until smooth and thick.
- Add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. You can adjust the spices in your homemade Alfredo sauce to your taste.
My Recipe Tips
- Grab your largest saucepan. The larger your pan, the faster the cream will reduce. You can even use a skillet with tall sides!
- Be careful not to scorch the cream. You want a very gentle simmer, not a boil. Stir often, too, to avoid a film from forming on top.
- Make sure the cheese melts completely. This Alfredo sauce recipe is supposed to be smooth, but it can be lumpy if the cheese doesn’t melt fully.
- How to thicken Alfredo sauce if it’s too thin? Just add more parmesan! The amount in my recipe has the perfect thickness for me, but this will also depend on exactly how much you reduced the cream. It’s easy to add more parm if needed.
- What if it turned out too thick? Just stir in a little more cream until it reaches your desired consistency. Easy.
- Homemade Alfredo sauce thickens as it cools from hot to warm. Keep this in mind when deciding how thick you want it! If you store it in the fridge for later, it can even solidify completely, but will get thinner again when you warm it up.
- Add a little more salt and pepper than you think you need. The flavor will mellow out after mixing the sauce with pasta or vegetables.
- Want to double the recipe? My Alfredo sauce recipe makes 1 1/2 cups (6 servings), but you can easily scale it up by adjusting the number of servings on the recipe card below. Just keep in mind it’ll take longer to reduce the cream and melt in the cheese.
Ways To Use It
To say I love this Alfredo sauce on everything is an understatement! Here are my favorite savory dishes to put it on (or in):
- Pasta – Fettuccine Alfredo is the most classic option, but I actually love it on spaghetti squash noodles, cauliflower gnocchi, and zoodles (in my picture above). If you like a chicken Alfredo meal, I usually add my quick pan seared chicken breast.
- Proteins – Slather it over my healthy baked chicken, grilled shrimp skewers, or even pan seared salmon for a cozy vibe.
- Roasted Veggies – This Alfredo sauce recipe is amazing tossed with roasted broccoli or brussels sprouts, or drizzled over roasted asparagus.
- Casseroles – Swap the sauce in my chicken broccoli casserole with this one.
- Pizza – I love a white pizza! Spread this creamy sauce on your favorite crust with grilled chicken, sauteed spinach, red onions, and fresh or sauteed mushrooms. One of my favorite ways to use it is on a chicken crust pizza!
Homemade Alfredo Sauce (4 Ingredients)
Make my easy homemade Alfredo sauce recipe with 4 simple ingredients, in just 10 minutes! It's rich, creamy, and perfect on pasta or veggies.
Remove Ads
Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
-
Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and saute for about 30 seconds, until fragrant.
-
Add the heavy cream. Bring to a gentle simmer. Continue to simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until the volume is reduced by about 1/3. (Amount of time will vary depending on the size of your saucepan.)
-
Reduce the heat to low. Gradually whisk in the Parmesan cheese. Keep whisking over low heat, until smooth.
-
Stir in the nutmeg, sea salt, and black pepper, to your taste. If the Alfredo sauce is thicker than you like at this point, you can thin it out with more cream.
LAST STEP: Leave a rating to help other readers, or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram. I’d love to hear from you!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1/4 cup
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you get the right consistency in your sauce, and how to adjust the thickness if needed.
- Store: Keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. It usually turns solid, but will be normal again wheny ou heat it.
- Reheat: Warm up on the stove over very low heat, stirring often to smooth out lumps and prevent separation. I usually find the sauce is thicker the next day, so you can thin it out with more cream as needed.
- Freeze: You can absolutely freeze my homemade Alfredo sauce, for up to 3 months. Since it doesn’t have starches (or other mystery ingredients), it doesn’t freeze quite as well as the store-bought kind. I recommend thawing it in the fridge overnight, and then whisk when heating. If it still isn’t smooth, blitz it in a blender briefly.
📖 Want more recipes like this? Find this one and many more in my Easy Keto Carboholics’ Cookbook here.
I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
Add Your Notes Your Notes
Try More Of My Recipes
© Copyright Maya Krampf for Wholesome Yum. Please DO NOT SCREENSHOT OR COPY/PASTE recipes to social media or websites. We’d LOVE for you to share a link with photo instead.
Homemade Alfredo Sauce Recipe
338 Comments
Sherrie leding
0I fixed this for dinner tonight and added leftover rotiisseried chicken. I did have to thin it with a little more cream, but not much. I served it over cooked broccoli and it was so good.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I love your convenient tip, Sherrie! Thanks for stopping by!
