Garlic Butter Sauce

This Garlic Butter Sauce, also known as garlic herb butter, is the ultimate in silky and delicious compound butters. Using lemon, parsley, fresh garlic and salt, it is a verstile sauce that can be made ahead of time.

garlic butter sauce with text overlay


 

This post used to house my garlic sauce for pizza. The perfect easy sauce recipe to dip pizza, pizza crust and breadsticks, but so many people were angry telling me it wasn’t a real garlic butter sauce. In fact, it was, but not what they were looking for.

So I made this post an elevated herb garlic butter suited for seafood and other uses and new post for the pizza garlic sauce.

gold spoon with garlic butter sauce

What Butter To Use

This delicious sauce is one of those times when the quality of butter is important. This garlic sauce is such a simple recipe, that choosing quality ingredients is very important and not all butters are created equal.

While it is fine to just throw a stick of butter in the pan, consider using cultured or European butter for a tangy, robust flavor. You can also use clarified butter, butter with milk solids and water removed. 

Some mass produced brands supplement their butter sauces with vegetable oil or olive oil. To me, that is just greasy, so I stick with the basics. 

angle of butter garlic sauce in a saucepan

Butter Grades

Butter is required to have an 80% butterfat, but cheaper butters might also have more water.

American butter typically doesn’t have as much flavor either. Grades, ranging from the best grade AA to grade B, are based on flavor, body, color and salt and water content.

For just bread and butter, or something where the dish is butter-forward with uncooked butter, splurge for the AA grade. If you plan to mix it, clarify it or use it minimally, opt for a lower grade. I keep 3 types of butter in my house.

The good stuff for bread, toast and bagels. It is typically already salted. A middle grade for basic cooking, also usually salted. And unsalted middle grade for baking.

Ingredients

This recipe uses basic ingredients, but simmered together for a short period of time, they are pure magic.

  • Unsalted Butter- The butter being clarified isn’t mandatory, but it is the only way to get that liquid gold look without the white froth. Unsalted is best so you can adjust the saltiness, but if it is salted, omit additional salt.
  • Fresh Garlic Cloves– Again with the quality of ingredients, use fresh garlic and not the jarred stuff or garlic powder. It is the only way to get real garlic flavor and not sweet. Garlic can be amped up by finely mincing, grating or pressing and taken back a little by a coarse chop or even slices. It all depends on how many membranes and fibers are broken. So whole garlic if often less garlicky than juiced or migrated. Garlic lovers unite!
  • Flat leaf parsley– Flat leaf is also known as Italian parsley and has the true parsley flavor. Curly parsley is used more for garnish than flavor. Other fresh herbs can be substituted or added in addition to, just make sure they are fresh. Chives, tarragon, thyme and rosemary are all winners, just make sure they are finely minced. Just don’t use any dried herbs.
  • Lemon Zest– Zest will give the most pure lemon flavor. Many recipes also use fresh lemon juice, but this will separate in the sauce, so for recipes like seafood, you are better off giving a spritz right before serving in addition to the garlic butter sauce than stirring it in.
  • Coarse Kosher Salt– Always my go-to, it is the least salty of the salts. If using a fine sea salt, reduce to just a small pinch and omit altogether if you use a salted butter.
overhead of garlic butter sauce in a small saucepan

Make It!

This rich buttery sauce is so easy to make.

  1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Don’t let the heat get too high.
  2. Add the minced garlic, lemon zest, fresh parsley and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Stir to combine and heat for an additional 1-2 minutes, then remove from the heat and set aside so the flavors can marry.
  3. Butter will harden if it gets too cool, simply reheat until melted.
lobster bite dipping into garlic butter sauce

Variations

This easy sauce has so many ways to make it your own through easy customizations. Here are a few of my favorites.

