Lemon butter sauce...does everyone dream about it the way I do? No? Well that makes me sad for them. This 5-ingredient sauce can be made in 10 minutes and it will turn your Tuesday night tilapia or your date night grilled salmon into a restaurant-quality experience
When I started creating seafood recipes for my full-time gig, my best friend of 20 years had just one request. Lemon butter sauce. Specifically, a copycat version of the lemon butter sauce we ate over grilled fish at one of our favorite restaurants.
Five and half pounds of butter and 19 batches of sauce later...we have a winner, ladies and gentlemen.
Sauces for seafood are the fastest way to turn a simple baked fish dish into a really delicious and memorable meal. If you're looking to elevate more of your seafood dinners, try my Creamy Parmesan Sauce or Buttery Seafood Boil Sauce.
What you need to make this recipe:
Before we get to the step by step directions, a few notes about the ingredients:
Butter: for the lemon butter sauce, I use salted butter, but use what you have, then taste and adjust the seasoning.
Garlic: one crushed clove is added to the sauce for flavor, then removed before serving to keep the sauce silky smooth. If you love a stronger punch of garlic, mince the clove and leave it in the sauce.
Wine: a dry white wine is your best option here. If you prefer cooking without alcohol, use a little stock and an extra squeeze of lemon juice.
Full ingredient list and measurements included in the printable recipe card below.
Step-by-step instructions:
1. Reduce wine
Simmer lemon juice, white wine and a lightly crushed garlic clove in a small, heavy saucepan. Reduce the mixture for about 3 minutes.
2. Cream + Butter
Add heavy cream to the pan and return to a simmer (this will only take about 30 seconds). Remove from the heat. Begin adding pieces of cold butter to the hot pan and whisking continuously to ensure a smooth emulsion.
As the butter melts, add a few more. If the sauce cools and the butter stops melting, return pan to the heat for 10-15 seconds - just long enough to begin melting the butter. Then remove from the heat and continue adding butter and whisking.
Before serving, remove the garlic clove from the sauce.
Taste the sauce to determine if it needs a pinch of salt. (When I use salted butter I often find the sauce is ideal at this stage, without any additional salt).
3. Drizzle over everything!
This lemon butter sauce is the perfect pairing with seared salmon.
Or try it over simple baked tilapia.
Or dress up a plate of grilled or steamed asparagus with this restaurant-style lemon butter sauce.
FAQ's and Serving Suggestions:
Lemon butter sauce is famously finicky and easy to break, meaning the milk solids in the butter break away from the emulsion and you are left with a greasy, sauce. This can happen if you keep your pan over the heat while melting the butter, or if the sauce gets too warm. By adding cream in this recipe, we stabilize the emulsion a bit more. But we can’t outsmart science, so if the sauce is heated too much or the whisking is inconsistent, the magic sauce will curdle. If this happens, try adding a teaspoon or two of wine or lemon juice to the mixture and whisking vigorously to re-form the emulsion.
Creamy lemon butter sauce is best made last minute, right before serving. It won't take long to create, and it's best when fresh.
This lemon butter sauce is best eaten the day you make it. Leftover sauce will likely separate when re-heated. It will still taste delicious, but will lose the creamy emulsion.
Grilled Haddock, Baked Tilapia, Seared Salmon and Grilled Asparagus are all fantastic options.
Creamy Lemon Butter Sauce
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 3-4 1x
Ingredients
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons dry white wine
1 garlic clove, lightly crushed
2 tablespoons heavy cream
7 tablespoons butter, chilled and diced
Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Add freshly squeezed lemon juice and dry white wine to a small, heavy saucepan. Add a lightly crushed garlic clove to the pot, then bring to a simmer and reduce the mixture for 2-3 minutes.
-
Add heavy cream and return to a simmer (this will only take about 30 seconds). Remove the pan from the heat. Begin adding pieces of cold butter and whisking. As the added pieces melt, add a few more. If the sauce cools and the butter has stopped (or slowed) melting, return the pan to heat for 10-15 seconds - just long enough to begin melting the butter again - then remove from the heat and continue adding butter and whisking. Once the butter has incorporated, remove the garlic clove from the sauce. Taste the sauce and add a pinch of salt, if needed.
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Serve creamy lemon butter sauce over baked fish, seared salmon, colossal shrimp or grilled asparagus.
Notes
This sauce is best made right before serving. And leftover sauce is difficult to reheat, so feel free to finish it!
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American, Seafood
christina toth
Looks dreamy! I can think of so many ways to use this one!
Christina Jolam
Can't wait to hear what you think! It's pretty spectacular 😉