Raquel
0This Alfredo sauce is AMAZING. I ate it over spaghetti squash. That was fantastic. Next time I will try it over the zoodles. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Racquel! I am so happy you loved it! Have a great day!
Jen
0Hi there! Do you think this recipe would work with almond milk instead of HWC? I’m allergic to anything that comes from a cow. So basically, a vegan version (except for the cheese).
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Jen! You can definitely try it, but it would probably be too thin. You can try coconut cream for a vegan version!
Gaston
0This sauce is so delicious! Super easy and quick to throw together with items that are usually on hand. We toss with spiralized zucchini and sliced lemon pepper chicken. The nutmeg is essential to achieving an authentic flavor.
A comment about the net carb count: I believe it’s around 2.5g to 3 net carbs per serving. Heavy cream is 0.4g carbohydrates per tbsp. With 1.5 cups (24 tbsp) that’s 9.6g for all the cream in the batch. Divided 6 ways that’s 1.6g of carbs from the cream alone. Add 0.9g carb per clove of garlic and around 0.25g carbs for every tbsp of Parmesan and you total out to just under 3 net carbs.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Gaston, Thank you – I’m so glad you liked it. I love it with zucchini noodles, too. Thank you for the breakdown on the carb count. You are right! There was a minor rounding issue and it’s now fixed.
Ellen
0Made this tonight with Cajun Seasoned Fresh Shrimp, mushrooms and added Cajun Hard Cheese too, served over zoodles……so so good.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Ellen! That sounds awesome!
sarah
0Just made this recipe…so good! Thanks!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thanks so much, Sarah! Have a great day!
Zachary
0I made this last night without the nutmeg, 3 garlic cloves, and probably another 1/4 cup of parmesan. Seasoned the precooked shrimp with salt, pepper, paprika, roasted garlic powder, and onion powder. Cooked it in coconut oil. OMG, THAT SAUCE WAS AMAZING!!!! Also, the hint of coconut on the shrimp was a wonderful twist.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Zachary!
Michael Roberson
0How is this recipe low carb with all of the heavy cream?
Julie
0Heavy cream is a low carb staple! Fat good, carbs bad!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Michael, Heavy cream has very little carbs, less than a gram per tablespoon.
Triple
0I do not have HWC, can I use milk and cream cheese or some other alternative?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi there, I haven’t tried that combination. It has come to mind before but in my opinion the tart flavor of cream cheese is not ideal for alfredo sauce. Regular milk would also increase the carbs. Let me know how it goes if you try it!
Carol
0Can you make this ahead of time and freeze it?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Carol, Yes, you can! Make sure to stir well when you reheat to prevent curdling.
Nick
0Garlic has up to 18 carbs per clove. There’s no way the nutritional information on this is correct.
Pete
0I used mince garlic to control the portion of carbs.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Nick, You might be thinking about the entire bulb. A clove of garlic has 1g total carbs with a little fiber, so 0.9g net carbs. The nutrition info on the recipe card is correct.
Shannon
0Awesome! Just made it and I want to drink it. Lol
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Shannon!
Rachel
0Would mozzarella cheese work ok in place of Parmesan?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Rachel, No, I don’t think so.
Lynn Tremblay
0Tried this the first time for dinner tonight. Pleasantly surprised. It is delicious. Highly recommend.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Lynn!
Lisa Kirkman
0What does everyone serve it over? I can’t have pasta unfortunately.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash are our favorites. Try this chicken alfredo.
Renea McClintock
0Wow! I just made this sauce last night. It was amazing!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Renea!
Emma
0This is the same recipe I use! It’s so good. I will usually add a few strips of chopped roasted red bell pepper in a jar. It will add a small amount to the carb total but it’s so yummy!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Emma! Adding roasted bell pepper sounds delicious!
Nicole
0How is this yummy sauce less then 1 net carb???! I love it but that seems so crazy to me!!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Nicole! I love it, too.
Mandi
0Would this sauce be okay to use in a Crock Pot? I’m wanting to make a Tuscan chicken dish that requires Alfredo sauce, but the store bought have ingredients I don’t need. I was thinking to make it the night before and use it the next day in the Crock Pot. Please let me know what you think. Thank you!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Mandi, Yes, absolutely! Just to clarify, I haven’t tried actually making the sauce in the Crock Pot so am not sure about that part, but once you have the sauce ready, you can definitely use it in any Crock Pot recipe. 🙂