Looking for a from-scratch Ranch dressing recipe? You’ll find it, here.
One of the most common questions we get is how to get picky eaters to eat. That is a great question. And pretty much one I don’t have the answer to. I have two picky eaters, and the really tricky thing is that they’re picky in different ways. My 7-year-old doesn’t like how certain foods like meat, most fruits, pretty much all potatoes, oatmeal and other hot cereals, any kind of dip or dressing, and jam (yes, jam) feel in his mouth. What will he eat? Cheese, bread, vegetables, cold cereal, macaroni and cheese, seafood (huh??) and chicken nuggets (because apparently those aren’t meat). Nutritionally speaking, he could probably be in worse shape.
My 4-year-old daughter has all sorts of sudden food likes and dislikes that are usually influenced by her BFF of the week (I’m way more concerned about that than I am about her picky eating). I can, however, convince her to eat just about anything if I serve it with ketchup or Ranch (which she refers to as “white ketchup.”)
I had really mean parents that made me get a job when I was 16 (don’t tell them that after all that whining, I’m really thankful for those experiences now). From the time I was 16 until I was 22 or so, pretty much every job I had was in the restaurant industry. And, with the exception of Summer from Hell in a grocery store bakery, all of those jobs involved Ranch dressing in some form or another. At one particular Utah-based sandwich establishment that roasts their own turkeys and bakes their own artisan breads, customers felt strongly passionate about the Ranch dressing served there. I made it every morning for 2 years and it’s so unbelievably beyond easy. And before you say, “Hey, lame-o, post a real recipe!”, let me just tell you that yes, I’m just making a few tweaks to the instructions on the packet, but a) this isn’t a recipe, it’s more of a tip, b) those few tweaks end up making a HUGE difference, and c) this is always something I have to go back and look up to make sure I have the right proportions, so now I’ll always know where to find it.
You’ll need a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix, buttermilk, mayonnaise (not Miracle Whip), and Greek yogurt.
You can use sour cream in place of Greek yogurt, but I’ve found fat-free Greek yogurt tastes much better than fat-free sour cream, and since I’m trying my darndest to not gain 82 pounds this pregnancy, I use the fat-free Greek yogurt. If you’re going to use sour cream, I definitely recommend either using full-fat or reduced-fat, but not fat-free.
Disregard the instructions on the packet. Place 1 cup of mayonnaise (or reduced-fat, but not fat-free mayo) in a bowl. Add 1/2 cup buttermilk and 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt.
Add the contents of the dressing packet. In this particular case, I actually prefer the original Hidden Valley Ranch dressing (instead of the buttermilk), but alas, I grabbed the wrong packet out of the pantry. Also, if you have a hard time with packaged salad dressings, check out this recipe.
Whisk it together. That’s it. Use it as a salad dressing or a dip for veggies.
True story: during one of our many Ikea trips last year when we were remodeling our kitchen, I came across their little espresso cups and saucers. They were ADORABLE and irresistible and, in true Ikea fashion, so cheap that I couldn’t not buy a set, even if it was only one cup and saucer and even if I don’t drink coffee. And then I came home and back to my senses and wondered what the heck I was going to do with a teeny tiny cup and saucer. My answer?
That’s right. Perfect little portions of veggies and dip. This is seriously the only way I can get my daughter to eat broccoli–she pretends it’s a tea party. Wouldn’t these cups and saucers be perfect way to serve veggies at a baby or bridal shower? Tiny things make everything more delicious…
Restaurant-Style Ranch Dressing
Recipe from Our Best Bites, inspired by Kneaders Bakery
1 cup mayonnaise or light mayonnaise (not Miracle Whip)
1/2 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
Instructions:
Whisk ingredients together. Serve as a salad dressing or dip for vegetables. Refrigerate any leftovers.
Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Hidden Valley Ranch. As always, our opinions, ideas, and thoughts are completely our own.
Delicious dressing and EASY to whip up. I use mayo with a cup of buttermilk, and leave out the yogurt. Great results! I could drink it straight out of the bottle while standing at the open fridge…no lettuce necessary. YUM.
Warning: this will make you a ‘fresh Hidden Valley dressing’ snob…I had to buy a bottle of it on a run to a potluck (or something) and ICK…for the first time I tasted the preservatives added, and it REALLY changed the flavor. Lesson well learned!
Thank you for the recipe. My buttermilk was bad so I used real milk and it was delicious.
I accidently bought whole buttermilk will that effect the way it tastes or the consistency of the dressing?
It will only taste yummier 🙂 No problem at all!
I just made this recipe and it’s fantastic. I hope to be assembling several more batches. I can’t stand bottled.
I used 1 cup buttermilk, 1 cup mayo, 1 packet of Hidden Valley Buttermilk Seasoning packet for Ranch dressing and I swear it tastes like the delicious house ranch’s you get at restaurants! Never again will I buy crappy bottled stuff. Thanks
I tried this recipe one night because I was having an insane craving for Red Robin’s ranch and fries. I tried it with greek yogurt and it turned out GREAT!!! Although I must add I got a little carried away with the greek yogurt (Fage 1%) and it made it a bit more sour than I would have liked. So I just kept tweeting it by adding more powder or buttermilk to dim down the sourness from the greek yogurt but I loved the fresh ranch. I’m going to try it again this weekend with sour cream and see if how it turns out! This will be a staple in our fridge because the husband and in-laws love ranch on their salads and now I don’t have to serve them nasty stuff from the bottles with all the nasty preservatives and mysterious ingredients.
