A few months ago, while chatting with Gianna and Chuck on Slack, I realized something. I have never tasted Alfredo sauce. Not even once.
I didn’t think it was a big deal. I knew what it was and I read about it, but I just never had to curiosity to try it. After all, neither my relatives nor close friends ever did, and I never saw anyone from my town use it or talk about it.
I mean, Rome is a three-hour drive from here, and yet it’s like this sauce doesn’t exist for us. And I don’t think it’s a regional thing.
Sure, Italy’s main food blogs talk about it, but my impression is that, except for cuisine enthusiasts, most ordinary people barely know about it. I’m willing to bet that some don’t even consider it a native Italian recipe.
And to think that it was created in our capital city three decades before Carbonara – a dish we fight over both online and in real life every day!
With this new perspective, I could not continue to live in ignorance. So I asked Chuck what recipe he is using at Mortadella Head, and I did some research to further my knowledge.
This article is both for you and me. We’ll see two different ways of making Alfredo sauce from scratch, how to improve it when it’s store-bought, and how to store it properly.
Traditional Sauce Alfredo is made from butter, and cheese but even very traditional place add cream and milk into garlic, parmesan and parsley . Legend has it ,that a cook named Alfredo was asked in the middle of the night by his very pregnant wife to make pasta and that’s how Alfredo pasta had its origin.
How the original Alfredo sauce was made
The traditional Alfredo sauce recipe, the one that Mr. di Lelio used for his fettuccine, is made with just ½ lb of butter and ½ lb of grated parmesan cheese. Simple and effective.
The complete fettuccine Alfredo recipe is as follows:
- boil 1 lb of fettuccine pasta in salted water until al dente;
- melt the butter in a non-stick skillet or saucepan;
- add the parmesan and stir gently;
Now, of course, such a famous dish was bound to have some variants. And as you may have noticed, THAT’S A LOT OF CHEESE.
So, over the decades, most sellers started using lower amounts of dairy, while chefs and home cooks experimented with some extra ingredients.
This leads us to the next topic.
How to make store-bought Alfredo sauce better
If you’re not happy with the jarred alfredo sauce you got from the grocery store, or are looking for extra ingredients to add to the original recipe, there are lots of things that you can do. Here are some ideas.
Milk, heavy cream, or sour cream. Add 1/2 cup of one of these after melting the butter. You will get a creamier texture and a bolder flavor. If you want, you can also add some romano cheese to balance the nutty taste of the other dairy ingredients.
Chicken broth: another way to improve a jar of Alfredo sauce and give it a rich flavor. Add two or three ladles, then let it blend with the sauce until all excess liquid has evaporated. It will give your store-bought sauce a totally different spin. Chicken stock is fine too.
Cooked meat and vegetables: ever heard of chicken Alfredo? This sauce works perfectly with many types of meat (ground beef is another great option) and vegetables. Try a simple mix of chopped chicken, carrots, and sliced Cayenne pepper, or add ground beef browned with onions. Some people also add fresh broccoli, but that’s not among my personal favorites.
Seasonings, spices, and fresh herbs: this is definitely a great way to give your Alfredo sauce a more personal flavor. The most obvious choice is black pepper, but you can also add parsley and thyme, or dried herbs like oregano.
Some people add white wine to the saucepan while cooking – but I am not a fan of this method. The only scenario in which I would use it is when beef is included. I would use a glass of it to simmer the meat with onions, and I would add the rest of the ingredients only when it has evaporated.
Infused oils: I don’t always have them around, but I love infused oils. If you happen to have something like truffle oil, or some basil-flavored olive oil, drizzle two teaspoons over your plate of fettuccine Alfredo just before eating it.
Now that you know all the ways you can improve jarred alfredo sauce, here’s how we make it at Mortadella Head.
Compared to the original recipe, we use ½ cup of unsalted butter and 2 cups of grated cheese, and add the following ingredients:
- 4 – 6 chopped garlic cloves – you know the rules, no garlic powder! Get some fresh garlic cloves and chop or grate them;
- 1 + ½ cup heavy whipping cream for extra flavor;
- salt and black pepper to taste.
The method is quite straightforward. All you have to do is melt the butter in a saucepan, then add the garlic and the heavy cream, and cook at a low temperature. When it starts to bubble, toss in the parmesan and the spices, and mix until you get a nice cream.
Here’s a short video if you want to see the whole process.
CREAM CHEESE ALFREDO SAUCE
FAQ
How to make Alfredo sauce thick without cheese?
What is a good substitute for cheese in Alfredo sauce?
What is authentic Alfredo made of?
Does chicken Alfredo contain cheese?
Is Alfredo sauce a cheese?
Alfredo sauce is not a cheese, but is made using butter and Parmesan. This sauce is not cooked separately, rather the pasta is tossed with butter and Parmesan to create an emulsion. The same way the original carbonara sauce is made with egg and parmesan. So in short no, Alfredo sauce is not a cheese by itself but does rely on Parmesan heavily.
Can you make Alfredo if you don’t have Parmesan cheese?
If you’re going to make alfredo, you need to use parmesan cheese. It has the perfect sharp flavor and subtle dryness that your pasta sauce needs. If you don’t have parmesan, you can use other cheeses, but the sauce won’t be alfredo. The Kitchen Knacks notes Gruyere might be a good option because it has a more salty and milder flavor than parmesan.
Can you add cream cheese to Alfredo sauce?
Cream cheese might seem like an unconventional ingredient to add to a pasta sauce. But adding cream cheese to your alfredo sauce will make it taste much better. The cream cheese adds a thickening element to your sauce and a mild tangy flavor that makes your alfredo sauce unique.
Are Alfredo & white sauce the same?
No, Alfredo and white sauce are two different sauces. Where Alfredo is made with the pasta, in the pan, using butter and cheese, white sauce is different. White sauce is always cooked separately from the pasta. It uses butter, milk, flour and seasonings. You can add cheese to it if you like, but it becomes a different sauce.