This make-ahead Garlic Butter is my go-to ingredient for enriching dinners and side dishes with minimal effort. Made with butter, garlic, herbs, and parmesan, this tutorial will show you how to make a big batch to have on hand for whenever the need strikes.

A small dish of garlic herb butter with a striped cloth underneath.

Have you ever met anybody who doesn't like garlic and butter? Those two flavors together are kind of magic. Garlic butter is a compound butter, which simply means it has added ingredients. Keeping garlic butter on hand provides countless ways to put together a quick dinner. Use it to make a quick pasta sauce, add a knob or two on top of grilled or roasted meat, stir into rice or other grains, top off baked potatoes, saute up veggies and as a spread such as for making garlic bread! The options are endless.

For years, I was buying it pre-made in the specialty cheese section until the price recently jumped. That was the perfect opportunity to take the plunge and make it myself. If you make a big batch ahead of time and freeze it in small portions, you'll have it available whenever the mood strikes, for so much less money.

Plus, it's customizable! You can make garlic butter with whatever you want to add for all the seasons. Think chive garlic butter in the spring, basil garlic butter in the summer, rosemary garlic butter in the fall, and orange garlic butter in the winter. I could go on, but you get the idea! Let me show you how to make it...

Ingredients Needed

Here is a brief overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The full recipe with quantities is listed below this text in the recipe card. If substitutions are available for this recipe, they'll be listed here. If you don't see a substitution you are looking for, please leave a comment below.

roasted garlic (instead of using fresh garlic, the recipe calls for roasted garlic so the butter can be used with or without cooking it, and many grocery stores carry already roasted garlic cloves in the deli section, or there are some brands, like Delallo that sell it roasted and chopped in a jar, but if you can't find it, you can also make it yourself)
garlic powder
unsalted butter (make sure it's softened---if it isn't a quick hack to cut the butter into small cubes, thin slices or even grate it with a cheese grater: by increasing the surface area, the butter softens super quickly within minutes)
kosher salt (if you are using parmesan cheese you'll only need a pinch)
fresh parsley (or chives, or another type of herb!)
grated parmesan cheese (this is optional, but encouraged)

How to Make It

There are two ways to make this compound butter. The first is low-tech: using a knife, bowl, and spoon. Mince all the ingredients and then combine them with the butter—simple as that.

The second, quicker way is to throw everything into a food processor, as shown in the photos below!

Ingredients for garlic butter, including garlic, parsley, and parmesan in a food processor.

Step 1: Add all the ingredients except the butter to a food processor.

Blended garlic and herbs in a food processor.

Step 2: Pulse until the ingredients are roughly chopped.

Butter added to the food processor with the blended garlic and herbs.

Step 3: Add in the butter.

Finished garlic herb butter blended in a food processor.

Step 4: Pulse together until combined, scraping down the sides as needed to get the butter to fully combine.

Usage and Storing

This recipe makes a large batch of garlic butter using four sticks of butter, intended to be portioned and frozen for later use. Here are a few ways to store it:

Place all of the garlic butter on parchment paper, wrap it tightly into a log, and freeze. Pieces can be cut off as needed.
Divide the butter into smaller portions, wrap each in parchment paper, and freeze.
Portion out the butter, freeze, then place the portions in a plastic bag for long-term storage.
Fill individual jars or containers and freeze.

Scoops of garlic herb butter placed on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Step 5: Portion the butter out in smaller quantities on a sheet tray and freeze.

Homemade garlic butter made-ahead and scooped into balls, frozen and stored in a plastic bag.

Step 6: Once frozen, transfer to an air tight bag or storage container. Pull out small portions for the refrigerator or at room temperature as needed.

The garlic butter can last up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator or at least 6 months in the freezer.

Use garlic butter wherever you would use regular butter. It's perfect for garlic bread, pastas, rice dishes, meats like chicken (such as Garlic Butter Chicken Bites) or steak, and potato dishes. The options are endless.

Homemade garlic butter brushed on bread and baked.

More Condiment Recipes

Making this Garlic Butter recipe? Be sure to leave a comment with a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on your experience! Have a question? Leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you as quickly as I can!

Full Recipe

Make-Ahead Homemade Garlic Butter

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Author: Kelli Avila
Prep Time: 00:10
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 2-½ cups 1x
Category: Condiment

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Description

Learn how to make Garlic Butter, made from butter, garlic, herbs, and parmesan, perfect for enriching dinners and side dishes with minimal effort. This tutorial shows you how to make a big batch to have on hand whenever needed.

Ingredients

Units Scale

⅓ cup roasted garlic cloves (see notes) (about 1 medium head roasted)
2 cups unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt (see note)
⅓ cup loosely packed parsley
1 cup parmesan cheese

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Instructions

Add the roasted garlic, parsley, parmesan cheese, garlic butter and salt to a food processor.
Pulse until it is coarsely chopped.
Add the butter and pulse, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed until the butter is combined with the garlic mixture.
Store in small portions in an air-tight container in the freezer for up to 6 months, or the refrigerator for 2 weeks.

Notes

Use garlic butter to make a quick pasta sauce, add a knob or two on top of grilled or roasted meat, stir it into rice or other grains, or top off baked potatoes. It’s also perfect for sautéing vegetables and spreading on bread for delicious garlic bread. Try it on sandwiches, mix it into mashed potatoes, or use it as a finishing touch for steamed vegetables. The options are endless.

This recipe makes a large batch of garlic butter using four sticks of butter, intended to be portioned and frozen for later use. You can halve or quarter the recipe if needed. To store, wrap all the garlic butter in parchment paper, form a log, and freeze it to cut pieces as needed. Alternatively, divide the butter into smaller portions, wrap each in parchment paper, and freeze. Another option is to freeze individual portions and place them in a plastic bag for long-term storage, or fill individual jars or containers and freeze them.

Customize the add-ins by changing up the herbs, omitting or changing the type of cheese, or adding other spices or flavors such as lemon or orange zest.

This recipe was tested using Diamond Crystal coarse kosher salt. If you use Morton's kosher salt or fine salt, decrease the volume by half. If you are not using cheese you may need to add a bit more salt.

Roasted garlic can also be purchased premade in the deli section. To make roasted garlic: cut off the top of a garlic bulb to expose the cloves, drizzle with olive oil, wrap in foil, and bake at 400°F for 30-40 minutes until the cloves are soft and golden brown. Squeeze the roasted garlic out of the cloves and us as instructed.