By Chrystal Johnson / October 19, 2021 / 4 minutes of reading
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Learn how to make the best homemade Ranch Seasoning blend in this easy recipe. Use this pantry staple to make ranch dressing, season meats or veggies and more!
Making your own homemade seasonings is easier than you might think. My Ranch Seasoning recipe uses the perfect combination of dried seasonings and spices to complement many dishes.
I like making my spice blends by the pint, so it’s easy to grab what I want at dinner time. Be sure to read the tips and tricks below this recipe to learn how to adjust it to make a Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning substitute.
Table Of Contents
Ingredients
Equipment
By the Numbers: How to Make Ranch Seasoning
Step 1: Measure Out Ingredients.
Step 2: Combine Dry Ranch Ingredients.
Step 3: Transfer to Mason Jar.
1. Can I make ranch dressing with dry seasoning?
2. What else can I make with this blend?
3. Is this like the Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning packets?
4. How to store ranch seasoning?
5. Best place to buy bulk spices?
6. More homemade seasoning blends.
Homemade Ranch Seasoning Recipe
Ingredients
½cupof dried parsley
¼cupof dried dill weed
¼cupof onion powder
¼cupof dried chives
3tablespoonsof dried onion flakes
3tablespoonsof garlic powder
3tablespoonsof sea salt
2teaspoonsof black pepper
2teaspoonsof paprika
Equipment
Small mixing bowl
Spoon
16 ounce glass jar
By the Numbers: How to Make Ranch Seasoning
Step 1: Measure Out Ingredients.
You’ll want to start by measuring out all of your spices and seasonings. I like to do this first to make sure I have enough bulk spices on hand.
Step 2: Combine Dry Ranch Ingredients.
Next, you’ll want to add all spices and seasonings to a mixing bowl and mix it really well until everything is nice and combined.
The final step in making dry ranch seasoning is to transfer it to a glass jar for storage. Now it’s ready to be used!
Dry Ranch Seasoning Tips & Tricks
1. Can I make ranch dressing with dry seasoning?
Absolutely. My buttermilk ranch dressing recipe uses fresh herbs, because fresh herbs taste amazing. However, I also give instructions on how to substitute this dry ranch seasoning mix in that post.
2. What else can I make with this blend?
For a tasty chip or veggie dip with ranch flavor, add about 2 tablespoons to 16 ounces of sour cream and allow the ranch dip to sit for 4-6 hours before using.
You can also use it on pretty much any meat. We like to use it on Chicken Breasts in the Instant Pot or when we bake it in the oven.
It’s nice added into soups and you can use it in place of fresh herbs in cheeseballs.
3. Is this like the Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning packets?
No, this recipe doesn’t include buttermilk powder (and is dairy free and vegan). For a copycat recipe of the ranch packets from the grocery store, add equal parts of this dry ranch seasoning and dry buttermilk powder together.
For recipes calling for one store bought ranch seasoning packet, combine about 1.5 tablespoons of this mix with 1.5 tablespoons of powdered buttermilk. You can process the ingredients together in a food processor for a smooth powdered ranch seasoning.
4. How to store ranch seasoning?
Be sure to always store your homemade seasoning blends in an airtight container (glass such as a mason jar is preferred) in a cool, dark, dry place like the pantry or spice cabinet. The shelf life will vary based on the expiration date of the individual bulk herbs you’re using.
5. Best place to buy bulk spices?
I buy all of my spices in bulk because I make all of our seasoning blends from scratch. Starwest Botanicals has great prices on bulk dried herbs spices, so that’s who I source most of my spices and seasonings from to make my own mixes like this dry ranch mix.
6. More homemade seasoning blends.
If you want to make some of my other homemade seasoning blends to stock your spice cabinet, these are popular choices:
Italian Seasoning
Taco Seasoning
Cajun Seasoning
Homemade Ranch Seasoning Recipe
Keep a pint of this ranch seasoning on hand and you'll have a great pantry staple for all sorts of recipes.
Measure out all of your ranch seasoning ingredients.
