Garlic butter with the Thermomix® is ready in 5 minutes and makes 2 jars of 150 ml each. Four garlic cloves, 250 g butter, fresh parsley and chives: that is the classic grilling butter that goes with steak, bread and corn on the cob. No preservatives, and roughly half the cost of the shop-bought version.
We make a batch every summer as a grilling staple. One jar (150 g) is enough for 4 barbecue evenings with steak and baguette. It also works well as a gift in small screw-top jars with a handwritten label, right at the height of the season.
Garlic Butter with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 5 ✓
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1/2 bunch flat-leaf parsley
- 1/2 bunch chives
- 250 g butter
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions 0 / 3
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1
Prepare the garlic.
Peel the garlic cloves and add them to the mixing bowl.
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2
Chop the ingredients.
Wash the parsley and chives, shake dry, remove any tough stalks and chop for 5 sec / speed 6.
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3
Mix the garlic butter.
Add the butter and salt in pieces and mix for 30 sec / speed 4.
Variation: For a plain garlic butter simply leave out the herbs.
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Nutrition per serving
4 garlic cloves to 250 g butter: non-negotiable
The 4:250 ratio (garlic cloves to butter) is the sweet spot between “tastes of garlic” and “not too sharp”. Fewer cloves (2 to 3) and the butter tastes of parsley rather than garlic. More cloves (6 or more) and the butter becomes too intense for most people.
If you want it really punchy: use 6 cloves plus 1 tsp garlic powder in addition. If you prefer it milder: use 2 fresh cloves plus 1 tbsp roasted garlic (fry in a pan for 5 minutes first). Roasted garlic cloves taste nutty rather than sharp.
Fresh herbs rather than dried: here is why
Fresh parsley and chives are essential for restaurant-quality results. Dried herbs lose their essential oils and taste flat by comparison. If you are using frozen herbs, they work almost as well as fresh. If you have nothing in, 1 tbsp of Italian mixed herbs is a last resort.
Chop the herbs together with the garlic first for 5 seconds at speed 6. At higher speeds (speed 8 and above) the herbs become too fine, which turns the butter an unappetising shade of green. Speed 6 is the limit.
Soft butter, not melted
The 250 g of butter must be soft (leave it at room temperature for one hour), not melted. Hard butter creates lumps that do not blend evenly with the herbs. Melted butter separates as it cools and the texture turns grainy rather than creamy.
Quick tip: cut the butter into 1 cm cubes and leave them at room temperature for 15 minutes. That makes it ready to use in no time. If you are in a rush: 10 seconds in the microwave on the lowest setting (do NOT let it melt).
Three classic variations: bacon, chilli, Mediterranean
Bacon garlic butter: Add 50 g of crispy fried bacon lardons to the finished butter and stir briefly. It turns a simple garlic butter into the star of the steak plate. The bacon version went viral on TikTok under #baconbutter.
Chilli garlic butter: Add 1/2 tsp chilli flakes plus one extra garlic clove. Hot and sharp, perfect with grilled prawns or chicken.
Mediterranean variation: Use 1 tbsp fresh basil plus 1 tsp oregano instead of chives. Add 1 tbsp grated salt with 1 tbsp olive oil. A classic Italian pasta seasoning butter.
Secret boosters: fenugreek or smoked paprika
For a professional restaurant character: add 1/4 tsp ground fenugreek. Fenugreek is the secret ingredient in many Indian curries and gives the butter a subtly nutty, savoury undertone that brings garlic and herbs together beautifully.
Alternatively: 1/4 tsp smoked paprika (Pimentón de la Vera) for a smoky note. Neither secret booster appears in standard recipes, but both make the restaurant difference.
What to serve with garlic butter
Classic at the barbecue: on steaks, chicken, corn on the cob and grilled vegetables. Also great toasted on bread (the classic garlic bread option), with pasta (50 g per person tossed through spaghetti), as a seasoning butter for fried potatoes, as a spread for bread rolls, or stirred into rice dishes at the end.
If you want a softer spreadable version with cream cheese: have a look at our spread technique. For another flavoured butter: Tomato Butter with the Thermomix®.
Garlic butter keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer
Stored in a sealed jar in the fridge, it keeps for 2 weeks. Always use a clean spoon (no double-dipping), otherwise the shelf life drops to 1 week. Bread crumbs in the jar are a breeding ground for bacteria.
Freezing works very well: as a roll in greaseproof paper (it can be sliced into rounds) or in ice cube trays (30 g per cube = one portion). Keeps in the freezer for 3 months. Place directly on hot steak or bread and it thaws by itself.
Goes well with: Grilled bread, baguette and salmon.
