The Cozy Cookbook is here! Make Olive Garden’s Alfredo Sauce Recipe at home in just 20 minutes! Pair it with Fettuccine for an easy dinner idea the whole family will love!
Love Olive Garden Copycat Recipes?! Try these Chicken Gnocchi or Zuppa Toscana Soup recipes next!
I know it’s a restaurant chain, but honestly, Olive Garden’s Alfredo Sauce recipe is just perfect in my book. Hands-down. Chain or no chain, I love it.
(And you won’t believe how easy it is to make at home!)
PRO Tips For Making Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce:
- Olive Garden’s Alfredo Sauce recipe is made with Parmesan and Romano Cheeses, however you can also incorporate Mozzarella, Gruyere, Gouda, or Asiago. You can also just use Parmesan.
- You can use half and half instead of half heavy cream/half milk.
- If you only have evaporated milk, just use half the amount of milk and replace the other half with water. You won’t compromise flavor or consistency by doing this in creamy sauces like this one.
- You can even experiment with different pastas. I like fettuccine because the noodles soak up that thick sauce well, and Tortellini Alfredo with Broccoli is delicious as well!
How to Make Alfredo Sauce
Melt the butter. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
Whisk in the flour. Add heavy cream and milk. Gradually whisk in the cheese.
Add cooked Fettuccine. Sauce will continue to thicken upon standing.
Tip: I like to use 3/4 lb. of fettuccine for saucier pasta, but this recipe will satisfy a full pound as well.
Tips for Extra-Creamy Sauce
- Use blocks of (high-quality) cheese and shred it yourself for extra creamy results. Bagged shredded cheese has cellulose added to it to prevent the cheese from sticking together in the bag. Cellulose repels moisture, which makes it melt poorly in comparison to shredding the cheese yourself.
- Let the cheese come down to room temperature before adding it to the sauce.
- Sprinkle in the cheese gradually, the sauce should be warm but not too hot. Otherwise the dairy will separate and the consistency will be grainy.
- High-quality butter is important. I like Land O’ Lakes brand.
⭐Pro Tip: Alfredo sauce continues to thicken upon standing, and thickens even more when it’s added to pasta. Refrain from adding additional cheese to thicken it up.
⭐This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 132!
Making Alfredo Sauce Ahead of Time
- Alfredo sauce is a convenient make-ahead and freezable sauce. Unlike some other cheese sauces, the flour in this recipe helps it to maintain it’s consistency when cooled and reheated.
- It can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- It can also be frozen and is best if used within 1-2 months.
How to Reheat Alfredo Sauce
- Alfredo sauce will thicken up and harden as it cools, but can be easily microwaved or slowly reheated on the stove top. Reheating in a makeshift double boiler is the best reheating method to restore it back to it’s original form. (Either by itself or when combined with pasta.)
- Frozen Alfredo sauce should be thawed overnight in the fridge before heating.
- If the sauce is too thick when reheated, add a splash of milk or chicken broth to thin it out.
Try These Next!
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- Olive Garden Salad
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- Copycat Longhorn Parmesan Crusted Chicken
-
- Tuscan Mac and Cheese
-
- Creamy Garlic Chicken
-
- Bacon Mac and Cheese
-
- Mushroom Chicken
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Did You Make This Recipe?
I would love for you to leave a rating and a comment below! How’d you do?! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce
Ingredients
- 6 Tablespoons salted butter, high quality
- 1 Tablespoon garlic, minced
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 1 ½ cups whole milk, 1% or 2% can be used if needed
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated and at room temperature
- ½ cup Romano cheese, grated and at room temperature
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- 1 lb. Fettuccine
- Parsley, to garnish
Instructions
- Boil the fettuccine according to package instructions. As the water preheats, begin the sauce.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for one minute.
- Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring continuously.
- Add the heavy cream in splashes, stirring continuously. Add the milk in the same manner.
- Bring to a gentle bubble, then reduce heat to low to bubble. It will continue to thicken as it simmers.
- Slowly stir in the cheese. Taste and season with salt/pepper if desired.
- Drain the pasta and carefully mix it into the sauce until well incorporated. The pasta will absorb the sauce and it will continue to thicken.
- Garnish with chopped parsley and serve!
Notes
For Saucier Pasta: Use 3/4 lb. pasta instead of a full pound.
