Paleo Ranch Dip Recipe -Whole30, GAPS, Dairy-free

This fast and simple paleo ranch dip recipe is easy to whip up for a quick snack, a dinner side, or a creamy, thick salad dressing. Our kids love to dunk veggie sticks or “meat sticks” (chicken or steak cut into strips) in this dip or spread it on their hamburgers.

When we transitioned to a whole foods/ancestral diet, we had to ditch commercial ranch dressing and seasoning packets. We replaced with real herbs and healthy fat (no seed oils). The taste is better, and we feel good about going for seconds, rather than limiting it as an unhealthy condiment.

Ingredients In Ranch Dressing

We grew up always having a bottle of Hidden Valley ranch dressing in the fridge door. I carried this habit with me into adulthood, until we started the GAPS protocol to heal our food allergies and autoimmune issues. When we made the habit of reading labels, we decided to forego most commercial condiments and salad dressings. Most ranch dressing brands have similar ingredients as Hidden Valley, which are:

Vegetable Oil (Soybean and/or Canola), Water, Buttermilk, Sugar, Salt, Egg Yolk, Less Than 1% of: Spices, Garlic*, Onion*, Vinegar, Phosphoric Acid, Xanthan Gum, Modified Food Starch, Monosodium Glutamate, Natural Flavors, Artificial Flavors, Disodium Phosphate, Sorbic Acid and Calcium Disodium EDTA Added to Preserve Freshness, Disodium Inosinate & Guanylate. *Dried Contains: Milk, Soy, Egg (source).

Ingredients In Ranch Dressing Packets

I’m a little bit embarrassed to admit, when I knew to avoid seed and vegetable oils, I began adding ranch powder packets into a “cleaner” base, such as sour cream, yogurt, or avocado mayo. While we eliminated some of the bad, we were still eating harmful ingredients. Again, most brands like Hidden Valley have these similar ingredients:

Maltodextrin, Buttermilk, Salt, Monosodium Glutamate, Garlic*, Onion*, Lactic Acid, Calcium Lactate, Spices, Citric Acid, Less Than 1% of: Calcium Stearate, Artificial Flavor, Xanthan Gum, Carboxymethylcellulose, Guar Gum, Natural Flavor. *Dried Contains: Milk, Soy (source).

How to Make Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing

Before we healed from our dairy allergies using the GAPS protocol, we needed to find a good ranch base. We began making this homemade mayo and the whole family enjoyed it! We also keep bottles of this store bought mayo on hand for convenience as well. Either of these mayo recipes can be used as the base to add the herbs and seasonings for this paleo ranch dip recipe. Now that we can have sour cream and yogurt again, the kids still often ask for “mayo ranch” instead! I’m grateful we have several options. We also use fermented milk kefir for a tangy taste. Follow the recipe below using the mayo base for the dairy-free option, or feel free to just add the herbs and seasonings to your preferred base (see recipe notes for inspiration).

Which Herbs & Seasonings Are Best in Ranch Dressing?

I think dill is the secret ingredient to making a delicious homemade ranch. (And it tastes more similar to a store bought version.) We use these herbs in our ranch recipe (and many others!), so we keep these well-stocked in our pantry:

• dried dill
• dried parsley
• organic garlic powder
• organic onion powder
• sea salt

I have seen a lot of recipes calling for chives in ranch dressing. We do love adding fresh garden chives each spring! We use these herbs listed above in almost all of our dinner recipes. Some of our favorites include: from scratch chicken soup, mashed “potatoes”, artichoke dip, and savory protein snacks.

How to Make Paleo Ranch Dip

Ingredients

• 1 cup homemade mayo or this brand store bought
• 1.5 teaspoons dried dill
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (optional)

Instructions

• Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix with a spatula or whisk together
• Serve with veggie sticks, spread over burgers, as salad dressing, or any recipe calling for ranch

Recipe Notes

• If you want to use fresh herbs instead of dry, use 1 tablespoon where the recipe calls for 1 teaspoon
• Variations of this recipe: sour cream, yogurt, blended cottage cheese, cream cheese, coconut milk or cream, etc.
• We enjoy adding fresh chopped chives each spring!

Shop This Post

• avocado mayo
• dried dill
• sea salt
• dried parsley
• organic garlic powder
• organic onion powder
• sea salt

I hope you and your family enjoy this recipe as much as ours! Please let me know what variations of herbs or “base” are your favorite!

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure here.

Favorite0