Ranch dressing

Ranch dressing

Ranch dressing is a type of salad dressing that originated in the United States. It is typically made from a base of buttermilk, salt, garlic, onion, mustard, herbs (commonly parsley, dill, and chives), and spices mixed into a sauce based on mayonnaise or another oil emulsion. Sour cream and yogurt are sometimes used in addition to, or as a substitute for, buttermilk and mayonnaise.

History

Ranch dressing was first created in the 1950s by Steve Henson, a plumbing contractor turned cowboy. While working in Alaska, Henson started cooking for his coworkers and perfected his buttermilk dressing recipe. In 1954, Henson and his wife Gayle opened Hidden Valley Ranch, a dude ranch near Santa Barbara, California, where they served their dressing to guests. It became so popular that they began selling it in packages for guests to take home, both as a finished product and as a dry mix to be combined with mayonnaise and buttermilk.

Popularity

Ranch dressing has been the best-selling salad dressing in the United States since 1992, when it surpassed Italian dressing. It is also popular as a dip and sauce for fried foods, such as chicken wings and french fries, and for raw vegetables.

Variations

There are many variations of ranch dressing, which adjust the original recipe to add additional flavors. Some of these include barbecue, bacon, chipotle, jalapeno, and cheese flavored ranch dressings. There are also "light" and "fat free" versions of the dressing, which use different ingredients to achieve a similar flavor with fewer calories or less fat.

See also

• List of salad dressings
• Blue cheese dressing
• Thousand Island dressing