It’s even more popular than Italian dressing.
What is Ranch Dressing?
According to Robb Walsh of the Houston Press, ranch likely got its start as buttermilk dressing, a cowboy favorite because buttermilk was widely available in the early part of the last century. Ranch dressing is essentially a buttermilk mayonnaise dressing spiffed up with herbs. It was popularized by Clorox, when they figured out a way to make their Hidden Valley brand shelf stable. (According to Slate, bottled ranch dressing is shelf stable to 150 days or about 5 months. Scary thought, don’t you think?)
The Ingredients for Simple Ranch Dressing
Ranch dressing is very easy to make, especially if you have leftover buttermilk from baking, or making pancakes or soda bread. The base is just buttermilk and mayonnaise. Everything else you essentially just add to taste — some dry mustard, salt and pepper, a little paprika, herbs like chives, onion greens, parsley, and/or dill. Add some crumbled blue cheese, and you have a luscious blue cheese dressing!
Ways To Use Homemade Ranch Dressing
Pasta Salad with Corn, Bacon, and Buttermilk Ranch Dressing Sheet Pan Ranch Pork Chops Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos with Ranch Sauce Cabbage and Kale Slaw with Caraway Ranch Dressing Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Chicken Wings
