This homemade Garlic Herb Butter is easy to make and tastes delicious with steak, grilled chicken or with pasta. Seasoned with fresh herbs, garlic and lemon zest, it combines all of the best flavors you want in a compound butter!
I honestly can’t remember the last time I had steak without smothering it in this garlic herb butter – I know, a good cut of beef only needs salt and pepper… But honestly, this compound butter is too irresistible to me!
This makes a good amount, you can easily store leftovers in the fridge for a couple of days.
Ingredients you’ll need
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities!
Ingredient notes
- Herbs: Use soft herbs like parsley, basil, fresh oregano… for best results. My favorite combination is parsley and basil.
- Garlic: I mostly use fresh garlic for this recipe, but roasted garlic is very delicious, too. You can also use just garlic powder if you don’t have fresh/want a more mild garlic flavor in your compound butter.
- Worcestershire sauce: This absolutely “makes” the recipe for me, but if you don’t keep Worcestershire sauce on hand you can try using soy sauce as a substitute.
- Lemon zest: This is optional, but lends a bright and refreshing touch to balance the flavor.
How to make Garlic Herb Butter
It’s so easy to make a compound butter at home:
- Use a hand mixer to whip together all ingredients except for the chopped herbs (this works best if your butter is very soft, but not melted!).
- Add the herbs and mix them in on the lowest setting.
- Spread the compound butter into a log, about 8×1.5 inches in size, on a large piece of plastic wrap. Roll it up into a “sausage” shape, twist the ends and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.
Recipe tips
- Soften butter: Make sure to use softened butter for this recipe, it yields a much smoother and more evenly seasoned result. If your butter is still chilled and you need to make the recipe ASAP, rinse a mixing bowl with hot water and invert it over the unwrapped butter. It should be soft within 5-10 minutes.
- Garlic amount: If your garlic cloves are large, consider using just one. Fresh garlic can be a little difficult to predict, and in can increase in strength as the butter sits in the fridge. Keep this in mind and adjust the amount you add accordingly to suit your personal preferences.
- Mixing: Make sure you only beat on low speed after adding the herbs and don’t overmix the butter at this point – you want to avoid crushing the chopped herbs.
Storage tips
Store leftovers wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. I will often use leftover compound butter to toss with hot pasta because we rarely have steak two days in a row.
You can also freeze leftovers, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap and then aluminium foil, for up to 2 months. Please note that freezing will affect the texture of the herbs.
Serving ideas
My family loves this garlic herb butter with air fryer steak. I also make it when I serve an admittedly decadent tomahawk steak, as pictured just above!
The compound butter is also delicious tossed with hot pasta, especially when served as a side for lemon garlic grilled chicken or with air fryer salmon. You can also serve it with Steak and Potato Foil Packets or Sausage and Potato Foil Packets to make a simple meal feel extra special!
More homemade condiments
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Garlic Herb Butter
Recipe details
Ingredients
- 1 stick butter softened
- 2 cloves garlic minced, see notes for tips
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce OR soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest optional
- ½ teaspoon dried garlic powder
- salt & pepper to taste
- ¼ cup fresh herbs chopped (I used a mix of parsley and basil; use only soft, leafy herbs for best results)
Instructions
- Using a hand mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter with minced garlic, lemon zest, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a medium mixing bowl until creamy.
- Add chopped herbs and mix on low speed until combined – do not overmix or herbs will end up too crushed.
- Place a large piece of plastic wrap on counter. Spread compound butter in middle, creating a log sized about 8×1½ inches. Wrap plastic wrap around butter, rolling it up to create a "sausage" shape. Twist ends, then chill in refrigerator for at least 1 hour before unwrapping and slicing to serve.
Notes
- Garlic: I mostly use fresh garlic for this recipe, but roasted garlic is very delicious, too. You can also use just garlic powder if you don’t have fresh/want a more mild garlic flavor in your compound butter.
- Garlic amount: If your garlic cloves are large, consider using just one. Fresh garlic can be a little difficult to predict, and in can increase in strength as the butter sits in the fridge. Keep this in mind and adjust the amount you add accordingly to suit your personal preferences.
- Soften butter: Make sure to use softened butter for this recipe, it yields a much smoother and more evenly seasoned result. If your butter is still chilled and you need to make the recipe ASAP, rinse a mixing bowl with hot water and invert it over the unwrapped butter. It should be soft within 5-10 minutes.
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