All the haters can say whatever they like. But I just made this dressing and OMG was it good. So much better than ANY store bought version. My husband and I loved it. I made it regular Hidden Valley Ranch mix (I know, Im going to hell) Dukes light mayo with olive oil, and fago greek yogurt fat free. I used regular 1% milk because I was out of buttermilk. I served it for lunch with a huge plate of fresh veggies and cottage cheese! Where has this been all my life? I have searched hight and low for a low fat ranch recipe and finally I found it! I will never buy a bottled dressing again. Thanks so much ladies. nomnomnomnom!!!
Thanks for this combo.! I use Wildtree Herbs dry ranch dip vs. Hidden Valley b/c it’s organic…..no preservatives, msg, etc.
At our house ranch is ‘white sauce’ and ketchup is ‘red sauce’. You are the only other person I’ve heard call it white sauce, too.
Hi, I am trying to make the ranch dressing. Before I start, I want to know which Hidden Valley Ranch are you referring to? Ranch or Buttermilk Ranch on the mix?
Either one, we prefer the buttermilk
I just made this and it turned out a little runny how do you make it thicker?????
Try cutting down a little on the buttermilk or adding more yogurt. Hope that helps!
Is this really just 1/2 c. buttermilk? I just made it, and mine was rather thick. I had t add quite a bit of milk to make it pourable. Thanks!
I love this recipe and made again last night but accidentally grabbed the miracle whip instead of Mayo and it tastes awful any suggestions? I hate waste
oooh, sorry girl- no saving that one!
I would like to know how to make it not so thick. I have put it in a dressing bottle but it won’t poor. I added a small amount of milk and it didn’t help much. I am trying to keep the calories down so I used light mayo and fat free milk. Love your recipes and this one is definitely a keeper.
Just add milk or buttermilk until desired consistency is reached!
Is this the same thinner ranch dressing that is found in salad bars? Because I’m kind of addicted to that stuff and have been searching how to make it.
sorry someone already asked how long it lasts in the fridge, but I didn’t see an answer anywhere. you know, in case i’m not haveing a baby shower and me and my fam get to ingest all of it ourselves!
We refer to Ranch as “White Dippies” at our house and my kids eat it like it’s going out of style! I hate store bought ranch and love the Buttermilk packet-I’m excited to try a new variation on it. Thanks for all the little tips and tricks that make us home cooks look like professional chefs!!
Thank you for posting this! I made it on Sunday, and I have to say that I was a little worried when I tried to use it pronto to dip veggies in. I am now dipping your Chipotle Beef Taquitos in it and it is delicious!! Definitely better letting it sit! Thanks guys!!
I was a VERY picky eater growing up, spaghetti noodles with absolutely nothing on them and saltines were about the only foods I enjoyed until the 8th grade. Then foods just suddenly started tasting different. I didn’t eat a sandwich until I was 18 years old!
Basically, I wouldn’t worry about picky eaters, over time things just work out:)
Excited to try the ranch!
I’m all for the post next week about how to take a nap on the couch! I love your blog, and have learned so much from both of you ladies. I agree that constructive critisism does not have the word “crap” in it, but that’s just my thought. Keep up the good work and enjoy the last few moments before the new bundle of joy arrives! =)
How much seasoning is in a packet? My hubby, the food storage pro at our house, bought a giant tub of ranch powder at Costco that I would love to use up. Any idea how much I should scoop out? Thanks!
3 Tbsp. is equivalent to a 1 oz. packet of seasoning.
We love ranch dressing! My kids eat a lot of peanut butter sandwiches. One day I made them some kind of sandwich with mayo to try and switch it up, and my little guy started calling mayo “white peanut butter”. Kids are so funny!
If you add come finely chopped onion and garlic and add to the Ranch dressing it adds even a better taste.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on a restaurant-style Creamy Garlic dressing…you know, the thick kind you have to scoop or plop onto your salad?
There are so few bottled options that even come close and all of them are runny and gross.
My husband and I both worked at Kneader’s (at different times and at different locations) before we were married. Mmmm….I love the french toast and all that bread! 🙂
This was really good and super easy. Thanks so much!
Has anyone ever tried Penzeys Spice ranch mix? I’m not a huge ranch fan but I know Penzeys is usually healthier (no salt low salt no msg).
I love Penzey’s, but I wasn’t crazy about their ranch mix. To be honest, the very best I’ve ever had was completely generic in a white envelope with black writing on it. I don’t even know how I’d go about finding it, haha!
How long would this dreesing be good for if kept in the fridge?
White ketchup is so funny! My picky eater ate a hamburger (grilled at home) tonight! Don’t give up hope, he is now 11 and is my chicken nuggets kid. Just a question about the buttermilk part: since I rarely use it all up if I buy a carton, I looked online and found that you can curdle milk with vinegar and make buttermilk when you need it. I use this tip when I bake Irish soda bread. Would this fake buttermilk concept work with your dressing recipe?