Shop
My
Custom
If 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.
FREE 5-Ingredient Recipe EBook
GET IT NOW
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)
By
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.
Instructions
[ See step photos See my tips ]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.
Did you make it? Leave a review or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram!
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
Sandy Knecht
0Delicious. Made this twice and making it tonight. Great for shrimp and scallops. Thank you! Yes, I use fresh Parmesan.
Wesley Rainbolt
0This was absolutely delicious. I didn’t notice the sauté the garlic in the butter before adding the cream so I just added it as my cream and butter were starting to heat up and I also added about a 1/3 cup of Parmesan because it seemed a little runny at first but that made it perfect.
Law Blank
0Super easy directions. Turned out amazing.
Gwendolyn Abshire
0This was easy, delicious and filling. I am not a fan of cooking so this was perfect for me to make. Next time I’m going to try it with chicken or shrimp. Thank you for these recipes.
Liz
0Wow this was the best Alfredo sauce I have ever had. It was better than restaurant versions. It was thick and creamy and flavorful. And best of all it was so easy to make. WhenI ate it I felt like I was cheating my diet. But its all natural ingredients and it keeps to the Keto rules. I LOVED THIS RECIPE.
Gwendolyn Abshire
0I agree!
Claudia
0Mine did not thicken. The cheese melted into a big clump surrounded by watery cream.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Claudia, Sorry this recipe didn’t turn out as expected. Make sure you’re using freshly grated parmesan and whisk in gradually. Also make sure you’ve reduced the cream enough, and the heat isn’t too high when adding the cheese. Hope this helps!
Anna
0Can I use salted butter?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Anna, Yes, you can. I just prefer unsalted to control the saltiness separately.
Nikki
0Best and easiest Alfredo Ever! Made it with my new favorite Chicken and Sausage Alfredo with Angel Hair Miracle Noodles! Thank you!
Lafo
0Easy to follow and turns out tasty!
jan campbell
0The absolute best alfredo sauce I’ve ever had and surprisingly my gives it a 5 star as well. I’ve made it twice once with egg wraps cut into strips and again with some angel hair that we wanted to use up. This is recipe #2 of yours and we loved both! I was just looking at your white pizza with chicken crust. I’ll let you know how it turns out – fabulous I’m sure.
Jan Campbell
0Absolutely fabulous! I had some egg wraps that I rolled up and cust into noodles. Just dropped them in the sauce to warm and with the addition of chicken and a vegetable we had a wonderful meal.
Carol L
0Hi. Just made this to go with some chicken and vegetables. I thought I had low carb fettuccine, but didn’t…so I’m going to add some palm hearts rice and throw this on top. Making it to travel where there are no low carb options. One question: the salt, pepper and nutmeg, it would be nice to have a starting point. I know it’s to taste, but how much to start? 1/2 tsp? 1 tsp?
Thanks for the recipe!!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Carol, Start with 1/4 teaspoon and adjust from there. It can vary depending on how salty your parmesan is and your preference.
Carolyn Knapp
0Used fresh Parmesan (my cuisinart grates it in a breeze) and added it to the cream. Salt pepper nutmeg with the butter and garlic! This was quick and easy! And by far better than store bought!!! Thank you
Sandra
0The recipe is very good, but I will make one major change to it. I will be using the freshly ground Parmesan cheese from the store deli. There’s no way that I will use the Parmesan cheese in the green can. Yes,I realize that in many areas, that is all that is available. I made this last year, and it was perfect. And, surprise (!), my adult son likes it too. He also does not like the sauce that comes in a jar ( any brand ) either. I also will get the garlic crusher gadget; it looks very much like the kind that you mix pie crust mix up with, except you can rock it back & forth to chop the garlic. It’s going to be a lot easier for me to do that than to have to squeeze the garlic. Will let you all know if that thing does the job. Thank You, Maya, for posting this recipe.
Sherry Hoyt-Cline
0Made the sauce to put on Spaghetti squash mixed with asparagus, and grilled chicken. Was delicious!!! Simple. Thank you.
KW
0This recipe for Alfredo sauce is so decadent and good!!! I browned up some diced chicken breast and cauliflower and enjoyed a wonderful treat. Hubby who usually makes faces at keto kept sneaking into the kitchen for just one more taste. Thank you!
LJ
0Just made this for dinner. I didn’t have any nutmeg. My family loved it!! I can’t wait to try next time with the nutmeg. Thanks for sharing!
Sue
0Can you substitute coconut cream for the whipping cream?
Thanks Sue
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Sue, Yes, you can do that if you like.
Mary O’C
0I liked this recipe a lot because it’s versatile and easy. I made it again this evening and folded it over sautéed sliced mushrooms, red pepper chunks and spiraled zucchini noodles. I could have folded in my cooked cooked shrimp – or even cooked chicken – but wasn’t sure the shrimp and mushrooms would go well together. Still, it was delicious, filling and very colorful.
Jennifer Maestas
0Wow…was this ever so good. Due to my husband having to watch fat intake due to surgical concerns, I used 1/2 and 1/2 but everything was the same. Thank you for this!