Get this delicious recipe for a lean protein-packed Alfredo Sauce that uses Greek yogurt instead of tons of butter and cream.
I love using Greek yogurt in pasta sauces. It’s so thick and creamy while also being low in fat. It also has a lot of protein, which really fills me up. I make this Spaghetti Carbonara with Greek Yogurt all the time. And now, I’ve added today’s Greek Yogurt Alfredo Sauce to my line up.
As with other Greek yogurt pasta sauces, it’s quite a bit leaner than the traditional version and it’s really easy to make.
Video: Making Greek Yogurt Alfredo
How To Make Greek Yogurt Alfredo Sauce
To make the alfredo sauce, you first melt some butter and add minced garlic. Warm it for a few seconds. Add some white wine (or water, vegetable broth, or chicken broth). Heat it up to a simmer.
Then remove it from the heat, let it cool a tiny bit and then stir in Greek yogurt, salt, pepper, and shredded Parmesan cheese.
Put the pan on low heat, stirring until the Parmesan has been incorporated in, but don’t let it reach a simmer. Yogurt is finicky at higher temperatures and could easily curdle on you.
In fact, you should be careful about how you add the finished sauce to your noodles for that very reason. If you drain your noodles and return them to the still very hot cooking pot and then add your Greek yogurt sauce, the heat could cause curdling.
Instead, drain the noodles and transfer them to a room temperature serving bowl. Stir them around for 30 seconds or so to cool them a bit. Then add the sauce, stir, and serve. Note that if something goes wrong and it does curdle, no worries. It’s perfectly safe to eat. And it’ll still be tasty too, just kind of clumpy as though you added garlicky Parmesan-flavored ricotta to your noodles instead of sauce.
More Pasta Sauce Recipes
If you’re a pasta lover, you’ll want to save some of these other recipes too.
- Quickest Mac and Cheese Sauce
- Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
- Garlic Parmesan Sauce
- Best Homemade Tomato Sauce
- Fresh Basil Pesto Recipe
Podcast Episode About Making Greek Yogurt Alfredo Sauce
Listen to me explain briefly about how to make this sauce, along with some other great tips, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
PrintGreek Yogurt Alfredo Sauce Recipe
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 7 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
To serve this sauce, cook 14 oz. pasta according to package directions. Drain. Transfer pasta to a large serving bowl and stir it by itself to cool it slightly for 30 seconds. The cooling makes it less likely for the heat to curdle the sauce. Add the still-warm alfredo sauce and stir to coat. Garnish with shredded Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup white wine (or water, vegetable broth, or chicken broth – but the latter two will make the sauce less white)
- 1 cup non-fat Greek yogurt
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese*
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. coarse black pepper
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic. Stir and cook 1 minute.
- Stir in the wine and increase the heat. Bring it to a simmer. Remove from heat and let sit for 2 minutes.
- Whisk in the yogurt, salt, and pepper. Whisk in the Parmesan. Put the pan over low heat and stir constantly until the Parmesan is mostly melted into the sauce, 3-4 minutes. Do not let it come to a simmer or boil as this could cause it to curdle.
Love this recipe? I’d appreciate it if you could scroll down and add a *5 star rating* to help others know they’ll love it as well!
Notes
*Do not use grated Parmesan. The measurement is different. Grated Parmesan takes up less space. If you do have grated and have to go with it, use 1/2 cup.
This post originally appeared in September 2015 and was revised and republished in January 2024.
kazy says
I made this tonight and while I loved the flavor, the cheese curdled. I don’t know what I did wrong as I followed your instructions. The only things I added differently which should not have caused the curdling, was I used 2% fat Greek Yogurt and Asiago cheese, instead of Parmesan. I shredded it, I did not grate. I kept the sauce pan on low heat, the sauce was not simmering nor boiling as I continued to mix in the cheese which stayed clumpy for the 4 minutes I mixed it as per your directions.
Christine Pittman says
I’m not sure why it curdled, Kazy. Heating dairy products can be tricky. You could try keeping the pot at an even lower temperature, or even remove it from the heat while melting in the cheese and then just put it on low for a short time to warm it all through.
Amber says
Thanks for the recipe – I made this and it was really tasty! Have you ever tried freezing this sauce and using it later? I am wondering how well it would hold up, especially since it is made with yogurt.
