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.
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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
Importantly, this sauce is creamy and buttery thick. It contains milk and white wine along with butter and lemon. Super-simple and fuss-free, this sauce can be prepared in just 15 minutes.
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 Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce. You can easily halve, double, or triple the recipe.
If you love that lemony flavor in your recipes, then this sauce is for you. Believe me, once you pour this sauce over meats of vegetables, they will taste like a fancy dish out of a professional chef’s kitchen.
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 Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce a try.
Check out the detailed video recipe to make this sauce on my youtube channel.
Ingredients
Chicken Broth – 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, 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 – Here is the star ingredient, lemon juice. 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 ingredients, you will need garlic, onion, salt, pepper, and fresh parsley. Fresh garlic adds a unique taste, but you can use garlic powder too.
Finish off with chopped fresh parsley. It adds a refreshing flavor and color to this lemon butter sauce.
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.
Cook on medium heat until the mixture is reduced to half. It should take 10-12 minutes.
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.
Add 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour and mix it well with the butter. 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.
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 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 6 tablespoon lemon juice, season with salt and pepper to taste, and mix well.
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.
Remove from heat and garnish with chopped parsley. Your butter sauce is ready. Use it as desired.
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
This sauce can be refrigerated for 3-4 days. Heat it in a microwave or over the stovetop before using.
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.
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Recipe Card
Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup chicken broth (use veg broth for vegetarian version.)
- ½ cup whole milk
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- ¼ cup finely chopped onion
- 16 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (225 g, divided)
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 6 tablespoons lemon juice
- salt (to taste)
- pepper (to taste)
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
Instructions
- Start by adding chicken broth, whole milk, minced garlic, and finely chopped onion to a small saucepan.
- Cook on medium heat until the mixture is reduced to half (10-12 mins). Remove the pan from heat and set it aside.
- Cut cold unsalted butter into 1-inch cubes. Add 1 cube of butter to a medium-size saucepan and cook on medium heat until it melts.
- Add all-purpose flour and mix it well with the butter. Cook until it turns slightly brown (1-2 minutes). Keep stirring continuously.
- Slowly pour the chicken broth mixture into the flour and butter mixture and keep whisking continuously using a wire whisk. Cook for a minute until the sauce slightly thickens.
- Add the remaining cold butter to the saucepan and cook until it melts and combines with the sauce. Keep stirring frequently.
- Stir in lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
- Garnish the sauce with chopped fresh parsley. Use as desired!
Gretchen Thomas
Can you cook your meat in this sauce? Or is it better just pouring it over what ever meat you are using.
Neha Mathur
Hi Gretchen, it is best for pouring on top.