Paula Deen Alfredo Sauce - American Chefs Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between American Alfredo and Italian Alfredo? ›

The alfredo sauce, which now catered to American tastes rather than Italian, evolved to include ingredients like flour, cream, milk, and shrimp or chicken. To this day, di Lelio's original recipe only contains three ingredients: fettuccine, young Parmesan cheese, and butter.

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.

You can use half and half instead of half heavy cream/half milk. If you only have evaporated milk, just use half the amount of milk and replace the other half with water. You won't compromise flavor or consistency by doing this in creamy sauces like this one. You can even experiment with different pastas.

In the American version, the sauce is made with cream, garlic (generally speaking, Americans love garlic more than Italians), butter and Parmesan cheese, while in the Italian version you would simply toss the pasta in butter and Parmigiano Reggiano and mix it into a creamy consistency.

Add heavy whipping cream, a little at a time, whisking to smooth out lumps. Stir in Parmesan and pepper. Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency. Sauce will thicken rapidly, thin with milk if cooked too long.

Heartier herbs like thyme or oregano can be added in to simmer with the sauce. Add delicate herbs like parsley, basil, or chervil at the end to maintain their delicate, aromatic flavor. Quick tip: Swirl in a bit of leftover pesto to add another herbaceous twist to your Alfredo sauce.

My alfredo is based with olive oil instead of butter and requires simple ingredients you likely have on hand right now. Pesto, parmesan cheese, milk, flour, garlic, veggie or chicken stock. That's it! And it's so creamy and delicious you wouldn't believe it's actually healthy.

Is Heavy Cream the Same as Heavy Whipping Cream? Yes, heavy cream and heavy whipping cream are the exact same thing. The confusion lies in the fact that they're sold by different brands under two different names.

Can I use mozzarella instead of parmesan in Alfredo? ›

Parmesan is the signature flavor in Alfredo sauce but you can also combine it with other cheeses for additional flavor. You can also make a a completely different sauce/different flavor profile by swapping the Parmesan for another melting cheese such as mozzarella, Asiago, Gouda, smoked cheddar, Monterrey, etc.

The flour in the roux makes this a very stable, very reliable, and a very forgiving sauce. The Alfredo sauce will harden into a thick paste once it cools in the fridge, but give it a few minutes of gentle heat on the stovetop or in the microwave, and it will once again become silky and creamy.

The key ingredient in Alfredo sauce is cheese—generally Parmigiano Reggiano—and lots of it. To thicken Alfredo sauce, simply add more cheese than the amount called for in a recipe until you achieve the consistency you want.

Did you know that the term “Alfredo” is not used often in Italy? There are many different combinations of butter and parmesan similar to what we define using the name we recognize, but Italians call all of these combinations “al burro”.

Cacio e pepe is made by emulsifying pasta water with grated cheese and black pepper. It clumps so easily. Alfredo has an image problem. Americans think of it as pasta draped in a cream sauce made of heavy cream and cheese, but the original version is thinner and creamy from an emulsion of butter and grated cheese.

Chicken Alfredo is a classic combo of creamy Alfredo sauce, grilled chicken and oven-baked cheese, while Cheesy Alfredo features the new Alfredo sauce and two layers of cheese with baked Parmesan on top.