Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
This buttermilk ranch dressing is cool, creamy, and garlicky. Serve it over a green salad or use it as a dip for crudités or chips.
Gourmet is probably not the word that comes to mind when you think of buttermilk ranch dressing, but homemade is nothing like the mass-produced bottled stuff on the grocery store shelves. This buttermilk variation of my standard ranch dressing recipe is one of my go-to salad dressings. It’s cool, creamy, tangy, garlicky, and, honestly, good enough to eat straight with a spoon. Try the dressing over a crisp green salad or as a dip for crudités, potato chips, or baked chicken wings.
“Delicious. This takes just a few minutes to make with outstanding results. A+”
What You’ll Need To Make Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
- Sour Cream: Provides creaminess and tanginess to the dressing.
- Buttermilk: Adds a subtle tang and helps thin out the dressing to a pourable consistency.
- Mayonnaise: Contributes richness and helps bind the ingredients together.
- Garlic: Infuses the dressing with a bold, savory flavor.
- Salt and Pepper: Enhance the overall taste of the dressing.
- Dill: Adds a hint of herbal flavor and freshness.
- Fresh Chives: Offer a mild onion flavor and a pop of color.
- Fresh Lemon Juice: Provides brightness and balances the richness of the other ingredients.
- Tabasco Sauce: Adds an optional touch of heat and extra flavor for those who enjoy a bit of spice.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
To make it, simply combine all of the ingredients in a bowl.
And whisk to blend.
That’s all there is to it. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Definitely! It will keep well in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. Keep in mind that the garlic flavor gets stronger the longer it sits, so you may want to cut back if you’re planning on making it in advance. Also, the dressing will thicken up to more of a dip consistency as it chills. If you’d like it to be pourable, let it sit on the kitchen counter for 30 minutes before using.
Sure, you can omit the mayo and increase the sour cream to 3/4 cup. Because the additional sour cream will add more tangy flavor, reduce the lemon juice to 1 teaspoon.
While I’m a big fan of making your own buttermilk for baked goods, when something relies more heavily on the buttermilk flavor and consistency, I suggest using store-bought.
You May Also Like
Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
This buttermilk ranch dressing is cool, creamy, and garlicky. Serve it over a green salad or use it as a dip for crudités or chips.
Ingredients
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ¼ cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann's or Duke's
- 2 garlic cloves, minced (see note)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1½ teaspoons dried dill
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh chives
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- Few dashes Tabasco sauce, optional
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk well. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Chill until ready to serve.
- Note: The dressing will keep well in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. The garlic flavor gets stronger the longer it sits, so you might want to cut back if you're planning on making it in advance. The dressing will thicken up to more of a dip consistency as it chills.
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Serving size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 69
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated fat: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 1g
- Sugar: 1g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 1g
- Sodium: 113mg
- Cholesterol: 9mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
This was so delicious. Be aware that the flavors need time to meld so make it ahead of time. It tasted okay when freshly made. Once hour later it was even better. The next day it was fantastic. So I really say make this a day ahead of time to let that garlic and dill flavor develop. Perfect recipe for me. Thank you!
Hi Jen,
Was wondering how the “Tested and Perfected” recipes differ from the ones that are not labeled as such? Thanks.
Diane
Hi Diane, Have I not labeled some of them as “tested and perfected?” If that’s the case, that was inadvertent as they are all tested (and perfected). 🙂
Oops. You are right–all recipes are labled as such. Some of the labels blended in with the picture and were not as visible. Thanks. Love your recipes!
Diane
Where are the ingredients listed?? This site is overrun by commercial pop up’s. Don’t understand how this recipe got such high ratings on this site.
It sounds like you are just looking at the portion of the page that has the pictures with some instructions underneath. If you scroll down a bit to under the pictures, you’ll find the full recipe. Alternatively, at the very top of the page, to the right of the recipe name, you’ll see an orange/red button that says Jump to Recipe – if you click on that, it will take you directly to the recipe. Hope that clarifies!
You scrolled right past them to get to the comments, so…
lol
Funny when people can’t find it, it’s always the authors fault or the website, but never their computer skills ?
Much too runny. Even lessened buttermilk but too thin for a dip and just runs off the lettuce. Tastes great though!
This gets thicker with age. Day 1 was thin. Day 2 was great. Day 3 you could stand a fork up in it. Patience, grasshopper!
I love all of Jenn’s recipes, this is my go-to site. Made this tonight with steak au poivre and onion rings. My husband is still raving about the salad dressing. Thank you.
Been making this recipe for a couple of years now and always do it exactly as written on this website; happy to report it’s a standard in our home and a fan favorite for the family and friends that have had it!
Before I make this……is the dill weed or seed????? Someone mentioned fresh dill competing with the dressing????
I have lots of fresh
Hi Jackie, the recipe calls for dried dill. Hope you enjoy!
I added a dash more lemon juice, and a bit of water to thin; mine was quite thick. I love the flavors! Served with a grilled lemon chicken breast and summery Romaine/garden tomato/grilled croutons salad. SO good!
I just made this and it is so flavorful and easy! I bet it will be even better in a few hours when it is time for dinner!
I’m interested in using this recipe long-term, but I need to verify what consistency this dressing is. Is it thick or thin? I’m hoping you will say on the thicker side, as I’m not a fan of super thin dressings. Thank you. 🙂
Hi Elizabeth, It’s thin enough to be able to drizzle it on a salad. If you’d like it thicker, replace the buttermilk with more sour cream. Hope that helps!
Made this dressing today and it is wonderful! It was easy to make, visually appealing and so good!
A friend gave me your Irish Cream Tirimisu recipe and that has become my “Special” dessert dish. Thanks so much.