Ranch Dressing

Name: Ranch Dressing
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 40 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1/2 cup mayonnaise (full fat); 1/4 cup sour cream; 1/4 cup buttermilk, plus more to thin if needed; 1 tablespoon fresh chives, finely minced; 1 tablespoon fresh dill, finely minced (or 1 teaspoon dried dill); 1 teaspoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely minced; 1 small garlic clove, pressed or finely grated; 1/2 teaspoon onion powder; 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice; 1/2 teaspoon white wine vinegar; 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste; 1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper; Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)

Published by Fork Around & Find Out Kitchen — presented in the Lila editorial voice. Editorial standards

Quick Answer

To make ranch dressing, whisk together mayonnaise, sour cream, buttermilk, fresh herbs, garlic, onion powder, and a squeeze of lemon until smooth. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to let the flavors develop.

Jump to Recipe

Good ranch dressing tastes like dairy, herbs, garlic, and acid—not like a white liquid that remembers seeing dill once in 2014. This version starts with full-fat mayonnaise and sour cream for body, then uses buttermilk to loosen the texture without thinning out the flavor. Fresh chives, dill, and parsley bring the green stuff, while fresh garlic, garlic powder, onion powder, lemon juice, white wine vinegar, black pepper, and a pinch of cayenne fill in the gaps.

Everything gets whisked together in about ten minutes, but ranch is one of those foods that improves after it has had time to sit down and think about what it has done. A 30-minute chill lets the dried seasonings hydrate, the garlic mellow, and the herbs spread through the base. From there, add buttermilk a teaspoon at a time if you want a pourable salad dressing, or leave it thicker for wings, vegetables, fries, pizza, and whatever else you were going to dip in ranch anyway.

Taste it again after chilling. Cold dulls seasoning slightly, and the difference between “pretty good ranch” and “where did the jar go?” can be one pinch of salt.

Prep10 minutes

Cook0 minutes

Total40 minutes (including 30 minutes chilling)

Serves8 servings (about 1 cup total)

DifficultyEasy

Ingredients

Servings

1/2 cup mayonnaise (full fat)
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup buttermilk, plus more to thin if needed
1 tablespoon fresh chives, finely minced
1 tablespoon fresh dill, finely minced (or 1 teaspoon dried dill)
1 teaspoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely minced
1 small garlic clove, pressed or finely grated
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)

Instructions

1In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, and buttermilk. Whisk together until smooth and fully incorporated.
2Add the minced chives, dill, and parsley. Stir to combine.
3Add the pressed garlic, onion powder, garlic powder, lemon juice, white wine vinegar, salt, black pepper, and cayenne if using. Whisk everything together until uniform.
4Taste and adjust seasoning. If it needs more brightness, add a small extra squeeze of lemon. If it needs more salt, add a pinch at a time.
5For a thinner, pourable dressing consistency, whisk in additional buttermilk one teaspoon at a time until you reach the texture you want. For a thicker dip consistency, leave it as is.
6Transfer the dressing to a jar or lidded container. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving — this step is not optional if you want it to taste like ranch and not a rough draft of ranch.
7Taste once more before serving and adjust salt if needed. Serve chilled.

Nutrition Information

Estimated per serving: 1 of 8 servings.

110Calories

1 gProtein

1 gCarbohydrates

12 gTotal Fat

2 gSaturated Fat

0 gFiber

1 gTotal Sugars

250 mgSodium

11 mgCholesterol

Estimated from the ingredients and quantities in this recipe using standard food-composition values. Brand choices, trimming, cooking loss, optional ingredients, and actual portion size can change the numbers. How we calculate nutrition estimates.

Pro Tips

Fresh herbs make a real difference here. Dried herbs work in a pinch but press them gently in your palm before adding to release the oils — they need the encouragement.
Grate your garlic clove on a microplane rather than mincing it. This distributes the garlic flavor evenly instead of leaving you with a surprising chunk in one bite, which is startling every single time.
If you don't have buttermilk, you can make a substitute by adding 3/4 teaspoon of white vinegar to 1/4 cup of whole milk and letting it sit for five minutes. It works fine. The real buttermilk is better, but this is not a reason to give up.

Substitutions

sour cream → full-fat Greek yogurt Works well and adds a slight tang; the dressing will be a bit thinner

mayonnaise → vegan mayonnaise Makes this fully dairy-free when combined with plant-based sour cream and non-dairy milk with vinegar

buttermilk → whole milk plus 3/4 teaspoon white vinegar Let it sit 5 minutes before using; works as a last-resort substitute

fresh herbs → dried herbs at 1/3 the quantity Use dried dill, dried chives, and dried parsley — press between your palms before adding and add them before refrigerating so they have time to hydrate

Storage Instructions

Store in a sealed jar or airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 7 days. Give it a good stir before each use. Do not freeze — the emulsion breaks when thawed and you'll end up with something that looks like a science project.

Make Ahead

This dressing is actually better made the day before you need it. The flavors develop significantly with 8 to 24 hours of refrigerator time. Make it the night before a party and you will not regret it.