The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (2024)

Home » From Fast Food to Fine Dining: Copycat Restaurant Recipes for Every Taste! » Papa John’s Garlic Dipping Sauce

by Stephanie Manley, Last Updated 71 Comments

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If you are like me, you love the garlic dipping sauce from Papa John’s. Their garlic sauce is the best part of Papa John’s Pizza. What is the best part of this Papa John’s copycat recipe? You can make it for your next homemade pizza night. Typically the only problem with this sauce, is that there is never enough, you won’t have this problem any longer, now that you have this copycat recipe.

The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (1)

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Table of Contents

What makes Papa Johns Creamy Garlic Butter Dipping Sauce So good?

You might wonder how to make garlicky dipping sauce pizza like Papa John’s. I have a recipe for you. Papa John’s buttery garlic sauce is a creamy garlic sauce perfect for dipping those pizza crusts into.

When you make it from scratch, you can use it for many more things. You can spread it on bread for simple garlic bread or even spread some on a steak just before serving. No matter how you use this, your taste buds will be delighted.

Why This is the Best Papa John’s Garlic Sauce Recipe

There are a couple of reasons my copycat recipe is better than all the others:

  • Liquid Margarine – It’s the real secret to this recipe. Papa John’s doesn’t use butter so margarine is the suitable ingredient to use.
  • Simple recipe​- you can make this creamy sauce in no time.
  • Consistency – My copycat sauce has the same consistency as Papa John’s sauce. It’s thick and creamy and not melted.
The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (2)

Garlic Sauce Recipe Ingredients

Here’s what you need:

  • Garlic – use fresh garlic cloves
  • Liquid Margarine

Yes, just two simple ingredients are all you need to create a yummy garlic sauce with classic Papa John’s flavor.

The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (3)

Ingredient Notes about Papa John’s Garlic Dipping Sauce

Fresh garlic is key, and grating the garlic cloves brings out the flavor and gives it the right texture. Chopped garlic will make the sauce lumpy, and you want the sauce to be smooth. Use a Microplane grater for best results.

I recommend using Parkay Squeeze Margarine because it is the closest match to the margarine Papa John’s uses in the sauce. If you will note, their sauce has a creamy consistency. This recipe will have the closest sauce consistency to any recipe you will try. Many recipes use garlic powder, but it does not dissolve. Because of this I do not recommend using it.

How to Make Garlic Butter Sauce

  1. Peel and grate the garlic.
  2. Place the grated garlic in a small bowl and add the margarine.
  3. Stir to combine.
  4. Let it rest for at least 20 minutes.
The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (4)

What to Serve with Garlic Sauce

Pizza and breadsticks are the perfect companions to this sauce. You can also use it for:

  • Baked Potatoes – use it instead of plain butter.
  • Mashed Potatoes – great for making garlic mashed potatoes.
  • Pasta – for a simple garlic pasta dish. Top it with grated Parmesan cheese.
  • Seafood – melt it for dipping lobster or shrimp into it.
  • Steak – spread it on while the steak is hot.
  • Vegetables – great for adding flavor to steamed or roasted veggies.

How to Store Garlic Dipping Sauce

Place the sauce in an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator. It will last for 4 to 5 days.

To Freeze: Place it in a freezer-safe container. Or in ice cube trays until frozen, then transfer the cubes to a plastic freezer bag. It will last frozen for up to 4 months. Thaw it in the fridge overnight.

If you love garlic, you should make garlic aioli and garlic wings.

The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (5)

Try These Great Copycat Sauce Recipes

  • Arby’s Sauce
  • Big Mac Sauce
  • Canes Sauce
  • Chick Fil A Sauce
  • Horsey Sauce
  • Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce
  • Red Lobster Coconut Shrimp Sauce
  • Red Robin Campfire Sauce
  • Taco Bell Quesadilla Sauce
  • Taco Bell Taco Sauce

Popular Pizza Recipes

  • BBQ Chicken Pizza
  • Taco Bell Mexican Pizza
  • Unos Pizza

Be sure to check out more of my easy sauce recipes and the best fast food recipes here on CopyKat.com!

