Fettuccine
Alfredo
Roman fettuccine with butter & Parmigiano
Fresh egg fettuccine meet butter and finely grated Parmigiano, tossed with pasta water into a silky sauce without cream.
Fresh fettuccine, butter & ParmigianoButter, cheese,
a Roman preparation.
Fettuccine Alfredo is a Roman restaurant specialty built around fresh egg pasta, butter and Parmigiano-Reggiano. The hot ribbons are tossed with the butter and finely grated cheese, using a little starchy cooking water to make a smooth coating. Its richness comes from that mixture rather than added cream.
The name is closely associated with Alfredo’s restaurants in Rome. Cream-based sauces and additions such as chicken became familiar adaptations abroad, especially in Italian-American cooking. Here the recipe follows the Roman butter-and-cheese preparation, served on its own as a first course.
Explore by food: Pasta
Let’s make fettuccine Alfredo.
Start with purchased fresh egg fettuccine and softened butter; toss the sauce together away from the stove.
Four first-course portions; begins with purchased fresh egg fettuccine.
What you’ll need
- 500 gfresh egg fettuccine
- 100 gunsalted butter, softened and cut into small pieces
- 120 gParmigiano-Reggiano, very finely grated, divided
- 3 lwater, for cooking the pasta
- 2 tspfine salt, for the pasta water
Use very finely grated cheese and softened butter so they blend quickly. If the sauce tightens, toss in another spoonful of warm reserved water. This preparation uses no cream, garlic or herb garnish.
How to make it
- 01
Get everything ready
Set aside 20 g Parmigiano for serving and have the remaining 100 g ready beside a wide serving bowl. Separate the fresh pasta ribbons so they can cook freely.
- 02
Cook the fettuccine
Bring the 3 l water to a boil and add the salt. Cook the fresh fettuccine according to its packet timing, usually 2–4 minutes, until just tender. Reserve 400 ml cooking water before draining.
- 03
Toss with the butter
Swirl 100 ml of the reserved water around the serving bowl to warm it, then discard that water. Add the softened butter, hot pasta and 60 ml reserved water. Toss with tongs until the butter melts and coats the ribbons.
- 04
Add the cheese
Away from direct heat, sprinkle in the 100 g Parmigiano in three additions, tossing between each. Add more reserved water 1 tbsp at a time as needed, until the cheese blends into a glossy coating with no dry clumps.
- 05
Serve straight away
Divide among four plates and sprinkle with the reserved 20 g Parmigiano. Serve immediately; the coating thickens as the pasta cools.
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