Greek Yogurt Pasta Sauce

This Greek Yogurt Pasta Sauce is garlicky, creamy, and ready in just about 20 minutes. A high-protein twist on Alfredo that pairs with any noodle.

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“Easy, delicious, and affordable. I found this while looking for vegetarian recipes that are high in protein and low in fat. It checks those boxes while tasting awesome. I personally like to really pack on the red pepper flakes. Great recipe! Love this dish!”

—Maddie

“I made this the other day, and we both loved it. It was a real hit, even with my husband, who is not quick to compliment anything. Because I have to eat low carb I used spaghetti squash instead of regular spaghetti. That worked well. Thank you for a great recipe that I will make pretty regularly.”

—Susan

Greek Yogurt Pasta Sauce That Rivals Alfredo

Did you know you can make a creamy pasta sauce with Greek yogurt? If you’re somebody who loves alfredo sauce but also likes sticking to a lighter meal plan, this recipe is for you.

In this case, “lighter” doesn’t mean lacking flavor, because we’re still using a bit of butter and Parmesan cheese in this sauce. Everything can be part of a balanced diet in moderation, including these things.

We’re also throwing a ton of garlic at the situation, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. The end result is a lighter pasta sauce that will simply blow your mind.

Greek Yogurt Alfredo Sauce Ingredients

A full recipe card, including exact ingredient amounts, appears at the bottom of this post.

• unsalted butter – this is how we’ll saute all the garlic. You can use olive oil instead, but we like the flavor that butter adds.
• garlic – we usually use eight fairly large cloves. Measure with your heart.
• full fat Greek yogurt – we cannot stress enough, it MUST be full fat or your sauce will curdle. WE RECOMMEND FAGE TOTAL 5% MILKFAT YOGURT FOR THIS RECIPE.
• grated Parmesan cheese – this adds a salty and nutty depth of flavor to this Greek yogurt Alfredo sauce.
• whole milk – this helps thin out the protein pasta sauce and adds creaminess.
• salt and pepper – don’t forget the seasoning for this Greek yogurt spaghetti sauce!
• chopped fresh parsley and red pepper flakes – these are optional, but we like to add them just before serving for color and extra flavor and spice.

Can I Substitute Different Yogurt In Yogurt Pasta Sauce?

Without getting too technical (I took a food chemistry class in culinary school so that you don’t have to), you need to have a certain fat to protein ratio in your yogurt if you’re going to cook with it, like with this Greek yogurt pasta sauce.

If there’s not enough fat, your Greek yogurt Alfredo is probably going to curdle when you heat it up. To prevent a grainy or separated texture for your pasta sauce, use full fat Greek yogurt for this Greek yogurt sauce recipe. We have not tested this recipe with regular yogurt, only the Greek variety.

WE RECOMMEND FAGE TOTAL 5% MILKFAT YOGURT FOR THIS GREEK YOGURT PASTA SAUCE RECIPE.

How To Make Pasta Sauce With Greek Yogurt

1. PASTA. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the spaghetti according to package instructions for al dente. Reserve a cup of the cooking water, then drain.
2. SAUCE. In a large skillet, cook the garlic in the butter until it is fragrant. Stir in the yogurt, Parmesan cheese, milk, salt and pepper and cook until everything is warmed through.
3. COMBINE. You can serve the pasta spooned over the spaghetti in each bowl, or you can toss everything together: add the drained cooked pasta and half of the cooking water to the yogurt sauce and toss to combine. Adjust the consistency with additional pasta cooking water, if needed. Serve the pasta sprinkled with additional Parmesan cheese, and garnish with parsley and red pepper flakes, if desired.

Storage And Reheating

• Refrigerate: If you have leftovers, transfer them to an airtight container and place them in the fridge uncovered for a few hours until they are fully chilled, then cover them with the lid and keep in the refrigerator up to 3 days.  
• Reheat: On the stovetop over low heat or in the microwave at 50% power, adding a splash of water or milk to loosen the sauce if needed.
• Freeze: Not recommended, as creamy sauces like this Greek yogurt Alfredo sauce tend to break when they are thawed.