Delicious Ranch Dressing

July 2, 2008

Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer is hosting a “5-ingredients or Less, Special Edition of Works-for-Me-Wednesday.”

Here’s my contribution: Homemade Ranch Dressing. We love this stuff, and it’s so easy to make and so much healthier than the store-bought variety. It’s great on salads or for dipping veggies or chicken strips. And yes, it’s technically 6 ingredients, but shh! don’t tell. Can we say that the pinch of cayenne is “optional” and call it good?

Ranch Dip

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tbsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
A pinch of cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients in a small mixing bowl until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for several hours to allow flavors to blend.

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{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Lady Why July 2, 2008 at 12:29 pm

I’ve been wanting a good ranch dressing recipe! Thanks!

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2 Jen July 2, 2008 at 4:37 pm

Is the buttermilk necessary? I only ask because I would not have anything else to do with the rest of the carton! Could regular milk be used?

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3 FishMama July 2, 2008 at 4:58 pm

Yes, Jen, the buttermilk is what “makes” it. But, the product should stay good for a long time, usually a couple weeks past the sell-by date.

Buttermilk is a mainstay at our house — for dressing and baking. Sub it for milk in whatever you’re baking and it will give a boost to the muffins, pancakes, biscuits, bread, whatever.

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4 Extraordinary Ordinary Life July 2, 2008 at 5:16 pm

I have been wanting a good ranch dressing recipe since my husband loves it. As for buttermilk, you can substitute 1 cup of regular milk with 1 Tablespoon of vinegar for 1 cup of buttermilk.

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5 FishMama July 2, 2008 at 6:04 pm

Yes EOL, you can do that. But, I find that really only works in baked goods. It doesn’t taste quite the same in this dressing. IMO.

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6 Jodi July 2, 2008 at 6:47 pm

woo hoo – I’m so excited to see a ranch recipe…I keep meaning to look for one, but never seem to remember when I have time. I HATE processed tasting grocery-store ranch…can’t wait to give this one a try.

You can also use lemon juice + milk to make “buttermilk” a lot of baking cookbooks have that shortcut in them…I always pull out my Betty Crocker when I need the conversion, bc I never have buttermilk on hand! Don’t know if it would work here or not, but it’s something handy to know!

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7 Zimms Zoo July 2, 2008 at 9:16 pm

btw buttermilk freezes well and you can freeze it in ziplocs in whatever proportion you would need for the recipe.

I didn’t see a place to email you privately so I understand if you take this off and answer later. but i was wondering how you decide what to buy(groceries) versus what is healthy for your family. does that make sense? staying on budget vs. non-hydrogenated fats.

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8 FishMama July 2, 2008 at 9:48 pm

ZZ, I was just thinking about both things this morning: explaining why I have so much Chex Mix and making sure my email was evident. ;) I put up the email link and will answer the other soon. If you’d rather, feel free to email me.

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9 Karen July 3, 2008 at 1:43 am

I’m always looking for dressing recipes. I can’t stand bottled dressing.

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10 Stacie@HobbitDoor July 5, 2008 at 2:52 am

I LOVE ranch dressing and homemade dressings in general! Can’t wait to try this one!

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11 Anonymous September 15, 2009 at 2:40 pm

Jessica,

How long does this keep in the fridge?

Thanks,

Keli

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12 FishMama September 15, 2009 at 2:44 pm

I never keep it longer than a week.

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13 Jackie Brown April 15, 2010 at 10:50 am

I have about 3/4 gallon buttermilk to use up and thought I would make this dressing, but do you have any other ideas how to use it up. Does buttermilk freeze well? Should I attempt it?

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14 Jessica Fisher May 6, 2010 at 1:07 pm

@Jackie Brown, yes, you can freeze it. It is also great in most baked goods.

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