This homemade ranch dressing recipe is deliciously creamy and full of flavor that you won't believe how easy it is to make at home! Use fresh herbs if you have them on hand, or dried herbs that are likely in your pantry! This is an extremely versatile dressing for dips, salad dressing, adding stir-ins to, or for seasoning tasty meals!
Easy Ranch Dressing Recipe
Classic ranch dressing is a staple in most homes, and for good reason! The creamy, tangy, and very tasty salad dressing (or dip) is so versatile and just as suited to dipping fresh veggies, buffalo wings, or pizza into as it is to topping a fresh salad!
One of the best things about ranch dressing, is that the herbs in ranch dressing are common pantry staples that most of us have in our spice racks or cabinets (in my case). Fresh herbs are equally wonderful, when available, but either way this homemade ranch dressing takes just minutes to prepare!
🥘 Ingredients For Making Homemade Ranch
A good ranch dressing is all in the herbs and spices used! I like to use a food processor or Nutribullet blender to reduce my spices to a fine consistency.
- Mayonnaise - ½ cup of mayo, I used Hellman's olive oil mayo but Duke's is also a great brand.
- Sour Cream - ½ cup of sour cream.
- Buttermilk - ½ cup of buttermilk or a buttermilk substitute.
- Dried Chives - 1 teaspoon of dried chives.
- Dried Parsley - 1 teaspoon of dried parsley.
- Dried Dill - ½ teaspoon of dried dill.
- Onion Powder - ¼ teaspoon of onion powder.
- Garlic Powder - ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder.
- Salt & Pepper - ⅛ teaspoon each of salt & pepper.
*Be sure to see the free printable recipe card below for ingredients, exact amounts & instructions with tips!*
🔪 How to Make Homemade Ranch Dressing
Once you realize how easy making ranch is, you won't ever buy it bottled again! You will need a mixing bowl, whisk, and your measuring utensils.
One batch of this recipe will make about 24 tablespoons of ranch.
- Whisk wet ingredients. To make your ranch dressing, add the mayonnaise, sour cream, and buttermilk (or buttermilk substitute) to a medium sized mixing bowl and whisk until smooth.
- Add the seasoning. Add 1 teaspoon of dried parsley, 1 teaspoon of dried chives, ½ teaspoon of dried dill, ¼ teaspoon of onion powder, ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder, ⅛ teaspoon of both salt and pepper. Whisk again until thoroughly combined.
- Refrigerate. Once the seasoning has been mixed in, taste and adjust to your liking. Remember that once the dressing has been refrigerated, the flavors will blend together better.
Looking for more great salad dressing recipes? Try my homemade blue cheese dressing or creamy Caesar salad dressing (no anchovies)! Enjoy!
🧂 Substitutions & Additions
Add a splash of these great flavor stir-ins to this basic homemade ranch dressing recipe for even more tasty flavor:
- Fresh Lemon Juice
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Apple Cider Vinegar
- Adobo Sauce (from chipotle peppers)
- Ground Mustard
- Smoked Paprika
- Dill Pickle Juice (our personal family favorite)
Ranch Dressing Without Mayonnaise or Without Sour Cream
You can easily skip the mayonnaise in your ranch dressing by increasing the sour cream and buttermilk amounts ( to ¾ cup amounts each ). If you don't want the sour cream taste too tangy, then increase the buttermilk only.
Plain Greek yogurt can also be used as a substitute for mayonnaise or sour cream, and regular milk can be substituted for the buttermilk. If using milk, you get your best creamy ranch results from a higher fat milk, half & half, or heavy cream.
This easy ranch dressing can also be made without sour cream by using increased amounts of mayonnaise and buttermilk ( to ¾ cup amounts each ).
To my taste, the mayo is too heavy in this option that is why the equal part buttermilk is needed. The tangy flavor from the buttermilk offsets the mayo flavor, which regular milk would not be able to do as well.
Ranch Dip Using Cream Cheese
This is one of the best rich and tasty veggie dips out there, but you can also add some shredded cheddar cheese and bake for a hot dip for easy entertaining! Use one brick or 8 ounces of cream cheese, softened at room temperature, with ½ cup of sour cream.
Mix the cream cheese and sour cream until smooth, then add the seasoning as directed below. Refrigerate and serve chilled.
Ranch Dressing Using Cottage Cheese {Healthy, High Protein Ranch Dressing Option}
This recipe variation is a staple in our home! Greek Yogurt is a next best option for higher protein amounts, but the flavor of cottage cheese works wonderfully. My only requirement here is that the cottage cheese (I always use small curd) MUST be broken down using a food processor or Nutribullet.
Pulse, blend, mix until smooth and the curds are no longer visible. Then add your milk of choice to thin to your desired dressing or dip consistency and season as directed below in the recipe card.
