This is an incredibly simple five ingredient garlic parmesan sauce that you can add to pasta, wings, and so much more. Use it to dip your favorite pizza crust and bread, or simply drizzle it over anything where you want a burst of garlicky zest.
This garlic parmesan sauce is unbelievably quick and flavorful. It comes together in just five minutes from start to finish.
With just a few minutes of effort you’ll be creating something delicious – no bottled sauces or dressings required!
We love an easy weeknight pasta dinner, and I know your family probably does, too! That’s why I am always working on easy, quick sauces that are packed with flavor but effortless.
Looking for more ideas? Check out Creamy Fontina Cheese Pasta, Lemon Pepper Sauce, Spaghetti With Mizithra Cheese And Browned Butter, and the classic Pasta Aglio E Olio.
We love those creamy, garlicky, cheesy pasta options and I’m always so thrilled to share with you! Balance this type of pasta dish with a beautiful salad or roasted veggies and it becomes a wholesome, nutritious meal everyone can enjoy.
The big bonus about this incredibly simple recipe is that it can be used in so many ways. Dip pizza, breadsticks, veggies or chicken kabobs into it, or baste your favorite grilled meats.
It’s a topping, it’s a dip, and it’s a vibrant sauce for a variety of your favorite pasta shapes. Let’s celebrate the simplicity of butter, garlic and parmesan, am I right? I know you’re going to love it!
Why You’ll Love this Garlic Parmesan Sauce
- So Easy
- Customize to Your Tastes
- Fastest Weeknight Dinner
- So Versatile
These pasta sauce creates one of the best Salmon Side Dishes, and don’t miss this round up of Side Dishes for Steak, too. It’s one of our favorite Pasta Side Dishes.
Garlic Parmesan Sauce Ingredients
- Butter – Salted butter is fine here – if you use unsalted, just watch your additional salt and make sure you add it to taste!
- Minced Garlic – You can also use garlic powder, but I prefer fresh minced garlic. We love a lot of garlic around our house, and you can find my complete guide to Garlic Conversions here! Learn how to peel garlic here and how to mince garlic here.
- Salt – I always love big cracks of sea salt but you can use any kind of salt!
- Pepper – Fresh cracked pepper is ideal.
- Parmesan – Fresh grated parmesan is the best bet! You can use pre-grated but it just doesn’t melt as well.
Variations
- Use Garlic Confit instead of fresh garlic.
- Or add Roasted Garlic.
- Add a little heavy whipping cream to create a creamy garlic parmesan sauce – up to one cup!
- Italian Seasoning adds a delicious blend of herbs
- Add fresh parsley or basil – for the pretty pop of green and vibrant Italian flavor
How to Make this Garlic Parmesan Sauce in Just Three Steps
- In a large saucepan, melt butter on medium heat.
- Add garlic and sauté for one minute, stir in salt and pepper.
- Add parmesan as you remove from heat (or wait and add as you’re tossing into pasta or serving).
Tips
- Since there are so few ingredients, you’ll want each of them to shine. Use the best quality you can!
- Fresh grated parmesan is everything in this recipe.
- Fresh minced garlic cooks very quickly, watch so it doesn’t burn.
Scaling up, down or substituting? You’ll love this printable Measurement Conversion Chart!
Frequently Asked Questions
In this case, no! While the ingredients are very similar, alfredo is a much richer and thicker sauce, filled with egg yolk and lots of heavy whipping cream.
Serving Suggestions
- Add to wings
- Toss with pasta for Garlic Parmesan Pasta
- Baste onto grilled or baked chicken, steak or shrimp
- Dip fresh or grilled veggies
- Use with pizza
- Try it with roasted potatoes or roasted cauliflower
- Serve with homemade artisan bread
Hungry for more easy recipes? Sign up for my free recipe club and have amazing recipes delivered directly to your inbox each week!
How to Store
- At Room Temperature – Keep at room temperature while using, but transfer to the refrigerator after a couple of hours.
- Refrigerate – Store in the refrigerator in a covered container for up to a week.
- Freeze – Do not freeze this garlic parmesan sauce.
Dietary Considerations
- Gluten Free
- Nut Free
- Vegetarian
More Garlic Love
Garlic Parmesan Sauce
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter salted (one stick)
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic or garlic powder or cloves
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper fresh cracked
- ½ cup parmesan fresh grated
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, melt butter on medium heat.
- Add garlic and sauté for one minute, stir in salt and pepper.
- Add parmesan as you remove from heat (or wait and add as you’re tossing into pasta or serving).
Tips
- Since there are so few ingredients, you’ll want each of them to shine. Use the best quality you can!
- Fresh grated parmesan is everything in this recipe.
- Fresh minced garlic cooks very quickly, watch so it doesn’t burn.
Video
Estimated nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is not guaranteed.
Can this recipe be stored for another time?
Hi Pat,
The storage directions are in the post as follows:
At Room Temperature – Keep at room temperature while using, but transfer to the refrigerator after a couple of hours.
Refrigerate – Store in the refrigerator in a covered container for up to a week.
Freeze – Do not freeze this garlic parmesan sauce.
Enjoy!
Julie
I love parmesan and garlic. Turns out this recipe is made for me. It tasted delicious, I ate it with pasta and chicken pieces, yum!
No measurement!!!
See the printable recipe at the bottom of the post or simply click “jump to recipe”. Enjoy.
Sound really good but how much pasta.
about 12 ounces of prepared pasta
Do you not post reviews for this recipe? I see how many stars but I do not see where people wrote about their experience with this recipe.
Yes, I received and responded to your email as well. We do not require readers to comment to leave a rating. Some do, others prefer to simply select their rating. However, we do not approve ratings when the reader did not make the recipe and rate based on whether or not comments are required.