Silky Fettuccine Alfredo Butter (Printable Version)

Silky fettuccine tossed in creamy butter and Parmesan sauce with optional sautéed chicken.

# List of Ingredients:

→ Pasta

01 - 14 oz fettuccine

→ Sauce

02 - 4 tbsp unsalted butter
03 - 1 cup heavy cream
04 - 1 1/4 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
05 - 1 garlic clove, finely minced (optional)
06 - Salt, to taste
07 - Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
08 - Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (optional)

→ Optional Chicken

09 - 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
10 - 2 tbsp olive oil
11 - Salt and pepper, to season

→ Garnish

12 - Fresh parsley, chopped
13 - Extra Parmesan cheese

# How-To Steps:

01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the fettuccine until al dente according to package instructions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water, then drain the pasta.
02 - Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté chicken 6-7 minutes per side until golden and cooked through. Transfer to a plate, rest 5 minutes, then slice thinly.
03 - In a large pan over medium-low heat, melt butter. Add minced garlic if using, sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
04 - Pour in heavy cream and bring to a gentle simmer, stirring constantly for 2-3 minutes.
05 - Reduce heat to low. Gradually whisk in Parmesan until melted and sauce is smooth. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
06 - Add drained fettuccine to the sauce, tossing to coat evenly. Add reserved pasta water gradually to adjust sauce consistency as needed.
07 - Serve fettuccine Alfredo topped with sliced chicken if using, sprinkled with chopped parsley and extra Parmesan cheese.
08 - Serve immediately while hot.

# Expert Suggestions:

01 -
  • It tastes like you spent hours cooking when you actually spent twenty minutes, which feels like a small victory every single time.
  • There are only a handful of ingredients, so you're not standing in front of the refrigerator wondering what went wrong.
  • The sauce is forgiving enough to let you add chicken, mushrooms, or nothing at all, making it work for whatever mood you're in.
02 -
  • The sauce will thicken as it cools, so if it seems a little loose on the stove, that's actually right—pasta water is your friend and fixing it later is easy.
  • Don't let the cream boil hard or the Parmesan get too hot, or your sauce will break into a greasy, separated mess that no amount of stirring fixes.
  • Freshly grated cheese melts smooth; pre-grated cheese with cellulose turns the sauce grainy and disappointing.
03 -
  • Keep the heat low and your patience high; rushing the sauce is the most common way this goes wrong, and it's also the easiest thing to fix by slowing down.
  • Use a whisk when the cheese goes in, not just a spoon—it distributes the heat more evenly and keeps the sauce from breaking or getting lumpy.
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