Calling all ranch lovers! This Paleo Ranch Dressing Recipe is creamy, dreamy, and dairy-free. Making a batch will be the best 5 minutes you spend this week. Stir it together and just watch those salads and veggies disappear when they get drizzled or dipped into this delicious homemade dairy-free ranch dressing made with simple real-food ingredients right out of the pantry.
This recipe was originally published on May 31, 2016; Updated on May 27, 2021.
An Easy Recipe for Paleo Ranch Dressing and Whole30 Ranch Dressing
This is a Dairy-Free, Paleo, Whole30 Ranch that’s easy to make and perfect for veggie dipping, drizzling on a bed of greens, or as a dipper for all of your favorite dip-needing foods.
Our quick recipe makes it easy for you to say goodbye to highly-processed ranch dressings made with unpronounceable ingredients and cheap, inflammatory oils. Once you make it, you’ll be saying hello creamy, dreamy, homemade ranch made with fresh, real-food ingredients.
With just a few ingredients and less than 5 minutes of your time, you’ll want to print and hold on to this paleo ranch dressing recipe forever. We’ve combined mayo, coconut milk, and a blend of dried herbs to create the iconic ranch flavor that so many love.
Ingredients to Make Paleo Ranch Dressing & Substitutions
- Mayonnaise – use homemade mayo or purchased; we love the Primal Kitchen avocado oil mayonnaise, which doesn’t contain any inflammatory oils and tastes great. You can also use vegan mayonnaise (which doesn’t contain eggs) if you want a vegan ranch recipe
- Canned coconut milk – use full-fat coconut milk (here’s one we love from Thrive Market) to create the perfect ranch dressing consistency. This is what makes this recipe so creamy and you’d never guess it’s dairy-free. We don’t recommend other types of non-dairy milk, as they make a thinner consistency and can affect the taste
- Dried parsley – can substitute 1 tablespoon fresh parsley for the 1 teaspoon dried parsley. If using fresh, mince the parsley super fine, or blend everything in a small food processor
- Dried dill – can substitute 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh dill for the 1/2 teaspoon dried dill. If using fresh, mince the dill super fine, or blend everything in a small food processor
- Garlic powder – get a great deal on organic garlic powder from Thrive Market
- Onion powder – and get a great deal on onion powder and many other organic dried herbs and spices from Thrive Market
- Dried chives – we love the addition of dried chives, but this ingredient is optional if you don’t have any on hand
- Sea salt – once mixed together, taste and add more salt, if desired
- Ground black pepper – helps round out and complete the iconic ranch flavor
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A Thrive Market Deal for You: For organic pantry staples like coconut milk or dried spices and herbs, you can’t beat the prices at Thrive Market. If you’re not a Thrive Market shopper, use our link to sign up and get a free gift valued at $24.
How to Make Paleo Ranch Dressing
This is one of those recipes where you measure everything out and then dump it in a bowl to mix together. No cooking required. Easy, peasy paleo ranch for all to love! If you have a lot of ranch lovers in your home (like we do), we recommend making a double batch. This recipe makes about 1 cup.
Tips to Make Perfect Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing Every Time
Full-fat coconut milk is the secret ingredient that makes this paleo ranch dip recipe so creamy and thick, and it doesn’t even taste like coconut. Be sure to shake the can really well before opening since the fat solids and coconut water can separate (this is normal). If you already have the can open, just use a spoon or whisk to mix it all together before combining the coconut milk with the mayonnaise and dried herbs.
Are coconuts a nut?
You’ll see that this recipe is listed as nut-free, which may be confusing if you consider coconuts to be a nut. Many people think that a coconut is a nut, especially since the word coconut has “nut” in its name. And from a culinary standpoint, many people consider coconuts to be a nut, but it is not really a true nut. Coconuts are technically a type of fruit called a drupe.
Coconuts don’t have the same proteins that people who are allergic to true tree nuts (like almonds, cashews, Brazil nuts, pecans, and more) react to. While some people who have a severe tree nut allergy may also be sensitive to coconuts, most people who have a tree nut allergy can safely eat coconuts. If you’re interested, you can read more here about coconuts and their true classification as a drupe.
Yogurt-based Health Homemade Ranch Dressing
Don’t need a dairy-free ranch dressing? Or don’t want to use coconut milk? We have another delicious recipe for Healthy Homemade Ranch Dressing that has a base of yogurt and sour cream. Check it out here.
