Adam & I love to eat at Outback. Well, most of the time we get it to go and bring it home to eat, but still we love it. My favorite is their Filet Foccacia sandwich with sweet potato fries, which I dip in Honey Mustard. So delicious! We also especially love their salad and are completely head over heels for their ranch dressing. The other day when I was brainstorming what to make for dinner, I decided we’d have our favorite homemade french dip sandwiches AND try to replicate Outback’s ranch dressing for our salads!! Fakeout takeout at home!
So I went in search of a recipe and found tons of resources. Most all the recipes were similar, but I settled on this one because it had tons of reviews and comments. I followed some of their suggestions and did half mayo & half sour cream and upped the amount of cayenne for an extra kick. I am in love with this ranch dressing!! At first I thought it was too spicy, but once I put it on the salad it was perfect. It’s very similar tasting to Outback’s dressing, though I have no idea if this is how they really make it. But this is a great at home version and I love the consistency too, not to thin and not to thick…but just right. I highly recommend letting this sit overnight so the flavors marry. Also, I made this with light mayo & sour cream but feel free to use full fat ingredients.
*Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Outback Steakhouse or being reimbursed in any way by them, all opinions are my own. We just love it!:)
Outback Steakhouse Ranch Dressing
Source: Food.com
Ingredients:
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix, Buttermilk Recipe (0.4 oz package or approx. 1 heaping tablespoon)
1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1/2 cup light sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk*
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cayenne pepper (or 1/8 tsp. for less heat, or use 1/4 tsp. paprika)
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. onion powder
Directions:
Whisk together all ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Cover and chill for at least 1 to 2 hours, preferably overnight. Use as dressing for salads or a dip for veggies, fries or chips.
*If you are out of buttermilk like I was, add 1/2 tbsp. vinegar into a 1/2 cup measuring cup. Fill the measuring cup the rest of the way full with skim milk and allow to sit for 10 minutes before adding to mixture.
Welcome! I'm Stephanie, a thirty something girl loving life with my husband Adam and our two little miracles living in gorgeous Southeast Tennessee. I'm passionate about Jesus, traveling, sports (Go Titans!), and of course food! Read more about me 
Bookmarked! Will try this soon and let ya know!
I love love love homemade salad dressings, and this recipe sounds divine. How long will it keep in the fridge?
I’m not 100 % sure how long it will keep in the fridge, but we made it last Sunday and ate some on Friday night and it was still great. Hope that helps!
I would say it would keep in the refrigerator as long as the expiration date of the ingredients you use, milk, sour cream and mayonnaise.
That is a great way to figure out how long it would keep! Great idea!
Thanks.
As long as the ingredients you use don’t expire for awhile, I would follow what the packet of ranch mix says, which I think is 2-3 wks.
This sounds delicious. I am new to your blog and have spent some time browsing through your earlier posts. I’m so glad I did that. I really like the food and recipes you share with your readers and I’ll definitely be back. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary
Thank you so much Mary!! That makes my day!!
Oh my, oh my. I saw that jar in my reader and that’s all it took – how’d I immediately guess what it was? Bravo! Soooo good. I’m doing it.
Awesome! I have never made ranch, but this seems so simple!
I actually think Outback’s Ranch Dressing has some blue cheese in it. Next time you get it see if you can taste the blue cheese. I bet the addition of a bit of it would make your dressing even better.
Thanks so much for the dip! I’ll have to try that!
Shouldn’t that 16 ounces of of dressing mix be more like 1 tbsp?
It’s a heaping tablespoon, it’s one full packet of the dressing mix. I’ll clarify in the recipe above.
It’s actually the .4 oz packet that makes 16 fl. oz. Thanks for pointing that out:)
No problem at all – I have a bottle of it and it is 16 ounces and that would be an awful lot 🙂
haha!:) yes it would’ve been a ton! I really appreciate you pointing that out. I would hate for someone to add that much of the mix!;)
how much does this recipe make???
I haven’t measured it, but it filled most of the mason jar that’s in the picture. Hope that helps!
I just made this recipe and it taste nothing like Outbacks ranch. Isn’t very good =(
I’m sorry you didn’t like it. I’ve made it multiple times and both my husband and I love it. It is my favorite ranch dressing.
Maybe the flavors needed to marry a bit longer? It’s best when you refrigerate it overnight.
Haha I love how that girl Liz felt it necessary to get back on and say that your dressing sucked. Haters man! I’m sure that made her feel really good about herself. 🙂
Anyways… For whatever reason its so hard for me to find buttermilk at my store! I know you said mix skim milk with vinegar, but I wonder if I could use half and half? Is it similar? Idk. I usually make ranch w just the packet, milk, sour cream, and mayo and it is SO good. Never thought to add garlic powder or cayenne pepper. Good call! I can already tell its gonna be sooo good!
Haha, I’m not sure why people feel the need to hate, just let it roll off my back:) You should be able to use half and half instead of milk with the vinegar no problem. Hope you enjoy adding in the seasonings!
What brand mayo do you use? I have found that this makes a difference in the taste. Thanks!
I always use Kraft Light Mayo, hope that helps!
