Why Ranch Dressing Is Hard To Find Outside Of America
Even if you haven't followed the results of the World Cup this summer, you have likely come across plenty of human interest pieces concerning visitors from all over the world discovering American cuisine. They are tasting — and embracing — everything from cheesesteaks in Philadelphia (some restaurants even offer these sandwiches 24/7), barbecue in Texas, and Chipotles in strip malls. Another major unexpected hit? Ranch dressing, a ubiquitous dipper here in the States, that is actually pretty difficult to find outside of the country in which it was born. And one of the biggest reasons for that is the difference in food cultures, namely finger foods and fried snacks — and buttermilk availability.
Think about it; appetizer culture in the U.S. is huge. You can go into any casual bar or tavern that serves food, and find the same types of starters on the menu: French fries, mozzarella sticks, wings, fried vegetables like zucchini, mushrooms, and pickles. And what do these all have in common? Besides the fact they're all fried golden delicious, they must come with at least one dipping sauce, and any eatery worth its spoons offers ranch as an option (if not THE option).
Around the world, other countries just don't share the uniquely American enthusiasm for — nay, obsession with — taking a fried food and dipping it into a sauce with a contrasting, yet complementary, flavor profile. And it's not as if international markets have zero access to ranch; it can be found in American sections of grocery stores in major cities. It's just viewed abroad as a distinctly American condiment — and there are some negative connotations to that. Plus, many parts of the world simply don't use buttermilk.
How did ranch become so popular in the U.S. in the first place?
As people who hail from all over the globe have proven this summer, ranch is superior as a dressing and sublime as a dip. It's no wonder these visitors to the U.S. have been taking bottles of the stuff home. However, most Americans can't remember a time when they didn't know of, and appreciate, ranch's existence. It seems like, for many of us, ranch has always been the ascendent dressing on the country's culinary landscape. But that actually isn't so.
In purely mythical-sounding American fashion, ranch dressing was invented by a cowboy in the 1950s. Steven Henson created the savory sauce while working in Alaska, then took it to his California Hidden Valley ranch (yes — that Hidden Valley), where it grew so popular, Clorox bought it from him in the early 1970s. By the 1980s, the company released it on supermarket shelves, with one of its factories based in Illinois. This would all but ensure that the creamy, savory dressing claimed a special place in Midwesterners' hearts, especially after some fast food chains taste-tested it in that market.
Bolstered by the enthusiasm of the people in the Midwest, ranch began gaining traction all across the country (it helps that it lasts up to three months in the fridge). By 1992, it had edged out Italian as the number one dressing of choice among Americans, a place it has continued to occupy ever since.