Pro Tips for Reheating:
- Alfredo sauce will thicken up and harden as it cools, but can be easily microwaved or slowly reheated on the stove top. Reheating in a makeshift double boiler is the best reheating method to restore it back to it's original form.
- Frozen Alfredo sauce should be thawed overnight in the fridge before heating.
- If the sauce is too thick when reheated, add a splash of milk or chicken broth to thin it out.
- Be sure to serve this with my Olive Garden Salad!
⭐This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 132!
Family loves this!!! I am so glad I found this. I paired chicken and shrimp and let them choose the one they wanted… No one spoke for ten minutes as they were in dreamland eating!!
I always love when the family goes silent, that’s how I know I’ve got a winner! Thanks so much for the great comments and review Kat!💖
Loved this recipe! So easy to follow and tastes delish
Thanks so much Ariel, I’m so happy you liked it!💖
Loved this recipe! Been craving OG, this is a perfect alternative for my favorite sauce there! Added canned mushrooms and peas, so good.
I’m so happy you enjoyed it Angela! Thanks so much for the great review!💖
This was sooooo good! I’ve tried a few recipes that were ok but this was delicious. This will definitely be in rotation
That makes me so happy Alisa! Thanks so much for the great comments and review!💖
OG Alfredo actually has cream cheese in it. I’m sure this is a good recipe, but to get that true OG flavor, it requires the cream cheese.
I got this recipe from the Olive Garden website back in the day 🙂
Yes, but they weren’t sharing their actual recipe. I worked there once upon a time. 🙂
We made it fresh every day.
Gotcha 🙂 There have been a lot of OG chefs to comment on this post and everyone says it’s made differently. (This is the first I’ve heard someone mention cream cheese though- but I’m not doubting you!)
One ex prep chef said the recipe was this: “•2 T melted unsalted butter •1 tsp minced garlic •1 large canister Kraft Parmesan; sifted •1 pkg Knorr white sauce powder •1 pint heavy whipping cream •1 C milk •dash of black pepper”
Another said it was this: “•3 oz butter • 1tbsp garlic sauté together • 2 tablespoons flour • 1-1/2 c milk • 1/2 c romano • 1-1/2 c heavy cream • 1/2 c parm • “Salt and pepper to taste
Another said this: “I’ve worked at Olive Garden for 20 years and we have never used romano cheese only Parmesan cheese, also we never substituted half and half for heavy cream, first we melt butter then sauté garlic in the butter we then add heavy cream and a little bit of whole milk, bring that up to 185 degrees then finally add grated Parmesan salt pepper, and a proprietary corn starch blend to help hold the sauce, the last part you can omit when making at home”
So… lots of conflicting recipes out there, it makes me wonder if it’s made differently based on location, perhaps depending on what ingredients are available in that region. I tend to find that this recipe is an extremely close replica, it’s the only way I’ll make alfredo! 🙂
Super easy
Thanks for the great review Tamara, I’m so happy you liked it and found it easy!💖
I’m incredibly picky. Like.. it’s ridiculous and I hate it. This is so freaking good. I found this recipe like, a year or so ago. Now, I make it A LOT. 😅 My kids absolutely love it too. I’m just recently teaching myself to make more homemade meals and bake, this was easy to make and has definitely helped me be more interested in other recipes and trying more things since then. I have come to learn that I absolutely love cooking. And baking!
Thanks for helping me save A LOT of money 😂
This makes me so happy Ashley! I discovered my love for cooking years ago and it’s brought me so much joy. My husband is actually getting into it now. Thanks so much for the great comments and review, I can’t wait for you to try other recipes!💖
Thank YOU! I’m so happy he’s getting into it! My son is starting to become interested too and I absolutely love it. So here for this! I’m so excited to try more! I’ll make sure I don’t wait a year or so for the next review 😂
Thanks Ashley!💖
Being Italian, I have never used flour to thicken up my alfredo sauce. However the cheese blend is perfection! Brava! Now to go and try out your Creamy Garlic Chicken recipe.
I’m so happy you liked it! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review, I can’t wait for you to try the Creamy Garlic Chicken!💖
Very delicious and super easy step by step instructions. I don’t buy the jar sauce anymore
Thank you for sharing 😊
That makes me so happy Julie! Thanks so much for the great comments and review!💖
Hi, I just the recipe it was delicious thank you I’ll give you five stars it taste like if you’re eating at Olive Garde!
Thanks so much for the great review Linda, I’m so happy you liked it!💖