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Pickle ranch dressing that pours slowly
A creamy buttermilk ranch dressing with dill, chives and finely chopped pickles, with a controllable pouring consistency.
In this guide5 sections
Keep control of the buttermilk
Ranch can be a dressing or a dip, and the difference is mostly how much liquid goes into the bowl. Start with part of the buttermilk, then stop when the dressing falls from a spoon in a thick ribbon. We prefer finely chopped pickle to a large pour of brine here: the cucumber gives texture without making the dressing excessively thin.
Yield: about 350 ml, or 8 dressing servings. Prep time: 15 minutes. Cook time: 0 minutes. Chilling time: 15 minutes. Use plain cultured buttermilk, not a sweetened dairy drink. The small amount of garlic granules disperses more evenly than raw garlic in a dressing intended for delicate salad leaves.
Ingredients
- 100 g (3½ oz) shop-bought mayonnaise
- 100 g (3½ oz) sour cream
- 60 ml (¼ cup) cultured buttermilk, divided
- 60 g (2 oz) drained dill pickles
- 10 g fresh dill, finely chopped
- 5 g fresh chives, finely sliced
- ½ teaspoon garlic granules
- ½ teaspoon onion granules
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Method
- Chop the pickles as finely as you can without crushing them into paste. Blot away the liquid. Wash and dry the herbs, then chop the dill and slice the chives into short pieces.
Keep the pickle dice tiny and the chives in short rings. - Whisk the mayonnaise and sour cream in a bowl until the colour and texture are even. Mix in the garlic granules, onion granules and black pepper before adding any liquid.
- Pour in 30 ml of the buttermilk and whisk gently. Lift the whisk to check the flow, then add the remaining buttermilk in small additions until the dressing suits the food you plan to serve.
Add buttermilk gradually and check how the dressing flows. - Fold in the pickles, dill and chives with a spoon. Cover and chill for 15 minutes so the dried seasonings hydrate. Stir again before checking consistency; the chilled dressing can be a little thicker.
Fold in the pickles and herbs before chilling. - Transfer to a clean covered jug or container. Use a spoon to dress a small portion of salad first, rather than pouring the whole batch over the leaves and discovering it is more than you need.
Dip thickness or dressing thickness
For raw vegetable sticks, you may need only the first half of the buttermilk. A leafy salad benefits from a thinner dressing that coats lightly rather than collecting in white clumps. The full amount is an upper guide, not something to empty in because it was measured.
Avoid shaking a sealed bottle until you know the pickle pieces will fit through its neck. A small jug is less dramatic and easier to clean. If making this for someone else, note the dairy and mayonnaise ingredients rather than assuming a familiar sauce name explains them.
If the bowl is mainly for dipping, choose thicker dill pickle dip. The same jar can also supply pickle coleslaw for a crunchy side.
Serving and keeping
Keep the dressing covered in the fridge and use within two days, or sooner if any dairy ingredient has an earlier use-by instruction.
Keep cold during storage and serving; see the recipe library’s storage guidance.
Keep the jar open
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