Whip up this homemade buttermilk ranch dressing recipe, and you’ll wonder why it’s taken you so long! With just a few fresh items and pantry ingredients, you’re set for salad dressings, veggie dips, ranch marinades, and more.
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Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.
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Updated May 23, 2024
15 Ratings
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Did you know that ranch dressing is the number one most popular type of salad dressing sold in America?
It's even more popular than Italian dressing.
What is Ranch Dressing?
According to Robb Walsh of the Houston Press, ranch likely got its start as buttermilk dressing, a cowboy favorite because buttermilk was widely available in the early part of the last century.
Ranch dressing is essentially a buttermilk mayonnaise dressing spiffed up with herbs. It was popularized by Clorox, when they figured out a way to make their Hidden Valley brand shelf stable.
(According to Slate, bottled ranch dressing is shelf stable to 150 days or about 5 months. Scary thought, don't you think?)
The Ingredients for Simple Ranch Dressing
Ranch dressing is very easy to make, especially if you have leftover buttermilk from baking, or making pancakes or soda bread.
The base is just buttermilk and mayonnaise. Everything else you essentially just add to taste — some dry mustard, salt and pepper, a little paprika, herbs like chives, onion greens, parsley, and/or dill.
Add some crumbled blue cheese, and you have a luscious blue cheese dressing!
How Long Can You Store Buttermilk Ranch Dressing?
Your homemade dressing will keep for up to a week, refrigerated in an airtight container.
Ways To Use Homemade Ranch Dressing
- Pasta Salad with Corn, Bacon, and Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
- Sheet Pan Ranch Pork Chops
- Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos with Ranch Sauce
- Cabbage and Kale Slaw with Caraway Ranch Dressing
- Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Chicken Wings
From the Editors Of Simply Recipes
Homemade Ranch Dressing
Prep Time10 mins
Total Time10 mins
Servings12 servings
Yield1 1/2 cups
If you need to substitute dried herbs for fresh, use one-third the quantity of dried herbs in place of fresh herbs.
Ingredients
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives
1/4 teaspoon dried dill (or 1 teaspoon chopped fresh)
Method
Mix the ingredients:
In a medium bowl, stir together the buttermilk and mayonnaise until fully mixed. Add in the other ingredients, adjusting for taste.
Store:
Keeps for 1 week, covered in the fridge.
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Nutrition Facts (per serving) | |
---|---|
71 | Calories |
7g | Fat |
1g | Carbs |
1g | Protein |
Show Full Nutrition Label
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Nutrition Facts | |
---|---|
Servings: 12 | |
Amount per serving | |
Calories | 71 |
% Daily Value* | |
Total Fat 7g | 9% |
Saturated Fat 1g | 6% |
Cholesterol 5mg | 2% |
Sodium 185mg | 8% |
Total Carbohydrate 1g | 0% |
Dietary Fiber 0g | 0% |
Total Sugars 1g | |
Protein 1g | |
Vitamin C 1mg | 4% |
Calcium 26mg | 2% |
Iron 0mg | 0% |
Potassium 37mg | 1% |
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice. |
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.