Ranch dressing - a moment in the sun

"It’s the friend of all manner of dude foods." delicious.

Ranch dressing is one of those absolutely American things - well I think of it that way anyway - if I think about it all that is. But Deb Perelman in her Smitten Kitchen newsletter, directed to me to an article in The Atlantic by Ellen Cushing which told me that:

"Ranch dressing has become, deservedly or not, a face of the nation during the World Cup."

And I have checked - it is indeed a thing - at least in the media. Everyone, including the hallowed BBC is writing about it, although to be fair the BBC wondered whether it was actually all hype. I think it was the BBC - although I have seen this in a couple of places - who told me that:

"Ranch's World Cup break-through moment likely occurred 8 June when Swede Elsa Thora posted on X, "Why did no one tell me ranch sauce is like crack? EUROPE WE NEED RANCH ASAP".

This immediately had thousands of views - why? - the reference to 'crack? - and so all the furore began. Ellen Cushing went on to say:

"Coordinated international enthusiasm is hard to come by these days, after all; the only two things that reliably seem to bring it are food and sports. ... Ranch mania is broadly endearing because it combines so many of the internet’s favorite things—influencers, AI slop, food opinions, low-stakes cultural differences, close-up shots of fatty liquids spilling out of their containers, feel-good narratives, dumb new things to buy."

So whether it is all true or not, it piqued my interest and so here we are talking about ranch sauce.

What is it and where did it come from? Well the origin story does not seem to be questioned in this case:

"In the early 1950s, Steve Henson was living in Alaska, working as a plumbing contractor. He also sometimes cooked for his crew, but he had trouble finding fresh herbs or dairy up there, so he had to make do with what he had. He made a dressing with buttermilk, mayonnaise, and various dried herbs and spices, notably onion and garlic powder. The blend came home to his native Nebraska with him and then to the dude ranch in Santa Barbara that he and his wife later founded, which they called Hidden Valley." Ellen Cushing/The Atlantic

'What he had' - in a way virtually all world dishes have been made from 'what he (or she or they) had' even the posh ones. It's just that 'what he had' varies according to historical time, social status, geography, and so on.

And so it is in this case as Ellen Cushing points out:

"Other cultures have similar-ish sauces—Indian raita, Greek tzatziki, English salad cream—but there is nothing exactly like ranch: gloopy, dilly, cool, perfect."

Well she would say that wouldn't she? I'm pretty sure the others would say the same, although I'm not so sure about the English and their salad cream. Does anyone like that? Anyway Ranch is definitely all-American and most often used, I suspect, not so much as a dressing, but to dunk things like fried chicken and buffalo wings in. The version shown here is from J. Kenji López-Alt of Serious Eats

Steve Henson didn't have much to work with, and initially I think it was produced in a powdered form, but possibly the real kicker in terms of its ensuing popularity, when it began to be bottled, was naming it Hidden Valley Ranch dressing after his holiday ranch - as K. C. Hysmith, a food historian tells us.

"[The dressing] grew popular because it had this association with dudes, cowboys and ranches."

So what is it? Well what Steve Henson had when he invented it was those creamy things - mayonnaise - I'm guessing out of a bottle - and buttermilk, and some dried herbs and flavourings - including dried onion and garlic. Today, for one thing, there is a tendency for home recipes for Ranch dressing to use fresh herbs, and regular additions seem to be things like Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice or vinegar - for extra tang.

"Make it your own with a sprinkle of cayenne or a dash of Worcestershire sauce, or swap the coriander for any soft herb that you have to hand."

says Yotam Ottolenghi who has this Ranch dressing with smashed potatoes and charred green beans recipe.

His recipe for the dressing substitutes yoghurt for the buttermilk, which is very untraditional - I'm not sure any American housewife would do that. He also adds in spring onions, coriander and green chillies, but interestingly sticks to dried onion and garlic granules. It's very of today is it not? 'Smashed' potatoes, 'charred beans' more spring onions, chillies and lemon juice. Nice. Has it strayed far enough from the original to be something else, or can you still call it Ranch dressing? And if so why? What is it about it that makes it Ranch? Mayonnaise and those dried onions and garlic are the only really original ingredients it seems to me.

Or there's Australia's own Sam and Will Studd - of cheese fame - who, inevitably perhaps, have added blue cheese to their Beer can chicken with blue cheese ranch sauce for delicious. Beer can chicken is American enough, but blue cheese in Ranch dressing? They have gone even further from the original than Ottolenghi. No herbs at all - dry or fresh. Fresh garlic, no mayonnaise or buttermilk - just yoghurt and that blue cheese. Honey! Vinegar, olive oil, a chopped shallot and some Worcestershire sauce. Where's the dill? I confess that here I think the only association with Ranch dressing is the beer can chicken. Which of course is not to detract from the greatness or otherwise of the sauce, but why call it ranch dressing?

It's certainly not what all of those international football fans are packing into their luggage, or sending by mail to their homelands - bottles of Hidden Valley Ranch sauce. In vast quantities, some say. Even though it is already available in their own supermarkets at home. Well versions thereof - Coles and Woolworths have choices ranging from Praise, to Black Swan, Paul Newman and Beerenberg - and a few others too. No Happy Valley however - although that was sold many years ago by the Hensons for several millions to the Clorox Company.

An interesting phenomenon however. I have written before about retaining the spirit of well-known dishes and products, whilst making your own adjustments. So what is the spirit of Ranch dressing I wonder? And is it worth retaining anyway. I confess it doesn't sound all that tempting to me in its original form - dried parsley, dill and chives do not appeal. I do use lots of dried herbs every now and then - but never parsley, dill nor chives. But maybe once you go the fresh route you have lost the whole idea of Ranch dressing.

I think you would probably have to keep the mayonnaise and the buttermilk, however, similar yoghurt or sour cream might be to buttermilk. I don't think I shall be experimenting any time soon with this one, but it is indeed a really interesting thing how crazes like this one begin, progress and either expand into the distant future or die once the event that instigated the craze is over.

YEARS GONE BY

July 9

2025 - You just need a starting point

2024 - Nothing

2023 - Nothing

2022 - Kohlrabi

2021 - Missing

2020 - Missing

2019 - Nothing

2018 - Nothing

2017 - On holiday