Light mayo is a poor choice. While it has less fat, they put other things in it that are worse for you than the fat is. It is better to use the real thing, but just use less of it if you are trying to lose weight.
I much prefer the taste of Hellman’s Mayo ( Its called Best Foods in some parts of the country), to any other brand.
My fiancé works salads at outback and although I wouldn’t doubt that this TASTES like outback ranch, it is not the actual recipe.
Yes I’m sure the actual recipe is probably much more involved, this is just an easy at home version to get the same flavors. Thanks!
Can we have that recipe!?!???!
Do you know the nutrition facts by any chance?
I sure don’t, I’m sorry!:(
I put all of the ingredients into MyFitnessPal Nutrition Calculator and this is what I came up with:
Calories: 575
Carbs: 33
Fat: 35
Protein: 12
These numbers are for the whole jar (using light mayo and light sour cream)!
Great! Thank you for sharing this!:)
I made it and my husband and I LOVE it!! It’s not exactly like Outback but it sure tastes better than store bought dressing any day!! Will be making again!
I’m so glad you and your husband Loved it! 🙂
I believe it even tastes better than outback! Delicious and yes it is even better the next day!
Thank you so much! So glad you loved it!
Could you use Miracle Whip Salad Dressing instead of Mayo?
I’m sure you could use it instead, it may just change the taste a little. I find Miracle Whip a little sweeter than mayo, but it should work. Let me know how it turns out if you try it.
Made it for first time today, seems a bit thick. Is there a trick to thin it down some more (like in the restaurant)? Already love it over any store bought dressing!
Glad you are enjoying it! You could add additional milk or buttermilk to thin it out a bit.
If YOU’RE not worried about calOries you can Also add some olive oil or VEGETABLE oIl to thin it down and make it a little more runny. I add a little water some too too. Just an idea
Great idea Jenni!
This is how I make my ranch except I never thought to add a little heat to it. I will be trying this out tomorrow. Thanks 🙂
Hope you enjoy it!
I made this over the weekend and it is really good. Thanks for sharing!
So glad you enjoyed it Christy!
Oh My!! I am sooo excited to try this! We love outback as well. It’s the only place that I get prime rib. They make it the best. I would love to replicate their bread too. It’s dreamy. Thank you for the recipe!! Loving your blog!!! 🙂
Yes their bread is awesome! Thank you so much for your sweet compliments Cyndi!! 🙂
Here it is almost 3 am and i just made our second batch of this dressing. It is so good i can hardly contain myself. I have always Been on the search for a good ranch dressing and with this RECIPE my husband saId we are never buying store baught dressing again. Thank you!!!!!
I’m so glad you love it!!
I cant wait to try this recipe! My boyfriend and i absolutely love the Ranch at outback so it Should be interesting to see how it turns out! Thank you so much for sharing! 😀
Hope you enjoy it Ashley!
I love it
Just made this today. I have to say it is definitely close! I love Outbacks ranch, and it’s nice I CAN get my “fix” without spending money at the restaurant all the time!
So glad you enjoyed it Monica!
I love this recipe. I think it tastes a lot more like outbacks ranch if you up the dose of seasonings an EXTRA half measurement of the original. Example:instead of using 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper or ground pepper, use 1/4 tsp plus 1/8 tsp. I would do this for each of the seasonings. And im not sure why I can only use caps on this website? Sorry.
Glad you enjoy it! Great tips for increasing the seasonings! I’ll definitely have to try that! No worries on the all caps, sometimes my site does that for some reason 🙂
HI I found THIS LINK ON PINTEREST AND just WANT TO SAY thank YOU FOR CREATING SUCH A YUMMY RECIPE! I’m NOT REALLY FAMILIAR WITH OUTBACK’S ranch BUT I TRIED THIS because I’m not A FAN OF BOTTLED DRESSINGS AND I LOVE THIS. I WILL PROBABLY end UP ADDING MORE WATER OR MILK TO MAKE IT MORE POURABLe BUT That’s JUST A PERSONAL PREFERENCE. I’m GLAD I found YOUR SITE…can’t WAIT TO TRY SOME MORE OF YOUR RECIPES!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!
I don’t know how close it is to Outback BUT IT IS GOOD
Thanks so much! So glad you enjoyed it!
I love ranch dressing from resturants. I don’t like the sharp vinegar taste of store bought ranch. Does this have that sharp vinegar taste? Thought I’d ask before I attempted to make it.
It doesn’t taste that way to me, it definitely tastes like restaurant ranch dressing. Hope you enjoy it!
Been looking for this recipe my whole life. LovelY recipe. The best ranch ever!!!!
Thank you so much Bobbi! 🙂
A friend of mine works at Outback, she said they use prepared horseradish for heat in the ranch. But other than that, it’s just a basic buttermilk ranch dressing. But I’m sure adding the cayenne did a great job adding that bit of heat. 🙂
This is not outback’s recipe, they do not use hidden valley.
As I mentioned above, this may not be their exact recipe, this is just an at home copycat version I shared so everyone can enjoy a similar tasting dressing at home if they don’t have an outback steakhouse nearby. Hope you enjoy if you try it!