  • Crushed red pepper flakes
  • Ground black pepper
  • Addition of more fresh herbs
  • Dash of cayenne pepper or smoked paprika
  • Dash of hot sauce
  • Splash of white wine at the end

Ways to Use It

It’s a garlic butter sauce, so really what can’t you use it on?

spooning garlic butter sauce over grilled lobster tails

Storage & Freezing

You can store this sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, but remember it will solidify so you’ll need to remelt it. Butter absorbs the flavors around it, so to preserve all of the deliciousness, make sure it is in well sealed container or topped with a piece of plastic wrap.

Can I freeze Garlic Butter Sauce? You can freeze butter, but you want to make sure it is a high quality butter with little to no additional water. You’ll see they are graded on the packaging. Clarified butter freezes better than straight butter with milk solids. 

Some folks like to pour slightly cooked butter into ice cube trays, pop them out and then freeze them in airtight plastic bag. I like the silicone ones, they are easier to pop the cubes out. 

garlic butter sauce recipe for pinterest

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gold spoon with garlic butter sauce

Garlic Butter Sauce Recipe

4.14 from 79 votes
Easy garlic butter sauce recipe is perfect for steak, pasta, fish, shrimp, vegetables, and more! Make ahead and freezer friendly!
Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 12 minutes
Servings: 0.5 cup

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.
  • Add the minced garlic, lemon zest, parsley and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Stir to combine and heat for an additional 1-2 minutes, then remove from the heat and set aside. Butter will harden if it gets too cool, simply reheat until melted.
  • If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or star ratings.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 835 kcal, Carbohydrates: 5 g, Protein: 2 g, Fat: 92 g, Saturated Fat: 58 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 24 g, Trans Fat: 4 g, Cholesterol: 244 mg, Sodium: 1316 mg, Potassium: 104 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 0.4 g, Vitamin A: 3176 IU, Vitamin C: 14 mg, Calcium: 60 mg, Iron: 1 mg
Author: Jessica Formicola
Calories: 835
Course: Condiment, Sauce
Cuisine: American, French
Keyword: butter garlic sauce, garlic butter sauce, lemon garlic butter
Did you make this recipe?I’d love to see your recipes – snap a picture and mention @savoryexperiments or tag #savoryexperiments!
Jessica Formicola in her ktichen

About the Author

Jessica Formicola

Jessica the mom, wife and food lover behind Savory Experiments. She is obsessed with butter, salt and bacon and spends all her time in the kitchen and behind a camera. Jessica is a contributor to PopKitchen by Parade, Better Homes & Gardens, The Daily Meal Food + Travel and more!

Read More About Jessica

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Recipe Rating




Questions and Reviews

    1. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or at room temp for a few days. It is butter, so it will hard and need to be reheated.

  1. 5 stars
    Beautiful color and so much flavor! I drizzled this on rotisserie chicken and it transformed it.

  2. 5 stars
    This easy garlic herb butter, is very silky and delicious. I’m already thinking up recipes I want to put it on.

  3. 5 stars
    Absolutely delicious. Perfect for crab, shrimp, lobster, and then even away from seafood! This is great when making garlic bread!

  4. 5 stars
    Butter stains… one word…. DAWN!
    I use dawn to treat ALL stains, it hasn’t failed me yet. On whites i use clear dawn if i can find it, if not i use the lightest color of Dawn i can find. I had a blue dawn leave a faint color once, but my mamaw never had an issue. Maybe I let it sit too long, idk. But i assure you, try it and you’ll never use anything else!
    I love this article and all the tips and suggestions. I look forward to using this recipe.

  5. 5 stars
    Love this, I spilled my garlic butter sauce when I order pizza. I looked up the recipe on the internet and found this. I can now make this and put it on my vegetables and pizza. 🙂

  6. 5 stars
    This recipe has totally sparked a craving for pizza with a delicious garlicky butter sauce. I love garlic sauce or ranch with a delicious deep pan. I love to dip the crisp crust in it, yum!

  7. 5 stars
    So good! You would think that dipping sauce has some secret ingredient but its just butter and garlic powder! The perfect pizza dip!