Paleo Ranch Dressing + Dry Ranch Seasoning
There are a lot of recipes for homemade ranch dressing floating around the internet, but most of them call for fresh herbs. (Pioneer Woman has a great recipe using fresh herbs that can be a starting point for all kinds of add-ins.)
When I finally found (and tweaked) this recipe using all dried ingredients, I was happy to have a ready-to-use blend in my pantry. Sometimes I just don’t feel like chopping a bunch of herbs. (Or spending a lot of money on herbs when my herb garden isn’t doing so well. Or is non-existent. Like right now.)
I do want to. . . (warn?) tell you that this doesn’t taste exactly like the little packets you get at the store. It’s hard to compete with monosodium glutamate (MSG), but I’m OK with my tongue not being tricked.
I really like this version, and I hope you do, too. I like to make my dressing in a quart-size mason jar. I have a serious crush on mason jars. Just dump some of dry mix on top of the mayonnaise.
Add the milk — either almond or coconut. I recommend unsweetened almond milk though, and, surprisingly, vanilla flavored does just fine.
And whisk (or shake) like there’s no tomorrow. Have you ever used a ball whisk
This dressing is seriously versatile. You could add some pureed chipotle. Or cilantro, jalapeno, and tomatillo to make a mexi version. (Cafe Rio knock off? :)) Extra garlic would be nice, or BBQ sauce & bits of crispy bacon. Mmm.
You can even use it as a spice rub or a popcorn seasoning. Or part of breading for chicken or fish! Here are a few that that we love from my site and my cookbooks.
Recipes using ranch dressing
Green Chile Turkey Burgers with Guac-Ranch
Buffalo Ranch Chicken & Spaghetti Squash Bake
Green Chile Chicken & Spaghetti Squash Bake
Paleo Turkey Bacon Ranch Chowder
Grilled Vegetable Potluck Salad with Creamy Avocado Ranch
Buffalo Ranch Chicken Chowder (Big Book of Paleo Pressure Cooking)
BLT Egg Salad (Big Book of Paleo Pressure Cooking)
BBQ Ranch Chicken Bites with Roasted Sweet Potatoes (Big Book of Paleo Pressure Cooking)
Bacon Ranch Potato Salad (Big Book of Paleo Pressure Cooking)
Recipes using dry ranch mix
Ranch Chicken with Broccoli & Bacon (Big Book of Paleo Slow Cooking)
Tomatillo Beef & Zucchini Taco Soup (Big Book of Paleo Pressure Cooking)
Shake together all ingredients in a pint-sized mason jar or another similar container. Store at room temperature. Makes about 1 1/2 cups. 
Paleo Dry Ranch Seasoning
Ingredients
Instructions
Thank you so much for posting this!
A few months ago I made the Pioneer Woman's Drip Beef sandwiches – and used the Good Seasons Italian packet. The sandwiches were delicious, but my husband and I are very sensitive to MSG. When we woke up the next morning, all of the tell-tale signs were there. I raced to my kitchen, checked the ingredients and didn't understand – it wasn't listed!
Your link cleared up the sneaky ways that manufacturers are hiding MSG and other additives.
Anyway, I really appreciate having this mix to make the drip beef with!
Also, I've used my food processor to make mayonnaise before, and it's amazing how quickly it thickens – plus your arm probably wouldn't get as tired!
Thanks again
I love that this uses all dried ingredients. So easy to keep and store. Looks delicious!
I am so glad that this uses dry ingredients!!! I always have extra buttermilk on hand after making bread, so this is a perfect use for it! Thanks!
Sounds good, will definitely try this.
Kirsten – Wow, it sounds like you guys need to be extra careful! I'm glad the article was useful to you. I really like (most of) Dr. Mercola's articles.
You could even substitute more Italian seasonings in to make it taste more like Italian dressing. I'll have to try it in my food processor… I didn't even think about that!
I see many salads with this in my future. Many. As soon as I get up the nerve to make that mayo.
What a lovely sounding storecupboard standby! I love buttermilk dressing but it's not very common here in the UK – I'm now searching online to try and find a source of dried buttermilk powder (which I didn't even know existed!)
This looks great. I actually made some Cafe Rio knockoff stuff last night (with cilantro, lime and salsa verde) to go on my fish tacos. This mix will come in handy to have around. What brand of powdered buttermilk do you use that does not need to be refrigerated?
I am now craving a big ol' salad covered in this yummy dressing! Topped with crispy bacon, of course.
I'm loving how frequently you're posting these days! AND I get to see you on TK!
We've been looking for a natural ranch dressing for a loooonnnng time. Thanks a million for this!
Jodi – I bought my buttermilk powder in the bulk section of a grocery store. I can't remember if it was Winco or the store in Berkeley I loved going to.
Karly – Welcome back!! After all of that cruise food, I'm sure salads sound really great right now. I remember hitting that frozen yogurt machine every time we walked past it. Shameless…
Christina – I love it, too! That's what happens when you move to a new place and have zero social life for a while. :) My life is about to get really hectic, so I think my posts will scale back a bit.
Thanks for posting this recipe. I admit I have been waiting for it since you teased about in in the Roasted Layered Salad post. I have been on the quest for a good homemade ranch sans the MSG. This California girl and family LOVE ranch dressing. I will be giving this a try asap.
Arianna – Let me know how you like it (and even if you don't!) My kids adore it and they eat a lot more veggies now!
Do you have to use buttermilk powder? Can’t use just regular buttermilk?(actually milk with vinegar added. I live in the middle east!)
Love this Natalie! Mostly because sometimes I don’t wanna chop all those fresh herbs and garlic… this is easy and perfect!
Greetings!
Would someone break this recipe down to a one serving recipe? I am only making it for me.
Hi Sharon! When you say one serving, do you mean enough dry mix to make about 3 Tablespoons of dressing for one side salad? It would be impossible to measure out all those ingredients at such a small scale. Maybe try making 1/2 or 1/3 of the recipe and then you’ll have a little extra in case you like it. And it wouldn’t be too much of a waste if you don’t. Best of luck!
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Hi,
Do you have the original recipe with the powdered buttermilk. I absolutely love the original and had it bookmarked for years. .
Thanks
I do! Can you send me a note at perrysplate@gmail.com so I can email you the recipe?
Hi Natalie,
I sent you an email about getting the original recipe a few months ago. Is it possible to still get it?
Thanks
Why did I wait years to make this?! I’d contented myself with a natural-ish storebought dressing, but this takes ranch to the next level. Thanks as always! :)
(More emphasis on the ish than the natural part of that well-marketed storebought dressing.)
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I love to make my own salad dressings from scratch, LOL… when I have the time. This recipe looks so much tastier then the one I have. Thanks for your trail and error and sharing your hard work.
Trial and error… not trail. ugh.