Alfredo Sauce Recipe

Article by Alice K. Thompson

This easy, versatile pasta sauce recipe is a family favorite in The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond’s household. It’s rich and irresistibly creamy, with big flavor from three everyday ingredients. You’ll need just cream, butter and your favorite Parmesan, plus a little salt and pepper. Here are a few of Ree’s top tips, plus serving options that will keep you coming back to this Italian-American winner.

Tips for Making Homemade Alfredo Sauce

Here’s how Ree gets this delicious, silky sauce stirred up in minutes.

Choose a heavy saucepan or skillet. A thick pan distributes heat more evenly, meaning you won’t risk burning the sauce on the bottom and sides of the pan.

Cook over moderate heat. Medium to medium-low will give you gentle heat that melts the butter and cheese without bubbling.

Use freshly grated Parmesan. The flavor and aroma will usually be better, and some pre-grated cheese has additives that can affect the texture of the sauce.

Stir with a whisk. A whisk will help the ingredients incorporate better than a spoon or spatula for smooth, silky results.

Cook just until the cheese melts. As soon as the sauce is smooth, you can remove it from the heat; overcooking it could cause it to separate.

Add just a little salt. Parmesan is salty, so you’ll need very little extra salt, or perhaps none.

Thin the sauce with pasta water. Set aside about 1/2 cup of cooking water before you drain your noodles. If the sauce looks too thick you can add some while tossing it with the pasta.

Makes enough for 1 pound pasta. This 2 1/4-cup recipe makes enough for about 1 pound pasta, although of course opinions vary on how heavily pasta should be sauced.

Fettuccine is classic. Thick Alfredo sauce is perfect for clinging to fettuccine’s wide strands, but you can use any noodle: bowties, spaghetti, penne, tortellini and more. And check out some creatively delicious things you can do with it below. (Pizza, anyone?)

Feel free to double or triple the recipe. Just choose a big saucepan. The sauce will keep refrigerated for up to 5 days — long enough to try out some new dishes!

Serving Suggestions

Our Food Network chefs and recipe developers have been riffing on Alfredo sauce for decades. Here are some classic Italian American dishes as well as some that take the sauce in unique directions.

Just add chicken. Boneless breasts are a go-to when matching Alfredo with a protein. Keep it traditional with this classic recipe, or try this delicious casserole-style chicken Alfredo with penne.

Shrimp is perfect too. Cooks are almost as fond of putting shrimp with Alfredo as chicken. Here’s a popular shrimp Alfredo, or a skillet dinner that adds some extra seasonings.

Try it on stuffed pasta. Alfredo is an excellent match for cheese tortellini, butternut squash ravioli, vegetable agnolotti and other stuffed pastas. This baked manicotti with Alfredo is a favorite too.

Make Alfredo pizza. Use it in place of marinara sauce as the base for a white pie like this pizza or these English muffin pizzas.

How to Store and Reheat Homemade Alfredo Sauce

How to Store Alfredo Sauce

• Place cooled Alfredo in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
• Although you can safely freeze Alfredo for up to 6 months, it’s not recommended; the sauce will lose the creamy, smooth texture it’s famous for.

How to Reheat Alfredo Sauce

• Place cold Alfredo in a small saucepan and reheat very gently over medium-low heat, stirring frequently.
• Or put it in a microwave-safe bowl and cook in 30-minute intervals, stirring between each, until it’s hot.
• You can also pour it cold over hot pasta and toss it on the stove until it is warmed and coats the noodles, adding hot pasta cooking water as needed.