Papa John’s Garlic Sauce

You can make Papa John's garlic dipping sauce with this easy copycat recipe.

4.99 from 53 votes

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Course: Sauces

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Garlic Dipping Sauce, Garlic Sauce, Papa Johns Garlic Sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes minutes

Servings: 1

Calories: 417kcal

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup liquid margarine Parkay squeeze margarine recommended
  • 2 to 3 teaspoons grated garlic about 4 garlic cloves

Instructions

  • In a small bowl, combine the grated garlic and the liquid margarine, and stir well.

  • Allow the garlic sauce to rest for about 20 minutes.

  • Serve with pizza.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 417kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 46g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g | Monounsaturated Fat: 22g | Sodium: 536mg | Potassium: 48mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 2030IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 1mg

About Stephanie Manley

I recreate your favorite restaurant recipes, so you can prepare these dishes at home. I help you cook dinner, and serve up dishes you know your family will love. You can find most of the ingredients for all of the recipes in your local grocery store.

Stephanie is the author of CopyKat.com's Dining Out in the Home, and CopyKat.com's Dining Out in the Home 2.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Drew Clausing

    The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (7)
    I don’t understand why it will only last 4 days in the fridge. Doesn’t margarine basically last for months and months in the fridge and the garlic should last too, right? Seems like it should last at least several weeks.

    Reply

    • Stephanie Manley

      So there is a small risk of botulism when it sits in oil. I don’t want to risk anyone getting sick, so I put a shelf-life on it. The University of Michigan has put some documentation on garlic safety here.

      Reply

  2. R.E.S.

    Made this today following the directions per recipe and video exactly, Liquid Parkay spread with fresh GRATED garlic. It was so good that I ended up making a whole bottle’s worth to keep on hand.

    Reply

  3. Chrissy

    The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (9)
    I loved it, I could drink it by the gallon.

    Reply

  4. Amy Yanda

    I mix 1/2 olive oil, 1/2 butter
    Minced garlic
    Parmesan
    And a pinch of oregano
    Salt and pepper to taste

    Reply

    • Floyde Dehanne

      The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (10)
      Ditch the extra salt at thr end the parmesan chew itself provides it and white pepper harmonizes better. 🙂

      Reply

  5. DanielDan

    The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (11)
    Now no one has to fight over the garlic butter. Yes!

    Reply

  6. MWHstd

    I would like to mention that Papa John’s sauce is not vegan. Lactic acid comes from milk. Very misleading.

    Reply

    • 107643

      Industry lactic acid does not come from milk, bacteria produce it. Many vegan products contain it.

      Reply

  7. Lizzyizzy

    I found that the most effective way to recreate the sauce is to not entirely melt the butter, so it remains partially a solid. This way, when you mid your Salt and garlic powder in, nothing falls to the bottom. The soft, sticky butter hold all the seasonings the same.

    Reply

  8. Thomas

    Will salted butter suffice?

    Reply

    • Stephanie

      Yes it will work.

      Reply

  9. HashBoy

    Some of the confusion in the comments in regards to the garlic not mixing in a probably due to semantics. Many people call granualized garlic, garlic powder when they are 2 very different things. I would not expect granualized garlic to mix very well, where as garlic power would.

    Reply

  10. Tom

    The picture can’t be correct. The garlic powder doesn’t dissolve and just sits as a brown powder below the clarified butter. This was a waste of butter.

    Reply

    • Glen

      Try a different form of garlic instead of the garlic powder. I used a garlic paste out of a tube since I didn’t have any powder on hand, and it worked fine. Also, if using salted butter, it doesn’t really need any more salt. I have also created it just using Smart Balance in a microwave, and that was much less of a hassle, too.

      Reply

      • Glen

        Lemon butter works too 🙂

    • Ole

      You should try a different brand then!

      Reply

  11. Judith Morrison

    If you use crushed garlic rather than garlic powder, how much would you use? Thank you

    Reply

    • cortana

      The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (12)
      @judith as much as you please! ^_^

      Reply

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The Best Copycat Papa John's Garlic Sauce Recipe - CopyKat Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What is Papa John's garlic sauce made of? ›

Salt, spices, garlic, wheat starch, dried onion, soybean oil, paprika extract, natural flavor.