6 Ways to Enjoy Paleo Ranch Dressing
This Paleo Ranch Dressing is our go-to to add that finishing flavor pop to recipes and just to make veggie dipping that much better! The good fats in this homemade dairy-free dressing make it easier for you to absorb all the nutrients in fresh produce. That’s a nutrition win-win!
- Take any salad to the next level with a drizzle of this fresh dressing
- Use as a creamy dip for fresh vegetables
- Use it as the dressing to make our Creamy Broccoli Cauliflower Salad, Creamy Ranch Broccoli Slaw, or Creamy Ranch Pasta Salad
- Mix with canned chicken or tuna to make a creamy protein salad
- Use as a dip for chicken nuggets or drizzled over our Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Recipe or Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Spaghetti Squash or Crispy Garlic Ranch Roasted Potatoes.
- Add to a lettuce wrap with chicken, bacon, tomatoes, and avocado – yum!
How to Store Homemade Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing
Store the paleo ranch dressing recipe in a covered mason jar or other covered container in the refrigerator for up to one week. You can easily double the batch if ranch goes as fast in your home as it does in ours!
Video: How to make Paleo ranch dressing
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Paleo Ranch Dressing & Dip
This creamy, dreamy, dairy-free ranch dressing is the real deal! One taste and you’ll see why it’s our go-to for drizzling over salads, serving with fresh veggies, and as a dipper for all things!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise (homemade or purchased)*
- 1/4 – 1/3 cup full-fat canned coconut milk (shake or stir well before using)
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried dill
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon dried chives (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt (plus more to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and mix until smooth and creamy.
- Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.
- Store in a covered container or mason jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
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Notes
* To make vegan ranch, use vegan mayonnaise that doesn’t contain eggs.
You can use fresh herbs in place of the dried herbs, if you’d like. We call for dried herbs so you can easily make this recipe year-round. To use fresh herbs, use 1 tablespoon fresh parsley and 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh dill, and mince them super fine, or use a mini food processor to blend everything.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 109
- Fat: 12 g
- (Sat Fat: 3 g)
- Sodium: 200 mg
- Carbohydrate: 1 g
- (Fiber: 0 g
- Sugar: 0 g)
- Protein: 0 g
- Cholesterol: 6 mg
Dietary
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This dressing is EVERYTHING!!! SO easy to make and makes me want to eat ALL THE VEGGIES!! My kids love it too! I always bring a veggie platter to parties with this dressing and everyone is like “WHAT IS THAT??” Thank you!!!
That’s awesome!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Hi! Is there anything you can substitute for the coconut? Thanks!
You could sub plain yogurt (dairy-free if needed).
This is our go-to everyday ranch dressing for the whole family and I even prepare it for our wedge salad on Thanksgiving Day. For this year’s holiday dinner I want to make a more traditional (non-paleo) version and sub 2 Tbsp buttermilk for the coconut milk. (I can taste the coconut – no one else can.) Do you have any experience with this or any predictions or insight as to whether this might be a good substitute?
Hi Rena,
The buttermilk will be a great substitution for the coconut milk in this recipe. Enjoy!
Oh, man. I just finished up experimenting with buttermilk and thought I better follow up because I was not happy with the results. Results were indescribable. I thought something was rancid but all ingredients were fresh. Threw it out and went back to the original recipe, but used half as much coconut milk and it’s back to awesome-sauce. I really cannot taste any hint of coconut anymore and I like the consistency better – a little thicker. Thank you.
Hi Rena,
That’s so interesting. Thanks for sharing. We’ll have to revisit the idea of creating a classic buttermilk ranch dressing and see if we can troubleshoot that issue sometime.
I made this yesterday for the first time and it turned out excellent! Thanks for the tip on blending the coconut milk because mine had separated in the fridge. I made homemade mayo and then mixed everything else in right away and it was delicious. Glad I doubled the recipe.
Regarding the canned coconut milk (new to using this), when i opened the can it was kind of separated, I only used the thick cream part and then a little bit of the liquid, but the ranch came out really think, almost ice cream type consistency. Should I have mixed the coconut milk (liquid and solid) before using?
Yes, you’ll want to add the entire contents of the can to a blender and whip it up so that it is nice and smooth. Hope that helps.