How to make homemade Ranch Dressing from scratch loaded up with fresh dill. Rich and tangy, peppery, herbaceous, and full of the BEST flavor! Vegan-adaptable (See recipe notes).
This cool and creamy Ranch Dressing brings me back to the ’70s when my family would visit old-school salad bar restaurants in LA. This version is so much better than store-bought ranch, you’ll never want to buy it again! It is packed full of dill and has the best flavor.
Why you’ll love this Ranch Dressing!
- The flavor! Cool, creamy, and rich, this ranch dressing tastes generously herbaceous with lots fresh dill, with a hint of garlic, a lovely spike of peppercorn and a bright tanginess from a fresh lemon.
- The texture! The perfect trifecta of mayo, sour cream and buttermilk gives this best consistency. It perfectly coats lettuce leaves- and when I speak of lettuce leaves here- I mean cool, crunchy sturdier lettuces like little gems, romaine, or even head lettuce, preferably in a wedge.
- Healthier! No added flavorings or weird oils. Homemade dressing is always “less processed”.
Ranch Dressing Ingredients
- Fresh herbs: Fresh Dill and any of the following: tarragon (gives the best flavor), fresh parsley, oregano, or fresh chives. you can use dried herbs in a pinch, but fresh is best!
- Lemon- fresh lemon juice for the best flavor!
- Garlic – fresh garlic cloves for that delcious bite!
- Mayo – homemade or store-bought or vegan mayo.
- Sour cream – I like using probiotic sour cream like Nancy’s or vegan sour cream. You could also use low-fat sour cream.
- Buttermilk (see notes for substituting) or substitute plain Greek yogurt
- Vinegar– white vinegar, Apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar,
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
How to make Ranch Dressing
Step one: Whisk equal amounts of sour cream, buttermilk and mayo in a bowl.
Step Two: Add fresh garlic.
Step three: Add fresh herbs, salt and black pepper.
Step four: Add lemon juice and vinegar.
Step Five: Mix it all together, adjusting salt and lemon. You want it a little salty and tangy.
Step Six: Chill the heck out of it. You want it COLD! 😉
How to store ranch dressing
- Transfer the dressing into a sealed jar or airtight container.
- Place the jar or container in the refrigerator.
- Ensure the lid is tightly closed to prevent air or moisture from getting in.
- Store the ranch dressing in the fridge for up to five days.
Remember to stir the dressing well before each use, as the ingredients may separate slightly when refrigerated. Enjoy your homemade ranch dressing!
Ranch Dressing Serving Suggestions
Ranch dressing is incredibly versatile and can be served in various ways. Here are some ideas to enjoy your homemade ranch dressing:
- Ranch Dip for Fresh Vegetables: Serve ranch dressing alongside fresh farmers’ market vegetables such as broccoli, radishes, celery, salad turnips, cauliflower, carrots, celery, cucumbers, bell peppers, and cherry tomatoes.
- Salad Dressing: Drizzle ranch dressing over your favorite salad for a creamy and flavorful dressing. It pairs well with sturdy lettuces like little gem lettuce, iceberg, and romaine.
- Sandwich Spread: Use ranch dressing as a spread for sandwiches and wraps. It adds creaminess and a tangy flavor to turkey, chicken, or veggie sandwiches.
- Potato Salad Dressing: Instead of traditional mayonnaise, use ranch dressing as the base for your potato salad. It brings a unique twist of flavor to the classic side dish.
- Pasta salad Dressing. Toss with your favorite pasta and adjust salt and pepper to taste!
- Tacos or Nachos Topping: Drizzle ranch dressing over tacos or nachos to add a creamy and cooling element. It pairs well with spicy flavors and adds a delicious contrast.
- Baked Potato Topping: Load your baked potato with ranch dressing, bacon bits, shredded cheese, and chives for a delicious and indulgent treat. Or serve with french fries!
- Drizzle over Pizzas, buffalo wings, etc.
- Marinade: Use ranch dressing as a marinade for chicken, pork, or vegetables. It helps tenderize the meat while infusing it with flavor.
Feel free to get creative and experiment with different ways to serve ranch dressing. Enjoy!
More dressing recipes to savor
More Favorite Dressings
- Citrus Vinaigrette
- Little Gem Salad with Dilly Ranch Dressing
- Creamy Herby Hemp Seed Dressing
- Vegan Ranch Dressing
- Creamy Pesto Dressing
- Classic Caesar Dressing
- Rainbow Salad with Creamy Dill Dressing
- French Dressing
- Creamy Gorgonzola Dressing
Ranch Dressing Recipe
- Prep Time: 15
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 1 1/4 cup
- Category: salad dressing
- Method: whisked
- Cuisine: american
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
How to make creamy Ranch Dressing from scratch loaded up with fresh dill- this easy recipe is creamy, tangy, peppery, and full of flavor! Vegan-Adaptable, see notes!