What is the special garlic dip at Papa Johns? ›

While other dips contain milk and egg products like ranch, blue cheese, and honey mustard, the buttery garlic sauce contains no actual dairy components. Papa John's also released a spicy garlic sauce made from the same soybean oil base, with an added spicy kick of green jalapeno pepper and red bell pepper.

What kind of pizza sauce does Papa John's use? ›

Fresh vine-ripened tomatoes (our tomatoes are freshly packed from vine to can in the same day), sunflower oil, sugar, salt, garlic, spices, extra virgin olive oil, citric acid (maintains freshness).

Does Papa John's give garlic sauce with every pizza? ›

The sauce has become so beloved that Papa John's includes one with every pizza (unless you specify that you want a different sauce, of course). Papa John's pizza boxes even have a sauce holder built-in on the corners for easy transport to keep your garlic sauce safe until you can crack it open and enjoy.

Does Papa John's sell their garlic sauce? ›

Because some people can't get enough of the stuff.

What is garlic sauce made of? ›

A very simple garlic sauce can be made by adding crushed or minced garlic to strained yogurt, mayonnaise or sour cream. Lemon juice, salt, pepper and herbs such as dill can be used to impart additional flavour.

How much garlic is in Papa John's garlic sauce? ›

The ingredient list for Papa Johns Special Garlic Sauce notes that garlic is less than 2% of its entire contents. So I decided I'd try to go for a 1% garlic-powder-to-margarine ratio, which was admittedly rough speculation, since ingredient lists aren't required to disclose how much of each ingredient is in a product.

Is Papa John's garlic sauce healthy? ›

It's not overly powerful, and it's oh-so-smooth and perfect for dipping pizza, breadsticks, and anything else your heart desires. Unfortunately, Papa John's special garlic sauce is also laden with sodium and fat, with 310 milligrams and 17 grams respectively per serving.

What is the special seasoning at Papa Johns? ›

Special Seasonings

Add pizzazz to your pizza with our delightful blend of special Italian seasonings including garlic, onion, paprika, parsley and more.

Do you have to refrigerate Papa John's garlic sauce? ›

Does Papa John's Garlic Dipping Sauce Need to be Refrigerated? It's best to refrigerate any leftover Papa John's garlic dipping sauce. Like most fat-based products, margarine can be left on the counter, but does go bad and storing it in the refrigerator to extend its shelf life.

What kind of peppers does Papa Johns use? ›

Our signature whole pepperoncini peppers are subtly sweet, medium-heat and grown in the Mediterranean regions.

What is Shaq pizza Papa Johns? ›

We created the Shaq-a-Roni to feed big appetites and make a big impact. With eight foldable Shaq-sized slices, loaded with extra cheese and covered in over sixty pepperoni from edge to edge, pizza gets bigger when you Shaq-a-Roni.

Does Papa John's have spicy garlic sauce? ›

Epic Stuffed Crust and Spicy Garlic Sauce, together in a whole new way. New Spicy Garlic Epic Stuffed Crust pizza packs a fiery garlic kick — inside and drizzled on the crust, with a dash of crushed red pepper. Served with Spicy Garlic Dipping Sauce.

Why do people dip pizza in sauce? ›

It's no surprise that one of the most popular dipping sauces is actually red sauce, or pasta sauce, as it's what already comes with pizza. However, this is especially delicious if you have a white or grandma pizza - it only serves to enhance the flavors and make for a delicious finale with the crust.

Does Papa John's garlic sauce have dairy? ›

Yes! As it turns out, Papa John's famous garlic dipping sauce is vegan, since it is made with soybean oil instead of butter.

What is pizza garlic sauce made of? ›

In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, place the olive oil and the minced garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes, whisking constantly so the garlic doesn't brown. Add the Italian seasoning, salt and pepper and stir. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk quickly until it is a thick paste.

Is Papa John's garlic butter real butter? ›

While many would assume that the creamy sauce is butter-based, it is actually closer to a margarine. Based on the ingredients listed on Papa John's website, you can see that the sauce base contains soybean oil rather than butter or dairy products.

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