Christine Pittman says
Amber, I’m not sure how it would work out. Dairy doesn’t always freeze well. I think it will taste perfectly fine but it might separate and/or it could curdle when you heat it.
Gary says
To print this recipe CLEANLY or any recipe cleanly and you will be able to omit any part of the recipe like picture or videos I use a free program. I open google chrome, when you down load the program you will see a “Print Friendly” Icon at the top right of the Google Chrome page, the program is Called “Print Friendly” When you click the Print Friendly button It will allow you to delete off any section of the page, any of the individual parts before printing. It is a awesome tool I deleted the Video on this Recipe as well as the pictures I DONT LIKE PRINTING the pictures of the food it take up too much room on the recipe.
Christine Pittman says
Gary, Thanks for the tips. Sorry about the pictures and videos being there. I had someone working on removing these. Not sure what happened. I’ll try again.
A says
Hi, the recipe says 1 oz and then says about 1 cup but 1 oz is about 1/8 cup
Christine Pittman says
A, when I tested the recipe, I shredded one cup and then weighed it. I’m guessing that my cheese was fluffier than yours. I have changed the recipe to make this less confusing.
Jennifer says
Is there any way to print the recipe without including the video portion? Are you able to adjust the link to remove it or to at least offer the option to remove the video when printing? Thank you. Looking forward to trying this!
Christine Pittman says
Hi Jennifer, I’m so sorry about this. It’s a glitch in my website design that I’m trying to have fixed but nothing has worked so far.
Jessica says
Hello, this looks great and am excited to give it a try. Did you use whole fat, reduced fat, or fat free greek yogurt? Are the nutritional facts for just the sauce or the sauce served with 14oz of pasta?
Christine Pittman says
Hi Jessica, I used non-fat Greek yogurt and that’s what was used to calculate the nutritional facts. The facts do not include the pasta, just the sauce. I’m going to re-write the recipe right now a tiny bit to make that clearer. Great questions!
Lance says
Can I substitute feta cheese for parmesan cheese
Christine Pittman says
Lance, I’m honestly not sure. Feta has a very different texture and melts differently than Parmesan does. But I think it could work. If you try it, can you come back and let me know?
Joey says
Oh I can’t wait to try this one! Looks delish and worth a splurge verses the real fatty type Alfredo sauce….and as far as the liquid….for sure the white wine! ???
GInger says
This was amazing! I didn’t have enough Parmesan (2/4 cup ) but it still turned out well. I also added one pound of diced chicken, frozen zucchini, and pad thai noodles because that was what we had.
Christine Pittman says
Sounds delicious, Ginger. So happy you liked it!
Amy says
I was a bit unsure of the yogurt, but wow was I surprised. This recipe is amazing. I don’t think I’ll make alfredo any other way again. Thank you!
Christine Pittman says
Amy, Wow! So happy you liked it so much. I love it too. Have a great day!
Angelica says
I tried this, and it was AMAZING! I wasn’t sure about the yogurt, but it tasted great!
Emily says
I am about to try this RIGHT NOW! with my first from-scratch fettucine! So excited!
TidyMom says
Farm tours are always so interesting. This Alfredo sauce is going on my list to try soon!
Marly says
I’m a big fan of Alfredo and definitely for organic farming over the industrial kind. Thanks for sharing another amazing recipe!!
Megan {Country Cleaver} says
What a great tour, I love meeting local producers and growers, and this alfredo is positively delightful.
Lucy says
This looks wonderful! I never eat alfredo sauce because traditional versions are so bad for you, but this sounds so healthy!
Lisa @ Panning The Globe says
Love this! I adore pasta alfredo and I never make it because of all the cream and butter. I’m definitely going to try your version with yogurt.
Aggie | Aggie's Kitchen says
What an interesting tour and response from the farmer. Incredible that the vet bill was only $200 a year, that’s crazy! Happy healthy cows for the win.
This is my kind of alfredo sauce. This sounds amazing !
lynn @ the actor's diet says
Love what you did with the recipe – and hoping I can make the next blogger trip to the Stonyfield farm!
Ashley @ Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen says
Love this! So jealous of your farm tour, and SO looking forward to trying out this recipe. YUM!