The BEST Homemade Ranch Dressing

This homemade buttermilk ranch dressing recipe is simply the best! Made with fresh garlic and herbs, it’s the perfect blend of creamy and slightly tangy. Delicious on a salad or as a dip for just about anything savory, I’ve been making this recipe for over 10 years, and it never fails.

What Makes This Recipe So Good

• Skip the store-bought stuff in the plastic bottle. This is real-deal, homemade, buttermilk ranch dressing. It’s full of fresh herbs, fresh buttermilk, fresh garlic mashed to a fresh paste. It’s not loaded with preservatives and fillers, or sugars, or bean gums, vegetable oil, or carrageenan. Well, as long as your mayo and buttermilk don’t contain any of those, either. Check your labels!
• You can adjust the seasonings to your preferences, which means once you lock in your perfect ratios, you’ll always have a mouth-watering ranch dressing that you LOVE. No more trying to remember which brands are great and which brands shouldn’t even call theirs ranch dressing.
• Ranch dressing is one of those goes-good-with-anything, pretty-much-everyone-loves-it condiments that really should have its own permanent spot on your refrigerator shelf. Use it on salads. Stir it into casseroles. Dip your chicken tenders or fries or slices of pizza in it. Spread it on a cheeseburger. Pour it on your veggies. Seriously, it’s INCREDIBLY versatile.

Serve This Dressing with…

Instant Pot Chicken Wings

Air Fryer Potato Wedges

Pizza Rolls in the Air Fryer

Crispy Fried Zucchini with Dipping Sauces

Chef’s Tips

• Paprika, garlic powder, and even cayenne would all be wonderful additions to this particular ranch dressing recipe, but they’re totally optional. No judgment at all if you opt for a good, ol’ tried-and-true classic ranch.
• Like I mentioned before, this recipe is 100% customizable. As you mix the dressing, taste it and adjust the ingredients as you need to so you end up with YOUR perfect ranch dressing. Add more salt. Stick to just one clove of garlic. Double up on the dill. Whatever you need to do to fine-tune your dressing.
• Like flavor, consistency is also a personal preference thing – buttermilk is the key. If your dressing’s too thick, add more buttermilk 1 tablespoon at a time and whisk well to incorporate it fully before adding anymore. Remember, you can always add, you can’t take away. Though, if you overdo it on the buttermilk, you can add more mayo to offset it, so.
• Let your homemade ranch dressing chill in the fridge for at least an hour before you serve it. That’ll give it plenty of time for all the ingredients to mingle and meld and really develop.

Other Amazing Condiment Recipes

• Creamy Avocado Ranch Dressing
• Best Chimichurri Recipe (From Texas de Brazil)
• Best Ever Balsamic Vinaigrette
• Garlic Herb Butter
• Smoky Chipotle Mayo
• Mango Habanero Sauce

Hey – you’ve made it this far, so now we’re basically best friends! If you make this recipe, I’d love for you to give it a quick review & star rating ★ below. Make sure you follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, and Facebook, too!

The BEST Homemade Ranch Dressing

Prep:15 minutes minutes

Cook:0 minutes minutes

Chill:1 hour hour

Total:1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Creamy and tangy with fresh garlic and herbs, this is the only ranch dressing recipe you'll ever need.

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8 servings

Ingredients

• ▢ ¾ cup real mayonnaise see Notes
• ▢ ¾ cup buttermilk well-shaken, plus more if desired
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried parsley or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• ▢ 2 teaspoons fresh dill chopped, or ½ teaspoon dried dill
• ▢ 1-3 cloves garlic minced, or ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ▢ 1 dash white vinegar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ▢ 1-2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Optional Spices

• ▢ ½ teaspoon garlic powder more or less to taste
• ▢ ½ teaspoon paprika more or less to taste

Equipment

• medium bowl with lid (or plastic wrap to cover)
• Fork
• Whisk
• jar with airtight lid

Instructions 

• Add garlic cloves to bowl and sprinkle with salt. Use back of fork to mash garlic until garlic paste is formed, then add remaining ingredients.
  
• Whisk well to thoroughly combine all dressing ingredients. Taste and adjust seasonings (salt, pepper, white vinegar, paprika, garlic) as needed. Note: if dressing is too thick, whisk in additional buttermilk in 1 tablespoon increments until desired consistency is achieved.
  
• Cover bowl, or transfer dressing to jar with airtight lid. Refrigerate dressing for 1 hour minimum, then serve.

Notes

• Mayonnaise: Use real mayonnaise for the best flavor. Hellman’s is my favorite here, but if you prefer a different brand you can use it instead.
• Garlic: Adjust to your taste! If you’re not a fan, stick to just 1 clove. For really spicy garlickiness, go for 3. That’s what we do.
• Make it Vegan: Use a vegan mayonnaise and a plant-based buttermilk. Alternately, make your own “buttermilk” by mixing 1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk with 1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar.
• Leftovers: Refrigerate dressing in an airtight container up to 2 weeks.

Nutrition Information

Serving Size: 1serving, Calories: 165kcal, Protein: 1g, Fat: 17g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 10mg, Sodium: 312mg, Potassium: 34mg, Total Carbs: 1g, Fiber: 0.03g, Sugar: 1g, Net Carbs: 1g, Vitamin A: 40IU, Vitamin C: 0.4mg, Calcium: 27mg, Iron: 0.02mg

Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.

 

Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.

 

To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.

© Author: Cheryl Malik