A Quick Start Guide for School Food Service: Scratch Ranch Dressing!

RANCH - The Condiment of Choice in School Food Service!

Its pretty safe to say that Ranch Dressing is the condiment of choice in school food service. Nothing wrong with that! Most of us love something tasty to dip our raw veggies into or to finish off those fresh greens (and Pizza) for that extra savory, tasty zip. But flavor isn't the whole picture. The fat in Ranch dressing also helps fat soluble vitamins (like betacarotene in carrots) to be more readily accessed by our bodies.

Maybe you're interested in doing more scratch cooking your school food service operation (I commend you for that choice!). Well, Ranch Dressing is an easy place to start, and if you ask me, it's way tastier than any ranch mixes or pre-made products from your food service vendors. Also, this recipe has proven delicious in school food service environments!

Ranch Dressing doesn't require a bunch a specialized equipment either. Sure, a large capacity floor or table top mixer can make the job easier, especially when faced with large quality production, but the most basic equipment will do the job just fine.

Basic Gear Will Get it Done

A lot of great work can be done with a large, stainless steel bowl, a long wire whip, a rubber spatula, and some simple measuring tools. If you have a commercial size immersion blender and some food service buckets, it's even easier! Let's not get too hung up on gear because this is really easy and you are clever and adaptable! I mean you are a food service director! I am sure you have proved your ability to overcome adversity over and over again! Especially in recent days!

The Recipe:

Ranch Dressing

Yields Approx. 3.5 gallons

1 Gal Buttermilk

1 Gal Mayo

1 Gal Sour Cream

2 c. Parsley, chopped

2/3 c. Dried Dill

5 oz Cider Vinegar

5 oz Worcestershire Sauce

? c. Granulated Garlic

? c. Onion Powder

? c. Kosher Salt

? c. Ground Black Pepper

• Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl or food grade bucket.
• Use a long wire whip or an immersion blender to mix until well blended.
• Transfer to storage containers. Store under refrigeration.
• Always keep it cold during make up and service.?

Quick Tips and Tasty Variations:

Mixing

If you're mixing in buckets, put in the buttermilk first then add everything else. This will keep the thicker ingredients (mayo and sour cream) from sticking in the bottom corners of the bucket.

Regardless of how you choose to mix this, it is important to scrape down the sides of the bowl or bucket with a rubber spatula at least once during mixing to ensure everything gets evenly mixed.

Sanitation Considerations

Keeping everything cold at all times is super important! Pre-chill all the ingredients first (I am mainly talking about the mayo and cider vinegar as these ingredients are likely stored in dry storage until opened). This will require planning ahead several hours or overnight to ensure everything is refrigerator temperature before starting. Cold-hold during service. Keep the dressing refrigerated or on ice during service or on salad bars.

Tasty variations

Chipotle Ranch:

Just add some canned, chopped chipotle chiles in adobo for a nice smoky flavor and some heat.

Jalape?o Ranch:

Simply add some chopped, pickled jalape?os to the dressing and/or replace the cider vinegar with the vinegar brine from the pickled jalape?os.

Green Goddess (Fresh Herb Ranch) Dressing:

Make the dressing as normal but set aside the parsley. Measure one cup of each, fresh parsley, fresh sweet basil, and fresh cilantro (no need to chop the herbs before, just wash then measure them by packing the whole herbs into into the measuring cup). Puree all the herbs together in a blender or food processor with a small amount of the dressing (a cup or two to facilitate pureeing). Add the green herb puree to the rest of the batch and stir well to combine.

ENJOY! Please let me know if you have questions!