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    Whisk Affair » Recipes » Sauces » Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce

    Published: Mar 2, 2021 | Last Updated On: Jun 22, 2021 by Neha Mathur

    Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce

    7631 shares
    Jump to Recipe

    This 15-minute Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce is buttery, tangy, creamy, and super versatile. Enjoy it over pasta, fish, vegetables, chicken, or meat, and it will make you weak in your knees.

    Want to try more sauce recipes? Give these a taste: Strawberry Sauce, Salted Caramel Sauce, Thai Sweet Chili Sauce, Béchamel Sauce, and Homemade Pizza Sauce.

    Lemon butter sauce served in a bowl.
    Jump to:
    • About This Recipe
    • Ingredients
    • How To Make Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce
    • Serving Suggestions
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • You Might Also Like
    • Recipe Card

    About This Recipe

    Looking for a sauce recipe that instantly flavors your grilled meat, fish and seafood, or vegetables? Then you must try this quick and easy lemon garlic butter sauce. With a whole lot of buttery, creamy, and zesty flavor, this sauce is sure to tickle your taste buds.

    My recipe for this sauce is based on the traditional Beurre Blanc sauce that is made by combining butter with either vinegar or a wine reduction

    Super-simple and fuss-free, this creamy and buttery sauce can be prepared in just 15 minutes using very few ingredients.

    If you love that lemony flavor in your recipes, then this sauce is for you. Believe me, once you pour this sauce over meats or vegetables, they will taste like a fancy dish out of a professional chef’s kitchen.

    The consistency of this sauce is runny but it is thick enough to coat food nicely. This recipe will give you approximately 2 cups of Garlic Butter Sauce. You can easily halve, double, or triple the recipe.

    So the next time your menu includes grilled chicken, grilled shrimp or salmon, pan-seared scallops, or grilled vegetables, do yourself a favor and give this creamy lemon butter sauce a try.

    Check out the detailed lemon butter sauce video recipe on my youtube channel.

    Ingredients

    Lemon butter sauce ingredients.

    Chicken Broth – The chicken broth is used to make the base of this creamy sauce. If you want a vegetarian version, you can use vegetable broth instead.

    Milk – Use whole milk (full-fat milk), as it makes this lemon butter sauce rich and creamy. Do not use skim milk or low-fat milk. They won’t give you the same delicious result.

    Butter – This sauce has a lot of butter. Do not get intimidated by the quantity and reduce it. Use good quality, cold unsalted butter.

    Flour – All-purpose flour is added to thicken the sauce.

    Lemon Juice – Lemon juice is the star ingredient of this sauce recipe. It adds a nice tangy and zesty taste, which makes the sauce unique from others. Use only fresh lemon juice. Bottled lemon juice will not work in this recipe.

    Other – Apart from the above-mentioned ingredients, you will also need garlic, onions, salt, ground pepper, and fresh parsley. Fresh garlic adds a unique taste, but you can replace it with garlic powder too.

    Optional – You can also add ¼ cup of shredded parmesan cheese at the end of cooking for a lovely umami flavor.

    White Wine adds a sweet and fruity taste to the buttery sauce. Use an inexpensive white wine with more tannin. The more fruit extract and tannin a wine has, the deeper and richer a flavor it will give the dish. Keep in mind that all alcohol from the wine will evaporate during cooking, and only the flavor will remain.

    How To Make Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce

    Stir together ½ cup chicken broth, ½ cup whole milk, 3 teaspoon minced garlic, and ¼ cup finely chopped onion into a small saucepan.

    You can replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth to make a vegetarian sauce.

    Chickn broth, milk, garlic and onion mixed in a pan.

    Cook on medium heat until the mixture is reduced to half. It should take 10-12 minutes.

    Mixture reduced to half.

    Cut 16 tablespoon (225 g) cold unsalted butter into 1-inch cubes.

    Add 1 cube of butter to a medium-size saucepan and heat on medium heat until it melts.

    1-inch cube of butter added to a pan.

    Add 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour and mix it well with the butter.

    Flour added to the pan.

    Cook until the mixture turns slightly brown (1-2 minutes). Stir continuously while cooking. This flour and butter paste (roux) will thicken the sauce and make it super creamy.

    Cooked until browned.

    Now slowly pour the reduced chicken broth mixture over the flour and butter mixture and whisk continuously using a wire whisk.

    Chicken broth mixture poured in the pan with the roux.

    Cook for a minute until the sauce slightly thickens.

    Thickened mixture.

    Add the remaining butter to the pan and cook until the butter slightly melts and combines with the sauce. Stir frequently.

    Note – Make sure the butter is chilled. It will bring down the temperature of the sauce and the sauce will not curdle when lemon juice is added to it.

    Remaining butter added to the pan.

    Add 6 tablespoon lemon juice before the butter completely melts and cook the sauce for 1-2 minutes.

    Note – Add the lemon juice when the sauce is not very hot. If you add lemon juice to the hot sauce, it might curdle it.

    Lemon juice added to the pan.

    Season with salt and pepper to taste, and add 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley and mix well.

    Tip – Be very careful about adding any extra salt. The chicken broth also has salt in it.

    Salt, pepepr and parsley added to the pan.

    The sauce is ready. Use as desired.

    Ready lemon garlic butter sauce.

