This garlic butter recipe is ready in minutes. It really amps up a dish. Toss it with pasta, rice or potatoes. Use it to make garlic bread or garlic toast. It’s delicious on vegetables. I explain how to make garlic butter sauce as well.
Garlic butter is a form of flavoring that is made from the puree of roasted garlic and melted butter. Different variations exist such as herb, lemon, and truffle.
There are some tasty variations you can do to change it up for different flavors. Roast the garlic to give it a surprising savory twist. A pinch of cayenne adds just a touch of heat while the aromatic Italian herbs give it a Mediterranean feel.
Garlic Butter
With its fancy name of beurre à la bourguignonne, you will find making garlic butter from scratch is easy to do. It takes just 10 minutes of prep time. You can make a batch or double the recipe (depending on how many people you are serving) and then use it throughout the week for different recipes.
Use these step-by-step directions to make garlic butter. I think it is the best garlic butter you’ll ever taste. Truly, it is quick, simple and tastes amazing. If you don’t have cheese, basil, tarragon or paprika, you can still make this recipe. You can even add in a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter, softened – Either salted or unsalted is fine.
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated
- 1 teaspoon fresh basil, chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh tarragon, chopped
- ½ teaspoon white pepper or substitute black pepper
- ½ teaspoon sweet paprika – smoked
- Pinch of salt
Makes 16 servings (1 cup)
How to Make Garlic Butter
- In a small bowl, combine the butter with all ingredients except the fresh garlic.
- Once combined, spread the butter mixture over the bottom of the bowl. Peel the garlic cloves. Use a garlic press to press the fresh garlic (pulp and juice) into the butter mixture. Fold it gently into the butter mixture.
- Taste and add seasoning as desired. Mix until it is completely smooth.
- You can use it or serve it right from the bowl. Another option is to form it into a log for slicing.
Note: You want to use 1 tablespoon of fresh garlic, pressed with the juice. This is equal to about 3 cloves of garlic.
Easy Garlic Butter Sauce
To make garlic butter sauce, follow the directions above. Once you finish making it, set the mixture in a saucepan. Melt the butter over medium-low heat. Avoid using the microwave for this if you can. It is easy to lose control of the sauce and overcook it.
How to Store Garlic Butter
You can store garlic butter in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. I keep it in a bowl with a tight-fitting lid and transfer it to a plate when we eat at the table for a nice dinner.
You can also keep it in the freezer for up to 9 months. Be sure to wrap it securely and tightly in plastic wrap so there is no air. If freezing it, keep it off the shelf door (if your freezer has one) to keep it from fluctuating in temperature when you open the freezer.
Uses
Where to begin? My family loves using this on so many dishes. It really livens them up. Plus, I love the health component of garlic. You can use it to amp up breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner.
Spread butter garlic on toast, slather it on steak, or put it on seafood just before it hits the pan. It’s as easy as it is delicious. Set it on a plate with a sprig of rosemary or some parsley for an elegant meal.
One of the easiest uses for garlic butter is to toss it with hot pasta or rice. You can do the same with vegetables. It’s incredible on green beans, grilled acorn squash, honey roasted carrots, roasted brussels sprouts and carrots, or on asparagus.
Use this garlic butter recipe for potato dishes. It is delicious on baked potatoes. Use it to make garlic bread or garlic toast. It is delicious on vegan biscuits. Simply spread it on the bread.
If you put the butter on the food when it is hot, you won’t need to warm the butter to make it into sauce. Simply add the butter while the dish is warm and gently mix together.
Use this flavorful garlic butter recipe on any type of non-sweet foods you would typically put butter on. (Not on pancakes!)
Buying Garlic
I always buy organic garlic bulbs from my local grocery store. It is budget friendly. I have purchased peeled garlic cloves in a large container from Costco before but don’t like the preservatives in it so now I only buy fresh.
I buy garlic powder when it is on sale. My favorite is O Organics Garlic Powder. I buy it at Safeway or Albertsons. I like that the garlic powder comes in a glass spice jar. It costs a little bit more money to buy organic spices. However, they last a long time so I think it is worth it.
The price difference is usually negligible when I buy them on sale. I highly recommend stocking up on one or two organic spices you use often when they go on sale.
FAQ’s
What is garlic butter?
It is a compound butter made by combining garlic, butter and spices. You can use it to flavor dishes or to spread on bread.
What is garlic butter sauce made of?
It consists of butter, garlic, salt and different spices, depending on the recipe. Some people add lemon. When it is not warmed, it will take on the consistency of butter.
What do you use garlic butter for?
You can use it for so many foods. Mix it with pasta, rice, or potatoes. Slather it on bread or rolls for garlic bread, or make toast with it. You can add it to meat, seafood and poultry dishes. Using it for vegetables is also ideal. Garlic butter makes a great topping for pasta as well.
How long can garlic butter keep?
Keep the garlic butter sealed in an airtight container to maximize the time you can safely enjoy it. You can keep it up to 14 days in the refrigerator.
Easy Homemade Garlic Butter
You’ll never need to buy garlic butter again. It’s so much less expensive to make it yourself. Another benefit is it won’t have preservatives. You will be able to know exactly what is going into it.
You may wonder if it is healthy or unhealthy. I guess it depends on what you are comparing it to. When comparing it to butter alone, this butter with garlic has the added benefit of garlic which in my mind is healthier than butter alone. Garlic is known to have many attributes. When you crush garlic for freshly crushed garlic, you receive the benefits of allicin.
Before I learned to make most everything homemade, I would buy big loaves of premade garlic bread, either “fresh,” wrapped in foil, or frozen, from the grocery store. I had no idea how easy it was to make at home.
The more foods I make from scratch, the more confident I get about trying to make other foods. Homemade meals are so much healthier than processed foods.
What I like about making this is that I usually have the ingredients at home already. I always stock up on butter when it’s on sale. I have the garlic and the spices already. If I don’t have parmesan cheese, I’ll make the garlic flavored butter without it; it still tastes amazing.
Sometimes it is dull serving the same foods over and over again. I like that I can make butter or sauce with garlic and change up the taste for meals I make often. My family enjoys it too! I usually have leftovers as well which means I can use it for several meals. Or I can make it to toss with pasta and then have leftovers to use it to mix with green beans.
This garlic butter recipe is an easy and tasty way to add flavor to your favorite dish. Try it today!
Love all things garlic? Another recipe you might enjoy is roasted garlic aioli or this garlic salmon with cream sauce.
If you make this homemade garlic butter, please leave a note in the Comments and let me know how it was. What did you serve it with?
Garlic Butter
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 tablespoon fresh garlic, pressed with the juice equivalent to 3 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon fresh basil chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh tarragon chopped
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- ½ teaspoon sweet paprika or smoked
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the butter with all ingredients except the fresh garlic.
- Spread the butter mixture over the bottom of the bowl, and use the garlic press to press the fresh garlic (pulp and juice) into the butter mixture. Combine.
- Taste and add seasoning as desired.
- To make garlic butter sauce, transfer mixture into a saucepan. Set the stove on medium heat until it warms. Use immediately.