Lime Mayo Is The Key To Perfecting Restaurant-Style Ranch At Home

Many people would agree that food tastes better when it's been made in a restaurant. This might be due to the fact that professionally trained chefs, using top-notch ingredients and equipment, do the cooking, or it could be that they use much more butter and salt in their recipes than you might realize. Even the most unassuming condiments, like ranch dressing, are often superior to the bottled variety you bring home from the store. However, it turns out that all you need to do to create restaurant-worthy ranch dressing at home is to swap in lime mayonnaise for the regular kind.

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The easiest way to create homemade restaurant-style ranch is to start with a packet of ranch dressing seasoning. To whip up the delicious condiment, which was originally invented by a cowboy, use Hidden Valley brand restaurant-style buttermilk ranch seasoning, buttermilk, a dollop of sour cream, and McCormick brand Mayonesa with lime. Several TikTok users, such as @jordan_the_stallion8, have tried this out, and admit that the mayonnaise itself is the star of the show, making the dressing very similar to what you might find in restaurants.

It's impossible to know what goes into the ranch dressing served at every restaurant; some make their own from scratch, likely using a standard ingredient list of mayo, milk or buttermilk, and a plethora of dried seasonings. Others might use pre-mixed seasonings to blend into liquid ingredients (similar to Hidden Valley's packet instructions, just on a larger scale), and many opt for dressing that is already fully prepared. However, to jazz up the pre-made stuff, restaurants often incorporate extra ingredients like fresh herbs, citrus zest, and onions or shallots for a distinctive flavor.

Using lime mayonnaise in homemade ranch provides an instant flavor enhancement because it's made with tangy lime juice concentrate, which brightens the dressing's flavor, making it taste distinctively different (and better) than any store-bought version. If you don't have or can't find lime mayo, you can easily create your own by mixing some fresh lime juice and zest into your mayonnaise before incorporating it into your ranch dressing recipe.

There are numerous ways to customize this lime mayo ranch dressing, such as adding chopped fresh dill, grated cucumber (ensure you squeeze out the excess liquid before adding), or seasoning it with chili powder or even Tajín for an additional lime zing. This dressing isn't just great on salads; in true restaurant fashion, you can also use it as a dipping sauce for French fries, chicken wings, fried chicken tenders, potato skins, fried blooming onions, or a classic vegetable platter for parties.

If you're a fan of ranch dressing made with lime mayo, you might want to explore the world of flavored mayonnaises. Duke's brand mayonnaise, for instance, offers several flavors, including Bacon & Tomato, Fire Roasted Red Pepper, and Cucumber Dill, while Hellman's or Best Foods produce mayo flavored with chipotle peppers, Italian herbs and garlic, and chili lime. If ranch dressing is to your liking, an array of flavored mayos is out there for you to explore.