Easy Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

If you like this recipe, please share!

If you’re not saving money and making salad dressings at home you should be. Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing is easy, full of flavor, and is a great way to use up buttermilk that’s hanging out in your refrigerator. It is so much more than a salad dressing.

This post is sponsored by Selefina Spices. I received products to aid in the creation of this post.

Why you’ll love this homemade buttermilk ranch dressing recipe

Once you make this dressing at home, you’ll never go back to store-bought.

• It’s fresh and easy to make.
• Although it’s considered a salad dressing, you could also use it as a dipping sauce for chicken tenders or wings. Even potatoes!
• All natural ingredients, no preservatives.
• A great way to use up buttermilk.
• The recipe easily doubles for a larger crowd.

What can I substitute for buttermilk?

If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can easily make a substitute. Basically use one tablespoon of acid, either lemon juice or distilled white vinegar, for every cup of milk.

So for this recipe, you need a half cup of buttermilk. To make that place 1 1/2 teaspoons of vinegar or lemon juice into a liquid measuring cup. Pour whole milk into the vinegar until you have a half cup total of liquid. Stir to combine.

Let the mixture sit for up to 10 minutes but start checking it at the 5-minute mark. It will begin to curdle and thicken, stir it and you will have buttermilk!

While whole milk is best to use, you can make it with 2% milk as well.

What is the difference between ranch dressing and buttermilk ranch dressing?

Well, that depends on who you ask. While both versions have herbs such as parsley, dill, and chives many recipes on the internet disagree as to whether both should have buttermilk.

Typically if the recipe calls for buttermilk it will only use mayonnaise OR sour cream, not usually both. When the recipe calls for buttermilk you can use EITHER mayonnaise or sour cream.

How do you make ranch dressing?

While you could whisk the ingredients together, I find using a blender makes quick work of the task. Plus clean-up is really easy too.

Can I use all dried or all fresh herbs?

Of course, you can! I had fresh chives to use up but only had dried dill and dried parsley.

The dried dill weed I used is from Selefina Spices. I really love their products. They are great quality, come in a variety of sizes, and always ship quickly.

I used crystallized ginger from Selefina Spices in these ginger molasses cookies and Key lime fudge.

How can I serve homemade buttermilk ranch dressing?

There are lots of ways to serve ranch dressing. The obvious is as a salad dressing. Make a delicious garden salad with all of your favorite ingredients then pour homemade buttermilk ranch dressing over it.

My son likes to dip his chicken tenders in ranch dressing and I know folks who dip wings in it rather than in blue cheese dressing.

I also know people who dip pizza in ranch dressing. But a very common way to serve homemade buttermilk ranch dressing is in a small bowl alongside sliced vegetables such as cucumber, carrots, and celery as part of a crudites platter.

It’s also an ingredient in some Buffalo chicken dip recipes.

How long will homemade ranch dressing last?

You can keep this homemade buttermilk ranch dressing for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. If it lasts that long.

Can I substitute yogurt for the sour cream in ranch dressing?

Absolutely! However, you need to use plain Greek yogurt in place of sour cream. Regular yogurt isn’t the same consistency as sour cream.

More Tasty Salad Dressing Recipes

• Olive Garden Salad Dressing – Enjoy a restaurant favorite at home.
• Blue Cheese Dressing – A classic for salads that you can also use for dipping.
• Tupelo Honey Key Lime Vinaigrette – Bright and fresh for summer salads.