Parmesan Butter Noodles

Get ready to dig into a bowl of pure comfort – say hello to Parmesan butter noodles. It's a dish where simple meets sensational: tender noodles, a rich garlicky, buttery touch, and that unmistakable Parmesan goodness. No frills, just good food that warms your soul and fills your belly. Whether you're a cooking newbie or a seasoned pro, these noodles are about to become your new go-to for satisfying cravings and making dinnertime awesome.

Prep Time5

Cook Time10

Total Time15

Servings: servings

Calories: 257kcal

Author: Sandra

Ingredients

8 ounces pasta See Note 1.
½ cup butter Note 2.
1 teaspoon garlic Minced. Note 3.
1 cup Parmesan cheese Finely grated. Note 4.
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper Freshly ground. Note 5.
parsley Garnish. Optional.

Instructions

Cook the pasta according to the package instructions until it's al dente. Drain the pasta and set it aside. Note 6.
8 ounces pasta
In a large skillet over medium low heat, melt the butter until it starts to sizzle. Note 7.
½ cup butter
Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
1 teaspoon garlic
Add the cooked and drained pasta to the skillet.
Toss it in the melted butter to coat it evenly. Note 8.
Gradually sprinkle the grated Parmesan cheese over the noodles. Note 9.
1 cup Parmesan cheese
Stir constantly, adding more cheese between stirs, until the cheese melts and coats the noodles.
Add salt and pepper and stir until incorporated. Continue to toss the noodles until everything is well combined and the noodles are coated in the garlic Parmesan butter. Note 10.
½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper
Garnish with parsley if desired.
parsley

Notes

I used whole grain thin spaghetti for this recipe. Spaghetti does work great, but you can substitute your favorite pasta. Just be sure to cook it al dente according to the package instructions.
I've used both salted and unsalted butter in this recipe and got good results with both. If you are sensitive to salt, you may want to stick with unsalted butter and adjust the amount of salt that you add in the last step.
Be sure to use real butter. Margarine or other butter substitutes may not yield the same rich flavor.
Because this recipe is so simple and uses few ingredients, it's important that every ingredient be the best it can be. Fresh garlic that you mince yourself is always better than the pre-minced garlic that you buy in the grocery store. Trust me. I relied on jarred garlic for years. When I switched to fresh, the difference in the quality of the food is huge. It takes just a few extra minutes to mince the garlic yourself, but the effort is worth it!
My advice for the Parmesan is the same as my advice for the garlic. Buy the best fresh Parmesan you can afford, and grate it yourself using a box grater. Don't use that pre-grated stuff you find with the pasta sauce in the grocery store. The pre-grated variety works fine in some recipes (in fact I will be sharing one soon!), but this recipe needs really good, freshly grated Parmesan cheese to taste its best!
The flavor of freshly ground pepper can't be beat. It's so much better than pre-ground pepper. I know I'm sounding like a broken record here, but it truly is worth it to buy a pepper grinder or pepper that has a pepper grinder built in.
Cook the pasta until it's al dente, which means it's cooked through but still slightly firm to the bite. Overcooking can result in mushy noodles.
Make sure to melt the butter over medium low heat so as to not burn it. You want the butter to be gently melted, not browned.
Be sure to continuously stir and toss the noodles in the melted butter to make sure the butter gets evenly distributed.
Don't add the Parmesan cheese all at once. Sprinkle some over the noodles, then give a stir, gradually sprinkling in more cheese as you go. This ensures that the cheese melts evenly and doesn't clump together.
Adjust the seasoning to taste. Add a bit of salt and pepper, then give it a taste. At this step, you can also add other herbs and seasonings, like garlic powder, or red pepper flakes for a bit of heat.

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