Copycat Alfredo Sauce – Homemade But Tastes Like Olive Garden

This Olive Garden copycat alfredo sauce is just as rich, creamy, and cheesy as the real deal, but is made at home and served over your favorite pasta!

If you are anything like me and my kids, then you are a huge fan of Olive Garden’s famous Alfredo sauce. Not only is it divine on their fettuccine pasta, but it’s also the perfect sauce for dipping those amazing breadsticks into, too! (If you haven’t tried that, please do!)

However, the pricetag that often comes with a trip to that restaurant can leave your wallet or bank account a bit lacking! So why not try to make a copycat version that tastes just as good as the real thing, but made for way cheaper? What’s better is that you get to control the amounts and ingredients that go into the sauce.

This homemade Alfredo sauce can be made in just about 10 minutes. Pair it with your favorite pasta and some shrimp or chicken, and you have a delicious Italian meal without having to get out of your pajamas!

What Is Olive Garden’s Alfredo Sauce?

Most Alfredo sauces are made by combining a mixture of butter, cream, and cheese. What else goes into the sauce varies depending on the recipe, but you will often see garlic, salt, pepper, and other seasonings added.

Sometimes chicken, shrimp, or other seafoods are added to add more body and protein to the Alfredo. Cooked broccoli is also a common addition and would work great in this recipe as well.

The smooth and creamy Alfredo sauce is then typically served over fettuccine noodles. However, you can also use penne pasta or any of your favorite pastas.

And while I don’t personally know the actual recipe or ingredients that Olive Garden uses, based on flavors, this recipe comes pretty darn close!

How To Make Olive Garden Copycat Alfredo Sauce

*Scroll down to the bottom of this post to see the full recipe, including exact measurements and amounts. You can also print out the instructions. I go into a bit more detail about the recipe here first, just in case you need it.

Ingredients  

• Butter – Use a real cream-based butter for this recipe. Stay away from margarines and oil types if you can. We use salted butter, but you can also use unsalted. Just keep in mind which one you use when you go to add salt at the end of cooking and adjust accordingly.
• Garlic – We like to use our homegrown garlic (store-bought garlic works well too). It just has a better flavor profile compared to the pre-minced jarred stuff. (Want a quick cooking shortcut? Mince a bunch of garlic and freeze it at once so you can grab what you need without having to stop and mince when making recipes.)
• All-Purpose Flour – Any type of AP flour works well for the recipe. The flour will help to thicken the sauce as it cooks.
• Milk – You can use whatever type of milk you have on hand. We normally have 2%. I’d advise against using skim milk, however.
• Heavy Cream – The heavy cream will help to add body and richness to the sauce. Don’t skimp on this and use half and half or just all milk. If you’re going to indulge in an Alfredo sauce, do it right and get the heavy stuff!

Ingredients Continued

• Parmesan Cheese – The best kind of cheese to use is freshly shredded right off the block or wedge. It does take a few additional minutes to do this task, but the result is more than worth it. Avoid using bagged pre-shredded cheeses since most of them contain anti-caking ingredients that will make the cheese harder to melt. This will result in a less creamy and smooth Alfredo sauce.
• Romano Cheese – You can most often find blocks of Romano cheese in the “fancy” cheese counter. It is a bit more expensive to buy the “fancy” cheese, but you can get a wedge for not that much. And since the recipe only calls for a half cup, the wedge lasts you for several recipes.
• Salt & Pepper – Add the salt and pepper at the end of cooking the sauce. Some cheese varieties contain more salt than others, so go light at first and add as needed. It’s always easier to add more salt and almost impossible to remove it if you use too much!
• Optional Ingredients – The most common add-ins for Alfredo sauce are chicken, broccoli, shrimp, or some other types of seafood. These ingredients are optional, but if using, add them pre-cooked.

Instructions For Copycat Alfredo Sauce

First off, get your pasta water started so your noodles can cook while you make the Alfredo sauce. Boil your fettuccini or other pasta according to the package directions. (Or try your hand at making homemade noodles!) We like to keep our pasta al dente when enjoying it with this copycat Alfredo sauce. When it’s done, drain the water and set it aside for serving.

In a large cast iron skillet or other heavy-based skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Don’t cook the butter for too long, or else you will end up with brown butter. And that’s a whole different flavor profile you don’t really want in the copycat Alfredo sauce! (But it does make delicious Sourdough Discard Chocolate Chip Cookies!)

Then add the minced garlic to the pan and cook for about a minute. Keep stirring so the garlic doesn’t burn. You want to cook until the garlic is nice and fragrant.

Now it’s time to whisk in the flour until it is well combined and most of the butter has been turned into a thickish paste. Continue cooking while stirring for about a minute.

It’s Time To Get Cheesy!

Slowly whisk in the milk and heavy cream and combine with the flour. Then add both types of cheeses. Keep whisking the ingredients together until the cheese has melted completely.

Once the cheese has melted, turn the heat down to low and continue stirring until the mixture starts to thicken. You want to cook off some of the moisture until the sauce has reached your desired consistency. It should coat the back of a spoon while slowly dripping off.

Taste the sauce and flavor with salt and pepper. Depending on your cheese, you may not need to add much, if any, salt. Normally, we add around 1/4 tsp of salt and about 1/8 tsp of pepper. (However, I don’t typically measure when I add them to our sauce.)

Add Additional Ingredients (Optional) And Serve

If desired, add in a source of protein or cooked vegetables like broccoli at this time. Normally, we use precooked chicken or shrimp, but you can add about any type of seafood to make it a seafood Alfredo instead. Allow the mixture to heat through for just a minute or two.

Serve the copycat Alfredo sauce over cooked fettuccine noodles or pasta of choice. Garnish the top with additional shredded Parmesan and parsley. Now, just close your eyes to imagine you are sitting at Olive Garden instead of your kitchen table!

If you want even more Alfredo goodness, try your hand at my Chicken Alfredo Penne Bake. It’s the same basic flavors but with even more melted cheeses! Enjoy!

Until next time, thanks for stopping by!
– Chelsea

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