Name: Ranch Salad Dressing Mix
Ingredients: 2/3 cup dried parsley flakes; 1/4 cup finely crushed saltine crackers; 1/3 cup dried minced onion; 3 Tbsp. garlic salt; 2 Tbsp. onion salt; 1 Tbsp. garlic powder; 1 Tbsp. onion powder; 1 Tbsp. dried dill weed; 1/4 tsp. pepper

Why it works: Parsley and dill match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 669 recipes. Both carry p-mentha-1,3,8-triene, which smells camphor, herbal. The science ↓

Ranch Salad Dressing Mix

makes enough for 12 batches of dressing

Ingredients

Directions

Make the mix

In a medium mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and whisk well with a wire whisk.
Store in an airtight container in a cool dry place.

Make the dressing

This mix makes enough for 12 batches of ranch dressing.
To make ranch dressing, combine 1 tablespoon of the mix with 1 cup mayonnaise and 1 cup buttermilk.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

514Calories

15 gProtein

2 gFat

108 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 7 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Dill	5 sprigs fresh (1g) / 1 tsp dried	4
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Parsley + dilltop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together669 recipes

Shared aroma: p-mentha-1,3,8-triene (camphor, herbal).
Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29,058 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together34,122 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Parsley + garlictop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together9,308 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Dill + peppertop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,630 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Dried parsley flakes: Adds herbal flavor and green color to the mix.
Finely crushed saltine crackers: Adds bulk and helps the dry mix blend evenly.
Dried minced onion: Provides savory onion flavor that rehydrates in the dressing.
Garlic salt: Seasons the mix with salty garlic flavor.
Dried dill weed: Adds a fresh, grassy aroma characteristic of ranch.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (parsley, garlic, dill, pepper):

Carrotfits better
Spinachfits better
Broccolifits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against parsley, garlic, dill, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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Ranch Salad Dressing Mix