Name: Easy Garlic Butter Pasta Recipe - Easy Pasta Recipes for Dinner
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 8 oz spaghetti or your favorite pasta; 4 tablespoons unsalted butter; 4 cloves garlic, minced; Salt, to taste; Freshly ground black pepper, to taste; Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional); Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving (optional)

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We all need that one go-to meal for when life feels too busy to even blink, right? This easy garlic butter pasta is my lifesaver. It’s buttery, rich, and comes together with simple pantry staples faster than you can say ‘what’s for dinner’. I love how the pasta hugs that savory garlic butter like they’re old friends who just reunited at a class reunion. It’s cozy, it’s comforting, and best of all—it doesn’t require fancy ingredients or a culinary degree to whip up. Even if you’ve only got 20 minutes and a kitchen that looks like it survived a hurricane, you can pull this off. Whether you’re cooking for yourself, your very hungry kids, or that friend who claims they ‘don’t really eat carbs’ but secretly devours three bowls (no judgment, Jamie), this pasta hits the spot every time.

1) Key Takeaways
2) Easy Garlic Butter Pasta Recipe
3) Ingredients for Garlic Butter Pasta
4) How to Make Garlic Butter Pasta
5) Tips for Making Garlic Butter Pasta
6) Making Garlic Butter Pasta Ahead of Time
7) Storing Leftover Garlic Butter Pasta
8) Try these Pasta & Pizza next!
9) Garlic Butter Pasta Recipe
10) Nutrition

1) Key Takeaways

How to make garlic butter pasta perfectly at home
Simple tricks to make easy pasta dinner recipes even quicker
How to store and reheat garlic butter pasta without losing flavor
Ideas for what to serve with easy creamy pasta recipes

2) Easy Garlic Butter Pasta Recipe

Every kitchen needs a few go-to easy pasta recipes tucked up its sleeve. Garlic butter pasta is one of those dishes that saves the day when dinner feels too far away and the couch is way too comfortable. I cannot even count the number of evenings when easy pasta dinner recipes like this have come to my rescue. This buttery, garlicky wonder feels cozy and tastes like you actually tried hard… even though we both know it was ready faster than the time it took to scroll Netflix indecisively. Rich garlic flavor kisses every silky strand of spaghetti while butter wraps it all in a soft, dreamy hug. Quick and easy pasta recipes don’t get better than this, and once you make it, you’ll wonder why you ever made dinner plans that involved leaving the house.

I love how few ingredients it calls for. No chasing down weird cheeses or fancy oils. Just a bit of pasta, a generous handful of garlic, and enough butter to make your soul happy. Trust me, if you’re anything like me, once you twirl that first forkful of this easy garlic butter pasta recipe, you’ll make sure these basics are always stocked in your pantry. Ready to whip up one of the best pasta recipes for busy nights? Let’s get into it!

3) Ingredients for Garlic Butter Pasta

Spaghetti or your favorite pasta: Go classic or get adventurous. I love using spaghetti because it hugs the sauce, but honestly, penne or fettuccine would soak up the buttery goodness just fine too.

Unsalted butter: Please don’t be shy. Butter is the heart and soul of this recipe, giving it that rich, creamy texture. I use unsalted so I can control the saltiness later.

Fresh garlic cloves: Garlic is the MVP here. Freshly minced garlic will transform the butter into a deeply savory sauce that’s hard to resist.

Salt: Simple but powerful. Salt brings everything together and enhances the natural flavor of the garlic and butter.

Freshly ground black pepper: A few cracks of fresh pepper at the end lift the flavors and keep the dish from tasting flat.

Chopped fresh parsley (optional): Adds a fresh pop of green and a whisper of herbaceousness that balances the richness beautifully.

Grated Parmesan cheese (optional): I mean… when is extra cheese ever wrong? Shave it, grate it, sprinkle it over everything—your call.

4) How to Make Garlic Butter Pasta

Step 1. Bring a big pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions until al dente. No mushy noodles allowed!

Step 2. While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Don’t rush this. Let the butter get foamy and a little golden for extra flavor.

Step 3. Add the minced garlic to the butter. Stir it gently for about a minute until the kitchen smells so good that neighbors start knocking.

Step 4. Drain the pasta but save about half a cup of the starchy cooking water. It’s liquid gold that’ll make your sauce silky.

Step 5. Toss the pasta into the garlic butter, adding a splash of reserved pasta water. Stir, toss, and marvel as the sauce clings to every strand.

Step 6. Season with salt and pepper. Keep tasting until it sings to you.

Step 7. Plate it up, sprinkle with parsley and Parmesan if you’re feeling extra, and devour immediately while it’s still warm and glossy.

5) Tips for Making Garlic Butter Pasta

Use good butter. I know, it sounds obvious, but trust me. Better butter means better pasta. European-style butter tends to have more fat and a creamier taste, and it truly shines in simple dishes like this.

Do not burn the garlic. Burnt garlic = bitter garlic. Stay close to the stove when it’s cooking. Stir it around like you’re babysitting the VIP guest at your dinner party.

If you want to jazz it up, this easy garlic butter pasta recipe is a great base. Toss in cooked shrimp, steamed broccoli, or even some crispy bacon bits for an easy creamy pasta recipes twist that feels like a restaurant special.

6) Making Garlic Butter Pasta Ahead of Time

This dish shines brightest fresh off the stove, but you can totally prep parts of it if you’re planning ahead. Cook the pasta, toss it with a drizzle of olive oil to keep it from sticking, and stash it in an airtight container. The garlic butter sauce can be made a few hours early too and gently reheated. Just don’t mix it all together until you’re ready to eat, so the pasta stays bouncy and doesn’t soak up all the buttery love while sitting around.

Quick and easy pasta recipes like this are real lifesavers when you want to host without stress. I often make the garlic butter in the morning and just reheat, toss, and serve by dinnertime.

Want to meal prep an easy pasta dinner recipe for the week? Keep everything separate until you’re ready to combine and warm it up. That way, your pasta tastes freshly made every time.

7) Storing Leftover Garlic Butter Pasta

Leftovers? Lucky you. Store the pasta in a sealed container in the fridge. It’ll stay delicious for up to three days. When reheating, splash in a little water or broth to loosen the sauce again. Microwaving is fine but reheating gently on the stove keeps that just-made texture alive.

If you’ve got a little more time, toss cold leftover pasta into a hot skillet and warm it up that way. It gives the edges a slight crispness that’s borderline addictive.

Honestly, easy creamy pasta recipes like this taste so good cold, you might find yourself sneaking forkfuls straight from the fridge at midnight. No judgment here!

8) Try these Pasta & Pizza next!

9) Garlic Butter Pasta Recipe