📖 Variations
- Blue Cheese Ranch - Add 2 ounces of blue cheese crumbles and mash them in until nice and creamy.
- Cilantro Lime Ranch - Fresh lime juice (and zest) with 2 teaspoon dried cilantro or 1 to 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro.
- Buffalo Ranch - Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of buffalo hot sauce (a hot sauce like Franks Red Hot Sauce, combined with melted butter in a 2:1 ratio, or twice as much hot sauce as melted butter).
- Sriracha Ranch - Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of sriracha sauce.
- Chili Ranch - Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of chili paste (such as Sambal Oelek).
- Chipotle Ranch - Finely chopped ½ chipotle pepper with 1 teaspoon of the adobo sauce.
💭 Angela's Pro Tips & Recipe Notes
- Note that one crushed garlic clove can be used rather than the garlic powder. Carefully crush the clove, sprinkle it with sea salt and work into a paste before adding it to your base ingredients - then omit the garlic powder and salt in the recipe.
- To substitute fresh herbs for any of the dried herbs in this recipe: the general rule of thumb is three times the amount of the dried herb. Since dried herbs have a more concentrated flavor, you need to use roughly 2 - 3x the amount of the same fresh herb. So in this recipe, for example, you would triple the dried parsley amount for substituting the fresh herb and use 3 teaspoons rather than the one called for in the recipe card.
- Using the best quality mayo makes a big difference. I use Hellman's brand olive oil based mayo, and I know that Duke's brand is popular in the South.
🥡 Storing
Your homemade ranch should be stored in an air tight container and kept refrigerated. Stored properly, mixed ranch dressing will last up to one week.
The ranch dressing tends to thicken the longer it is refrigerated. Simply add some buttermilk (or buttermilk substitute), milk or water to return your ranch to dressing consistency.
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❓ Recipe FAQs
Technically yes, but I don't recommend it. Freezing homemade ranch will change the overall texture and consistency of your dressing.
If your ranch is too thin for your liking, you may thicken it by adding small amounts of sour cream and mayonnaise until it reaches your desired consistency.
Kenneth Henson of from Thayer, Nebraska is the unassuming creator of ranch dressing. As a plumber, he would cook lunch for his coworkers including his own homemade salad dressing that we know know as ranch. In 1954, he purchased a ranch in Santa Barbara, California called "Hidden Valley Ranch" where it was featured as the house salad dressing. It was a hit with guests. He began packaging and selling the dry mix until the recipe was purchased by Clorox in 1973 for 8 million dollars.
😋 More Tasty Condiments
- Horseradish Sauce - This is the perfect sauce to accompany a juicy prime rib or your favorite roast!
- Cajun Dipping Sauce - A zesty dipping sauce that tastes great on chicken, french fries, shrimp, and more!
- Lemon Butter Sauce For Fish - The perfect citrus butter sauce for fish or shrimp.
- Taco Bell Creamy Baja Sauce - There's a little heat and lots of flavor in this copy cat Baja sauce recipe!
- Teriyaki Sauce - Perfectly sweet and salty teriyaki sauce for all your Asian-inspired cooking!
- Cheese Sauce for Broccoli - A creamy cheese sauce for making all your veggies taste even better!
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📖 Recipe Card
Homemade Ranch Dressing
Ingredients
- ½ cup mayonnaise (I use Hellman's Olive Oil Mayo)
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ cup buttermilk (or buttermilk substitute)
- 1 teaspoon dried chives
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried dill
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon each, salt & pepper
(Note: 2x or 3x only changes the ingredient list)
Instructions
- In a medium size mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, and buttermilk (or buttermilk substitute) and whisk until smooth and creamy.
- Add seasoning (dried chives, dried parsley, dried dill, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper) and whisk until thoroughly combined.
- Transfer the dressing to an air tight container for refrigerating, chill for at least 30 minutes for best flavor. *This ranch dressing can be served immediately, but is best after being refrigerated overnight.
Notes
- Note that one crushed garlic clove can be used rather than the garlic powder. Carefully crush the clove, sprinkle it with sea salt and work into a paste before adding it to your base ingredients - then omit the garlic powder and salt in the recipe.
- To substitute fresh herbs for any of the dried herbs in this recipe: the general rule of thumb is three times the amount of the dried herb. Since dried herbs have a more concentrated flavor, you need to use roughly 2 - 3x the amount of the same fresh herb. So in this recipe, for example, you would triple the dried parsley amount for substituting the fresh herb and use 3 teaspoons rather than the one called for in the recipe card.
- Using the best quality mayo makes a big difference. I use Hellman's brand olive oil based mayo, and I know that Duke's brand is popular in the South.
Anita says
This is a great ranch dressing. So much better than boughten ranch, so This is my go to recipe now. Thank you Angela for this great recipe