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup mayo
- 1/3 cup buttermilk
- 1/3 cup sour cream– I like Nancy’s probiotic Sour cream
- 1–2 garlic cloves, finely minced (use a garlic press)
- 1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped
- 2 tablespoons tarragon
- 1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, chopped or sub chives
- 1/2 teaspoons salt, more to taste
- 1 teaspoon fresh cracked peppercorns
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, more to tase
- 1 teaspoon white or Apple Cider vinegar
Instructions
- Whisk the mayo, buttermilk, and sour cream in a medium bowl until smooth.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients- garlic, herbs, salt, peppercorns, lemon juice, and vinegar.
- Taste- you want this slightly salty and tangy- so adjust salt and lemon juice to bump up the flavor.
- Place in a sealed jar the fridge- and chill. You want this cold!
Notes
Ranch Dressing recipe will keep up to 5 days in the fridge.
Serve Ranch Dressing with this Little Gem Salad, Rainbow Salad, or any crisp/sturdy salad green like romaine, little gems, head lettuce (make a wedge), etc. OR serve as a dip (I’d use less buttermilk and more sour cream so it’s thicker) with farmers’ market veggies!
Vegan option: Make this CREAMY VEGAN RANCH and add 1/2 cup dill and 2 tablespoons tarragon.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 90
- Sugar: 0.9 g
- Sodium: 218 mg
- Fat: 9.1 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 1.6 g
- Fiber: 0.1 g
- Protein: 0.8 g
- Cholesterol: 10.6 mg
A lovely dressing. Also good on cold salmon and used as a dip for vegies.
Glad you enjoyed Michone! Appreciate you circling back to leave a review.
Amazing fresh and bright flavor. This should be in the fridge at all times,
Thanks Mark!
I can get everything fresh but the tarragon locally, and 1 TBSP fresh tarragon is 1 tsp dry. Hope that helps for anyone curious about fresh to dry conversions
Thanks JM!
So fresh and bright – I made this as directed, with dill, tarragon and chives. It goes with a million things, I see a fresh corn salad in our immediate future.
Sounds great Abbie, glad you enjoyed!
Someday, I may assemble all the ingredients to make this (I loathe store bought mayo and rarely have sour cream or buttermilk on hand–I use plain balkan yogurt 6% MF for all that). So for everyday where I use what I have on hand, I sub 1c greek yogurt for the mayo/dairy; fresh lemon juice (skip the vinegar), crushed garlic, and a splash of olive oil for flavor (since mayo contributes oil) + salt/pepper, with whatever fresh herbs you are up for.
Or for an unusual spring salad, try fresh cream, salt&pepper with fresh summer savory and chives to dress a bed of spring baby leaf lettuce & radishes. (This is all about the summer savory and it needs to be fresh to pull it off but it’s light and refreshing).
I’ve been trying to get my husband off the store-bought stuff for a while. This did the trick! Even made my own mayo for it. Here you have a clean, fresh ranch dressing with no bad oils or preservatives and super easy to make. He used it on salad, baked potatoes, crudités—gone on a couple of days. Thanks for this!
Awesome Susanna! Glad you both enjoyed and cool that you made your own mayo!
It would be kind of Sylvia to adjust recipes using dry herbs. For this Dilly Ranch Dressing, one has to purchase fresh tarragon and fresh dill at $4 each, not to mention a quart of buttermilk. That makes this a very expensive recipe. And to not use fresh makes me feel like such a plebeian, but if the recipe creator writes it, then it’s ok. Additionally, if Sylvia could have a link to other Buttermilk using recipes, we wouldn’t be throwing out the rest of the $5 quart
Thanks!
Hi Marissa-I just can’t bring myself to adapt this with dry herbs, because I know it just won’t be the same. 🙂 I realize it is cost-prohibitive, unfortunately. Many baking recipes can utilize buttermilk – our Cornbread, sourdough biscuits, sourdough waffles all can be made with buttermilk.
You could try it with dry herbs, and if you like it that way, then that’s what matters. And I think you can freeze buttermilk. Do it in ice cube trays so next time you can just thaw as much as you need! You could even freeze the rest of your mrasure fresh herbs in it to use in the dressing next time!
The flavor of buttermilk varies a lot with the brand, and perhaps also the seasonal grasses the cows are eating. I have a preferred brand, and enjoy drinking it straight, as I’ve always enjoyed sour or tart flavors.
You can always make buttermilk by adding vinegar to regular milk, just google it…