In the early 1900s, Italian restaurateur Alfredo Di Lelio started serving plates of pasta enrobed with cheese and butter at his restaurant in Rome. Known today as fettuccine Alfredo, the dish gained more fame in the past century in the US than in its home country. But it also evolved in its new environs: American cooks added heavy cream or half-and-half to thicken and enrich the sauce. To each their own, but no authentic fettuccine Alfredo recipe should include cream (because it dulls the flavor of the cheese).
Like Roman staples cacio e pepe and pasta alla gricia, the gloss in Alfredo sauce comes from an emulsion of cheese with starchy pasta water (and, in this case, butter, which should be cold and cut into small pieces). It’s not a complicated technique, but it requires patience. The rich dairy must be introduced to the water slowly so that the elements can coalesce into that silky sauce. For extra guidance, check out this step-by-step video.
The short ingredient list—pasta, butter, and Parmesan—means this is the place to be choosy, particularly with the cheese. Parmigiano-Reggiano (look for its name stamped on the side) is the classic choice and will absolutely give you the best flavor, but there are less expensive substitutes. Whatever you buy, choose a whole wedge and grate it coarsely yourself; or, pulse it in a food processor or blender (about five 30-second pulses should do it) to produce small beads of cheese that will melt evenly.
To transform this simple pasta dish into chicken Alfredo, serve alongside a platter of tangy chicken piccata; or for shrimp Alfredo, make garlicky shrimp scampi.
Recipe information
Total Time
15 minutes
Yield
4 Servings
Ingredients
12
¼
¾
Preparation
Step 1
Cook 12 oz. fettuccine or other long pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water over high heat, stirring occasionally, until very al dente. Drain, reserving 2 cups pasta cooking liquid.
Step 2
Transfer 1 cup pasta cooking liquid to a large skillet. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat, then gradually whisk in ¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, no more than 1 Tbsp. at a time, until melted. Whisking constantly, gradually add ¾ cup (75 g) freshly grated Parmesan cheese, making sure it’s completely melted and incorporated before adding more. Add cooked pasta and toss to coat, adding more pasta cooking liquid as needed, until sauce blankets noodles completely. Garnish with freshly ground black pepper and more Parmesan cheese.
Editor’s note: This recipe was first printed in our October 2016 issue. Head this way for more of our best pasta recipes →
Leave a Review
Reviews (196)
Back to TopNow, I have a Love Hate relationship with this recipe. Love,Love,LOOOOVE the recipe.NO CREAM, YAH!!! Made it tonight, super delish, my new fav. Hate, Hate ,Hate, the clean up. why cheese???
KyAnnSugar
Texas
4/1/2018
Loooove this recipe!!! Super easy and quick for such a delicious meal. Love that there's no cream, tastes magnificent. Making sure to really salt the water helped a ton. All around great recipe.
juliefish
California
4/9/2018
Whisk until the cheese melts WHEN? After a half-hour, an hour, WHEN? When dinner was an hour and a half late, I threw it out and started over with powdered Parmesan, only to get the same result–gray clumps in water. All that time and expense was for nothing. I followed the recipe to the letter. Was there some instruction left out or just an assumption of something everyone is supposed to know that I don't?
Pugdesign
Radford, VA
6/4/2018
You’d have to be a real moron to mess this great dish up. *AHEM other commentor*
Shmalts
6/9/2018
We followed the directions but the cheese clumped badly. How can we avoid that?
Anonymous
Los Angeles
6/11/2018
This is by far the best fettuccine alfredo recipe simply because there's no cream involved. For those of you who have had trouble with the cheese clumping, it helps if the cheese is finely grated (I grate mine in my food processor) and that you gradually whisk in the cheese while constantly whisking. No clumping if you take your time and keep whisking! One more thing, for each 6 quarts of water, you need to use 4 tablespoons of KOSHER salt. Sounds like a lot, but, trust me, it isn't. When the pasta water is salted sufficiently, the pasta tastes much better since pasta has no taste on its own.
jguglietti1
Fallbrook, CA
6/12/2018
I was excited by the promise of this recipe. So simple, just a few ingredients! But, I tried this recipe twice now and it clumped on me both times really badly. Is it because the cheese I used is crappy? Is it the temperature of the water? Seems like others had the same problem. Help or feedback from Carla would be great.
bibimbab
6/14/2018