Description
Creamy Zesty Cowboy Butter is a rich, garlicky, and tangy butter sauce with a kick of spice and a smooth finish. Perfect for dipping, drizzling, or basting over steak, shrimp, chicken, veggies, or crusty bread.
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon paprika
0.5 teaspoon cayenne pepper
0.5 teaspoon black pepper
0.25 teaspoon salt
0.25 cup heavy cream
Optional pinch chili powder or splash hot sauce
Instructions
1. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
2. Stir in lemon juice, Dijon, parsley, red pepper flakes, paprika, cayenne, black pepper, and salt. Simmer 2–3 minutes.
3. Lower heat and slowly whisk in the heavy cream. Stir gently until combined and warmed.
4. Serve warm as a dip, drizzle, or basting sauce. Keep warm when serving.
Notes
Use fresh garlic for best flavor—jarred garlic won’t give the same kick.
Adjust cayenne to suit your heat level or omit for a milder version.
For a dairy-free version, swap butter and cream with vegan alternatives.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 180
- Sugar: 0.2g
- Sodium: 95mg
- Fat: 20g
- Saturated Fat: 12g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 0.5g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 0.5g
- Cholesterol: 60mg
Keywords: cowboy butter, dipping sauce, steak sauce