Homemade Ranch Dressing - Recipe Diaries (2024)

FAQs

How is ranch made from scratch? ›

Whisk mayonnaise, sour cream, chives, parsley, dill, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper together in a large bowl until well-combined. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.

Stored in a well-sealed container in the fridge (assuming you began with fresh sour cream and buttermilk) your buttermilk ranch dressing should keep for up to two weeks. Help it stay fresh by not dipping anything directly into the container that you're storing it in—for example, a half-bitten carrot.

Directions. In a medium bowl, whisk together buttermilk, sour cream, and mayonnaise until smooth. Whisk in thyme, garlic, and cayenne pepper. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

“But the particular flavor of traditional ranch can only be achieved with the dry versions of all those aromatics: garlic and onion powder, dried herbs, powdered pepper and buttermilk.” That's because fresh ingredients were rare in Alaska at the time.

Who Invented Ranch? Around 1950, Steve Henson unknowingly made history when he whipped up a unique mixture of dry herbs and buttermilk. Originally a plumber, Steve came up with the concoction while working briefly in Anchorage as a construction worker and part-time cook for his crew.

I use a mix of mayonnaise, sour cream, and a bit of buttermilk for some tang, plus garlic, and plenty of fresh herbs. I also like to add a dash of cayenne pepper for a kick, but you can add Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, or whatever you want. Ranch dressing is fun to customize!

Ranch normally has a pleasant smell, so if it develops any kind of foul odor, it's likely past its prime. If you can't determine its quality from its texture or smell, you can also taste the dressing to see if it still tastes high quality.

It's perfect for salads, dipping vegetables, and things like chicken tenders. Ranch dressing is a comfort food that speaks directly to my Midwestern soul. This recipe is made with fresh herbs, real buttermilk, tangy sour cream, and a little lemon juice.

Because while some restaurants do use a bottled shelf stable dressing, what you are referring to is a powdered ranch mix (typically the Hidden Valley brand) that the restaurant cooks add milk/ buttermilk and sour cream to make their dressing.

What thickens homemade ranch? ›

To thicken the dressing you can add a teaspoon of cornstarch.

In 1954 ranch dressing was invented at Hidden Valley Ranch, a dude ranch near Santa Barbara, California. Ranch dressing has been the best-selling salad dressing in the United States since 1992, overtaking Italian dressing. Since 1972 Hidden Valley Ranch has been owned by Clorox.

Even when a restaurant does start with premade ranch, they will often fold in extra fresh herbs, and maybe even more buttermilk, to lighten and bring in some brighter flavors that can be lost in shelf-stable bottling.

Consistency: Ranch dressing has a pourable, liquid consistency, making it suitable for drizzling over salads or mixing into dishes. Ranch dip, on the other hand, is much thicker and is intended for dipping, spreading, or dolloping onto foods.

Ranch has been the best-selling salad dressing in the United States since 1992, when it overtook Italian dressing.

Ranch dressing is a savory, creamy American salad dressing usually made from buttermilk, salt, garlic, onion, mustard, herbs (commonly chives, parsley and dill), and spices (commonly pepper, paprika and ground mustard seed) mixed into a sauce based on mayonnaise or another oil emulsion.

Even when a restaurant does start with premade ranch, they will often fold in extra fresh herbs, and maybe even more buttermilk, to lighten and bring in some brighter flavors that can be lost in shelf-stable bottling.

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.

This is a very common question, since ranch dressing has become such a staple in the United States. The confusion seems to come from the belief that one of the ingredients is raw eggs. It isn't. Therefore, yes, you can eat ranch dressing while pregnant.