Oprah's Unexpected Addition For Creamy Butter-Free Pasta

Butter may seem like the only culinary ingredient that can add a luxurious, rich texture to pasta dishes, but that's certainly not the case. Whether it is a kit to infuse cocktails or a wooden charcuterie board, Oprah is known for promoting the things she likes, and thankfully, she consulted French chef Philippe Chevalier for answers that can help us leave butter to the side while still resulting in a delicious dish to serve (per Oprah Daily).

If you're hoping to avoid butter and dairy when making your next bowl of pasta, your dreams of a creamy and satisfying meal are not lost. Chevalier has come up with an easy culinary solution, and you most likely already have the necessary ingredient stocked away in your kitchen's cupboard. The next time you're craving creamy garlic butter noodles and want to make a solid attempt to shy away from introducing butter into the recipe, know that you have options.

Chevalier relies on oatmeal, specifically oat milk, to cook a pasta dish that delivers a creamy texture without adding any dairy products. First, Chevalier cooks steel-cut oats and strains out the water from the heated pot. This cloudy liquid is full of starch, and when added to the pasta, helps create a texture that could easily be mistaken for a batch of pasta made with creamy dairy ingredients. 

Oprah herself was surprised to taste the dish Chevalier prepared, remarking to the chef, "I can't believe there's no cream in it."

Try this oatmeal hack the next time you're setting out to make pasta or dairy-free meatloaf for dinner and top off your meal with dairy-free cheese options like nutritional yeast or almond alternatives. If oats aren't your thing, we have a list of 14 dairy-free substitutions you can consider to result in creamy and flavorful dishes that don't include butter.