Copycat Olive Garden™ Chicken Alfredo

How to Make Olive Garden Chicken Alfredo

Look at these simple steps, to see how to make Olive Garden chicken Alfredo. This recipe requires some dovetailing—working on one part of the recipe while another cooks, for example, but anyone can do it with the tips below. Follow the recipe for all the cooking times and specific instructions, so it will turn out just as well as if you ordered it at the restaurant:

Gather the Ingredients

This recipe isn’t complicated to make, as long as you’ve prepped the ingredients in advance. Gather all of the Olive Garden chicken Alfredo ingredients, measuring and chopping them, so they are ready to be put to work just when you need them.

Cook the Pasta

Heat the water to boiling and cook the pasta as directed on the package. Drain the fettuccine and keep it warm while preparing the other components.

Cook the Crispy Chicken

While your water is heating and while the pasta cooks, you can quickly prepare the chicken breast in a cast iron grill pan. Use a little butter and olive oil for flavor and to keep it from sticking. Season the chicken on the pan with both salt and pepper. The grill pan will give the chicken a golden-brown, slightly crispy crust that not only looks beautiful, but is delicious to eat.

Cool and Slice the Chicken

Place the cooked chicken on a plate covered with foil until it is cool enough to slice and then until you’re ready to serve it. You can cut it after making the sauce if you like. Cut the chicken pieces crosswise into thin slices.

Start the Sauce by Cooking the Garlic

For the start of the Alfredo sauce, melt the butter in a skillet and cook the garlic until it’s fragrant. Reduce the temperature and add the remaining salt and pepper.

Making a Smooth Sauce

Use a whisk to stir in the flour until the mixture is smooth. Slowly stir in the cream. It’s important to go slow and keep stirring to get a smooth sauce.

Cook to Thicken and Add Parmesan

Cook and stir the sauce until it thickens slightly. Still using the whisk, stir in the Parmesan cheese until smooth. Remove from heat and cover while you cut the chicken and gather serving bowls or plates.

Putting It All Together

Use large tongs to arrange the pasta in the serving bowl or on a plate. Top with slices of chicken and spoon the sauce over the top. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and additional Parmesan, if you like.

Variations of Olive Garden Chicken Alfredo

With the amazing flavor of homemade Alfredo sauce and the heartiness of this dish, this recipe will surely become a frequently requested one in your house. Here are some straightforward ways you can change it up:

Make it Skillet Chicken: If you don’t have a stove-top grill pan, the next best option would be a cast iron skillet or a regular skillet. In step 2, heat the oil and the butter in the skillet. Cook as directed in step 2, but adjust the cook times, if necessary.

Swap the Pasta: You could use spinach fettuccine or egg noodles if you wish. Just cook them as directed on their package. Either would be a suitable alternative, because wide noodles hold the luscious Alfredo sauce perfectly.

Alfredo Flavor in Every Bite: Try tossing the cooked fettuccine with some of the Alfredo sauce before serving it to assure that each forkful you get has a little of the good stuff. Spoon the remaining sauce over the chicken and fettuccine, as directed in step 7.

Green is Good: Add cut-up cooked asparagus, broccoli, or green beans before topping with Alfredo sauce, for a veggie boost that also adds color.

More Copycat Olive Garden Recipes

If you love this crispy chicken Alfredo Olive Garden-style recipe, then you’ll also get excited about these other recipes we’ve developed, from your favorite restaurant. You can have the full restaurant experience without the bill at the end, when you make all three. Or, add one alongside other dinner dishes you serve, to have a touch of a familiar favorite, any time you please.

Light and fluffy copycat Olive Garden breadsticks are brushed with a garlicy butter topping, for the famous flavor everyone loves to sink their teeth into. Copycat Olive Garden minestrone soup is chock full of veggies and hearty enough to serve as a meal on its own or, when your family is extra-hungry, it’s a tasty belly-filler when served alongside other dishes.

Don’t end your meal with just the green striped mints, why not whip up a batch of Easy Mint Candy Cookies? They are made with the same mints but are satisfying treats you can really sink your teeth into.

Storing and Reheating Leftovers

If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers of this chicken Alfredo pasta Olive Garden dish, they would make an amazing hot lunch or a very quick dinner. You only need to zap it in the microwave before you enjoy. For the best results, it’s best to store each of the components-the Alfredo sauce, chicken, and the fettuccine. separately in covered food-storage containers so they retain as much of their original consistencies as possible. Otherwise, if the sauce is stored with the pasta, the pasta will continue to absorb it, making it much less saucy and drier when reheated. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

To reheat the pasta, place it in a microwavable bowl. Sprinkle with a teaspoon or two of water. Cover and microwave on High 1 to 3 minutes, or until its heated through. To reheat the chicken, place it on a microwavable plate. Cover and microwave on medium-high (70%) 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until heated through. Keep covered while you reheat the sauce. To reheat the sauce, spoon it into a microwavable glass measure or bowl. Cover and microwave on medium (50%) 1 minute; stir. Microwave 30 seconds to 1 minute longer or until heated through. If the sauce is too thick after heating, stir in a tablespoon or two of additional cream or milk. Microwave about 15 seconds longer, or until the sauce is heated through.

It is not recommended to freeze this dish. The sauce will soak into the pasta during storage leading to freezer burn of exposed pasta noodles.

Other Amazing Pasta Recipes

Pasta dishes are not only delectable, but they are also hearty, filling, and can be easy on your wallet, too. With the endless choices of pasta shapes and recipes, you could enjoy a different dish, every night of the week!

One-Pot Lemon Chicken Rigatoni will have you jumping for joy. Parmesan and lemon are a flavor match made in heaven and this all-in-one dish keeps the cleanup afterwards, painless.

Easy Fajita Pasta Bake stuffs the familiar and favorite flavors of chicken fajitas into a delicious casserole that’s sure to please. Great for when you need a hot and hearty dinner that’s on the table in 30 minutes.

Chicken Spaghetti to the rescue! This top-rated one-pot dinner requires just 8 ingredients, for a fast and flavorful twist on the family favorite. Looking to whip up a pasta dish using your multicooker?

Spaghetti Bolognese is a sensational way to enjoy a richly flavored spaghetti dish that has pasta, veggies, and sauce all in one casserole prepared on your countertop.