Classic buttermilk ranch dressing gets a zesty twist with the addition of cilantro, lime, and creamy avocado in this yummy Avocado Ranch Dressing. I’ve been trying to find the perfect avocado ranch dressing at grocery stores for years now, and finally decided to break down and make my own since I could never find one that was juuuuuuussssst right. I wanted one with bold flavors from plenty of fresh herbs and a kick of lime mixed in with that classic buttermilk flavor, but I also wanted it to be nice and creamy while still pourable over a salad. And y’all…I think I finally cracked the code for my perfect avocado ranch. Give it a try this week!
Ingredients and Substitutions
Here’s what you’ll need to recreate this Avocado Ranch Dressing at home!
- Buttermilk – You need plenty of that buttermilk tang to build a liquid flavor foundation and balance out the creaminess of the avocados in this dressing. I highly recommend using real buttermilk instead of doing one of those at-home substitutes with lemon juice. Trust me, the flavor is worth just picking up some for-real buttermilk.
- Greek yogurt – You could use sour cream instead, but I opted for the one with a bit higher protein content. Be sure to get a plain Greek yogurt to add that good zip of tangy, slightly bitter flavor.
- Mayonnaise – I don’t think the mayo is totally necessary, but I did really like the flavor of the dressing with it included. It adds a slight sweetness that I think helps balance out the tangy buttermilk and yogurt. If you don’t want to use it, add a bit more Greek yogurt.
- Avocado – Obviously you need avocado for an avocado ranch dressing! Because the flavor of avocado is pretty mild, it’s hard to pick the flavor of it out among the fresh herbs and buttermilk. But what it really brings to the party is the creamy texture and green color that we all know and love. Be sure to use an avocado that’s nice and ripe to avoid chunks after blending.
- Lime – You’ll need both the lime juice and zest to really get that lime flavor to shine through in this creamy dressing. The juice helps loosen things up and the zest brings the flavor punch.
- Garlic – Most of you probably always use more garlic than what a recipe calls for, but I’d caution against that in this recipe since garlic can be really overpowering in this dressing. You can also skip it completely if you prefer.
- Fresh herbs – I used a combination of cilantro, parsley, chives, and dill. I really do think all these herbs are key to achieving that ranch dressing flavor you know and love. Cilantro is kind of a twist, but I think it’s perfect with the lime and avocado! If you can’t find or don’t want to pay for fresh herbs, you could use dried herbs, but the flavor is best with fresh. With dried herbs, you’ll need to cut the amounts by at least half of what I call for in fresh ingredients, but it’s best to start at 1/4 and add as you taste since dried herbs can become overwhelming quickly if you’re not careful.
- Salt and pepper – Salt is so crucial to this recipe to really make all the flavors shine, plus a bit of pepper for spice and sass.
I used a food processor to blend up this dressing, but you could use a blender instead. Just be careful not to over blend, especially if you’re using one of those high power blenders like a Vitamix. You still want to be able to see those little bits of fresh herbs in the dressing!
serve it with:
Turkey Taco Salad
I’ve been making this turkey taco salad recipe for years as part of my meal prep and always needed the perfect dressing to go with it. Keep an eye out for a facelift of this classic PBF meal prep recipe!
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Avocado Ranch Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 cup low fat buttermilk, (8 fl oz)
- 1/4 cup plain, non-fat Greek yogurt, (2 fl oz)
- 1/4 cup Duke's Light Mayonnaise, (2 fl oz)
- 1 medium Haas avocado, (150 grams)
- 1 lime, zested and juiced
- 2 cloves garlic, (8 grams)
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, packed
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, packed
- 1 tbsp fresh chives
- 1 tbsp fresh dill
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a food processor and pulse until smooth.
Tips & Tricks
Nutrition Information
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