Add all of the ingredients to a small mixing bowl, and stir with a spoon until all of the spices are well combined.
Transfer the Ranch Seasoning Blend to a pint-sized mason jar and seal with a lid. Shake the jar before each use because it does separate as it settles.
Most of the dry ranch seasoning mix ingredients are simple and likely already found in your pantry. Onion powder, onion flakes, dill, parsley, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and dried chives give this delicious seasoning mix its flavor!
What makes ranch ranch? It's a combination of creaminess (from buttermilk, sour cream, sometimes mayonnaise) and herbaceousness (often parsley, thyme, dill), plus a long pull of allium (onion and garlic) and a shot of black pepper.
This homemade ranch seasoning mix can be used for both. The difference comes in what you combine the seasoning mix with to make either a dip or dressing. Ranch dressing is typically made with milk and mayo, while ranch dip is typically made with sour cream.
Scratch ranch relies on fresh herbs and aromatics, which bring bite and those pops of grassy flavor that dried or powdered versions never can, so you get an eating experience that is elevated. Usually, ranch recipes will contain fresh buttermilk, and sometimes sour cream as well, for a tang that is really balanced.
The original ranch® dressing seasoning was created in the 1950s as a delicious, take-home gift for visitors to the real-life Hidden Valley Ranch in California. As its popularity grew in the 1960s, the ranch owners began selling it through local retailers in the Santa Barbara area.
Homemade wins here. The two dressings are roughly equivalent in terms of fat content, but store-bought ranch is the prototypical processed food, with an ingredients list that includes modified corn starch, monosodium glutamate, sodium lactate, polysorbate 60, et cetera.
Stored in a well-sealed container in the fridge (assuming you began with fresh sour cream and buttermilk) your buttermilk ranch dressing should keep for up to two weeks. Help it stay fresh by not dipping anything directly into the container that you're storing it in—for example, a half-bitten carrot.
While many restaurants use mass produced ranch mix, they often add it to a higher-quality base. This might include milk, buttermilk, sour cream, or mayonnaise. So when you notice that the ranch in a restaurant tastes better than the bottled dressing from the store, what you're really tasting is delicious, creamy fat.
The Classic and Southern are the same, but the creamy ranch has buttermilk powder and some other ingredients like lactose, malic acid, and carrageenan (the latter to hold it together since buttermilk powder thins out in a weird way)... the flavor is much milder than the classic/southern because of the buttermilk powder ...
The ranch packet has a fresher taste, because you add your own mayo and milk. Even though all the herbs and spices in the mix are dried, they rehydrate quickly and leave you with a product that feels homemade. This version of Hidden Valley Ranch is more flavorful than the bottled version and much, much thicker.
Once the package has been opened, the mix should be used within 3 months for optimal flavor and quality. Freezing ranch dressing mix isn't recommended as it doesn't extend the overall shelf life, also, the mix texture could become clumpy or less palatable.
Clorox, Hidden Valley's parent company, is dealing with a cyberattack that has affected the dressing's production. So stores for months have had trouble stocking what some people call America's favorite dressing.
Is ranch like garlic mayonnaise? Not really, that's aioli. Ranch is more like buttermilk, green onion, garlic, black pepper mayonnaise. There's a lot more going on in ranch than just garlic and mayo.
We energized the magical Ranch blend of buttermilk, garlic and onion flavors with a heavy dose of mild chilies and red peppers. It's undeniable decadence in one dry mix packet, ready for you to make all the delectable dishes you crave. Added bonus: It's gluten free.
Does Ranch Dressing Have Mayo? Yes. Mayonnaise plays a significant part in creating that distinctive ranch flavor, and it also lends body to the dressing. Lighter options like yogurt are delicious, but yogurt won't give the same smooth texture and full body.
Mix 1 cup buttermilk, 1 cup mayo, and 1 Hidden Valley Ranch Packet in a mixing bowl. Serve with anything! Or: Mix 1 cup buttermilk, 1 cup mayo, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tbsp of pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, mustard powder, dried parsley and dried dill in a mixing bowl. Serve with anything!
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