This Southwest Ranch fills my family’s need for a little bit of heat. This quick dipping sauce is fantastic with chicken or fresh vegetables.
Southwest Ranch
Homemade Ranch Dressing is a weekly meal prep staple at my house. Followed very closely by this Southwest Ranch. It’s a fun variation on classic ranch dressing.
Having fresh dressings and sauces on hand makes dinner planning easy. It makes healthy snacking easier too. Check out these tips for keeping your refrigerator stocked with fresh produce boxes for your family.
If you’ve been reading this blog for very long at all, you know that I have a thing for homemade condiments. With a stocked pantry, you can make homemade versions of your favorite salad dressings, dips, and marinades.
Even better than them being a fraction of the cost is how much better they taste. I have yet to find a store-bought salad dressing or dip that can compare with what can be made at home in just minutes.
We love this creamy, tangy and packed with as much dill as I could possibly add in, this Creamy Dill Sauce is an excellent dipping sauce for many different foods.
Southwest Ranch Dipping Sauce
I made this sauce to serve with our Southwest Chicken Bites and it was a huge hit. My family liked it so much that they also dipped their vegetables in it and requested more of it the next day. This dip is going to be a regular condiment in our refrigerator for a while.
While the dipping sauce is so good you could put it on anything. It works nicely as a salad dressing too.
To thin the dressing, add a tablespoon of milk or cream at a time until the mixture reaches the consistency you want.
You can also use an oil to thin the dressing (such as vegetable, avocado, or canola) an oil that is neutral in flavor works best. Just remember a little bit of oil will go a long way.
Southwest Ranch Recipe
- Whisk together the mayonnaise and sour cream until smooth.
- Add the spices and whisk to combine thoroughly.
- Add the lemon juice, taste, and adjust as needed. Chill until ready to serve.
SHORTCUT TIP: If you have ranch dip in the refrigerator and you have taco seasoning in the pantry, you can stir together 1 cup of the ranch dip with 1-2 tablespoons of taco seasoning. Adjust the heat according to taste.
Dairy-free: Use this recipe to make dairy-free sour cream to use in your ranch dip.
Southwest Ranch is a delicious dipping sauce for Ranch Chicken Bites. It thins down into a fantastic dressing when making taco salad using this Taco Meat recipe.
You can also use this as the dressing on Southwest Chicken Salad or with Roasted Red Potatoes.
Southwest Ranch Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
- ¾ cup mayonnaise
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1½ teaspoons chili powder start with ¾ teaspoon if you aren't a fan of too much heat
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon dried dill weed
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried chives
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½-¾ teaspoon kosher salt adjust to taste
- ½ teaspoon finely cracked pepper adjust to taste
- freshly squeezed lemon juice approximately 1-3 teaspoons, adjust to taste
Instructions
- Whisk together the mayonnaise and sour cream until smooth. Add the spices and whisk to combine thoroughly. Add the lemon juice, taste, and adjust as needed.
- Chill until ready to serve. The heat will increase a little bit overnight, so keep that in mind if you are making this ahead of time. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
{originally published 10/8/13 – recipe notes and photos updated 6/15/22}
J says
Sounds yummy. How long will it keep?
Mary says
I'm sure it will be fine for a week or two, or however long sour cream usually lasts. Ours usually disappears as soon as I make it though, so I haven't tested that.
Patty Magyar says
I personally can't wait to make both…maybe for dinner tonight!
Big Dude says
This sounds delicious Mary and can see it going with lots of things.
Pam McFarland says
Oh definitely making this to go with some chicken this weekend. Thanks for sharing.
Pam @ The Patriotic Pam
Jenn S says
Oh my gosh, Chris would go nuts over this…. but then again, he goes nuts over any kind of ranch dressing/dip!!! lol
Roberta Montgomery says
Dx you have a recipe for homemade ice cream with no fat that uses Guar gum , xamtham gum andx/or methylcelluloe to keep it from going too hard in th freezer my experimenting is not going sucessfully fst.
Mary says
Yes, I do. This ice cream is my favorite recipe and it stays nice and scoopable straight from the freezer: https://barefeetinthekitchen.com/homemade-ice-cream-recipe/
Tammy Sisler says
I love this delicious recipe so much. I use it as a salad dressing on my southwestern salad.
Mary Younkin says
So glad you like it, Tammy!
Lawren says
I made this using everything as directed in this recipe and it is the best Southwestern Dip that I have ever made. I used 1 teaspoon of chili powder and a 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt. Thank you for this awesome recipe.
Mary Younkin says
Thank you, Lawren. I am glad you enjoy it!