    Serving Suggestions

    Pour this delicious butter sauce on,

    Seafood – Shrimp, scallops, lobster, crab, and fish such as salmon, cod, halibut, tuna, swordfish, and trout.

    Chicken – Pour the sauce over grilled, poached, or roasted chicken for a flavorful and high-protein meal.

    Vegetables – The sauce adds a great taste to grilled or sautéed vegetables, especially asparagus, green beans, brussels sprouts, artichokes, and broccoli.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Can you store garlic butter sauce?

    This sauce can be refrigerated for 3-4 days. Heat it in a microwave or over the stovetop before using it.

    Can you freeze lemon garlic sauce?

    This sauce freezes well, too. Let it cool completely and then transfer it into a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 2 months. I like to freeze it in small containers for one-time use. Thaw the sauce overnight in the refrigerator or for 3- 4 hours on the counter. Then heat and use.

    You Might Also Like

    • Jerk Marinade
    • Balsamic Glaze
    • Spicy Pickled Radishes
    • Yum Yum Sauce

    Recipe Card

    Loved this recipe?Click here to leave a review and give us a five star rating ★★★★★
    This 15-minute Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce is buttery, tangy, creamy, and super versatile. Enjoy it over pasta, fish, vegetables, chicken, or meat, and it will make you weak in your knees.

    Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce Recipe

    This 15-minute Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce is buttery, tangy, creamy, and super versatile. Enjoy it over pasta, fish, vegetables, chicken, or meat, and it will make you weak in your knees.
    5 from 5 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Sauce
    Cuisine: American, Continental
    Diet: Vegetarian
    Prep Time: 5 minutes
    Cook Time: 10 minutes
    Total Time: 15 minutes
    Servings: 10 people
    Calories: 186kcal
    Author: Neha Mathur

    Ingredients 

    • ½ cup chicken broth (use veg broth for vegetarian version.)
    • ½ cup whole milk (full-fat milk)
    • 3 teaspoons minced garlic
    • ¼ cup finely chopped onions
    • 16 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (225 g, divided)
    • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
    • 6 tablespoons lemon juice (add less if you do not like the sauce to be too tangy)
    • salt (to taste)
    • pepper (to taste)
    • 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
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    Instructions

    • Stir together chicken broth, milk, garlic, and onions into a small saucepan.
    • Cook on medium heat until the mixture is reduced to half. It should take 10-12 minutes.
    • Cut cold butter into 1-inch cubes. Add 1 cube of butter to a medium-size saucepan and heat on medium heat until it melts.
    • Add all-purpose flour and mix it well with the butter. Cook until the mixture turns slightly brown (1-2 minutes). Stir continuously while cooking.
    • Now slowly pour the reduced chicken broth mixture over the flour and butter mixture and whisk continuously using a wire whisk.
    • Cook for a minute until the sauce slightly thickens.
    • Add the remaining butter to the pan and cook until the butter slightly melts and combines with the sauce. Stir frequently.
    • Note – Make sure the butter is chilled. It will bring down the temperature of the sauce and the sauce will not curdle when lemon juice is added to it.
    • Add lemon juice before the butter completely melts and cook the sauce for 1-2 minutes.
    • Note – Add the lemon juice when the sauce is not very hot. If you add lemon juice to the hot sauce, it might curdle it.
    • Season with salt and pepper to taste, and add parsley and mix well.
    • Tip – Be very careful about adding any extra salt. The chicken broth also has salt in it.
    • The sauce is ready. Use it as desired.

    Video

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EXadnkcTGQ

    Notes

    This recipe will give you approximately 2 cups of sauce.
    This recipe can be easily halved, doubled, or tripled.
    You can pass the sauce through a fine-mesh strainer to make it smoother.
    You can also add ¼ cup of shredded parmesan cheese at the end of cooking for a lovely umami flavor.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 186kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 49mg | Sodium: 52mg | Potassium: 55mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 612IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 1mg
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Gretchen Thomas

      July 01, 2021 at 2:24 am

      Can you cook your meat in this sauce? Or is it better just pouring it over what ever meat you are using.

      Reply
      • Neha Mathur

        July 03, 2021 at 3:41 am

        Hi Gretchen, it is best for pouring on top.

        Reply
    2. Brendan

      March 08, 2022 at 9:02 pm

      Can this sauce me made a day or two ahead and be kept refrigerated ? Thanks!

      Reply
      • Neha Mathur

        March 09, 2022 at 8:33 am

        Yes, sure.

        Reply
    3. Brian

      July 17, 2022 at 3:12 pm

      I had a meal at a restauraunt called Spaghettini portafino that had a lobster lemon butter sauce. How would I get the lobsterFish taste in the sauce.

      Reply
      • Neha Mathur

        July 25, 2022 at 6:45 am

        It actually lobster meat drizzled with this sauce.

        Reply
    4. Colleen Bystrak

      September 02, 2022 at 8:51 pm

      5 stars
      This is a great lemon butter sauce! It’s easy and is terrific over everything! I used it over pasta as a side and another time I used it over salmon. Definitely a keeper!

      Reply
    5. Vicki

      September 08, 2022 at 7:22 pm

      5 stars
      Loved this cream sauce; light and tasty. I used real lemons and fresh parsley! Wish I had made a double batch because everything taste better with lemon or chocolate!!!

      Reply

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