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Summer salads need Chive Bacon Ranch Dressing
This is the season of abundance if you’re a gardener. Vegetables of all kinds are ready to harvest. For us, that means a lot of preserving – canning, freezing, dehydrating. It also means mean eating of course. Some of our favorite things to grow are perfect for salads. Salads need dressing, like this Chive Bacon Ranch dressing.
I’m all about whipping up a quick vinaigrette a few times a week. Summer or winter, you can’t go wrong with that. But there’s something about a big bowl of fresh lettuce with fresh garden tomatoes and crisp cucumbers that cries out for this kind of rich and creamy dressing.
Chives are so easy to grow and use
I like to keep some chives in my porch herb pots, but they are actually a garden perennial. They come back year after year, bigger and better. Chives even have pretty flowers that are great for infusing vinegar. They are also so good in Savory Chive Scones.
Garlic is abundant right now
We are great just getting started on harvesting our garlic. It is pungent and fresh and so good.
The usual ranch dressing base
Ranch dressings first came on the scene when I was a kid. Ranch dressing was once only a dry mix that came in packets and was mixed with mayo and sour cream. Later it came premade in bottles. We rarely use bottled dressings these days. Lot of ingredients that we don’t want to be eating, and they are expensive compared to making your own. Not to mention the incredible difference in flavor. Making your own dressings will convince you that the store-bought stuff just isn’t worth buying.
You can use sour cream or yogurt, or a combination of the two. Buttermilk is available in most supermarkets, but you can keep the powdered stuff on hand and mix it with regular milk. For the mayonnaise, use either the premade stuff from the store or make your own. I have a super easy mayo recipe in the works, and when that is done. I’ll go back and link it here.
And then there’s bacon
Slowly fry the bacon until it is very crisp, then allow it to cool and chop very finely. You can leave the bacon out if you don’t eat it or don’t happen to have any one hand – this is still a very tasty dressing. We love that smoky flavor over a fresh salad though.
How to make Chive Bacon Ranch Dressing
Chive Bacon Ranch Dressing
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon fried crisp
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup sour cream or yogurt
- 1/2 mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 1 small garlic clove
- 1/4 cup finely snipped chives
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Chop the bacon very finely – it isn't going to stay crunchy in the dressing anyway, so the smaller the better, to distribute the flavor evenly.
- Mix the buttermilk, sour cream or yogurt, mayo and the vinegar in a medium bowl, until combined and very smooth.
- Use a microplane, or mince the garlic and add to the buttermilk mixture.
- Add the chives and bacon and mix again, until smooth.
- Taste, and add salt and pepper to taste.
- Refrigerate for a few hours to blend flavors, and serve over your favorite tossed salad combo or as a dip for fresh vegetables.
- Makes about 2 cups. Refrigerate leftovers.
Nutrition
Serve with your favorite tossed salad
We’re also taking full advantage of everything we have in the garden with now – fresh lettuce of course, but also the beginning of the broccoli harvest, the tail end of the asparagus, young cucumbers, the first few grape tomatoes, and a variety of different greens. Nearly anything in the garden makes a nice salad.
It’s not just for salad though
Chive Bacon Ranch Dressing is also really good drizzled over fresh sauteed green beans, or zucchini. You could try it instead of your usual coleslaw dressing, or use it to top roasted cabbage slices. You could use more sour cream and turn it into a dip for veggies or chips.
What can I serve with a salad?
We love a salad with grilled chicken thighs or next to stroganoff or mac and cheese. So many choices!
Keep your leftovers refrigerated in a tightly closed jar. The vinegar in this will help it stay fresh a little longer – about 7 or 8 days. Just give it a good stir before serving.
<span style=”font-size: small;”><span style=”color: #e8e3e3;”>This post was originally made in July 2014 2013, updated in August 2018 and updated again in July 2024</span></span>
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Sounds delicious, I think we’ll try this this week.
Go for it – Scott will love it & the buttermilk slims it down a little bit!
Super recipe & a great way for me use up all of my chives! Thank you, thank you!
Excess chives are a universal problem it seems, Nicolas – thanks for stopping by!
This is such a lovely recipe, Donalyn, and kudos on looking forward so much to retiremnet for your husband. It doesn’t sound like he will be sitting around the house bothering you for sure! I wish you all the best as you guys figure out the new shape of things.
Thanks Bonnie – we are really looking forward to it!
Congratulations on the life changes. Sounds like exciting times, Donalyn! Loving this salad dressing. Adding bacon to ranch dressing? Brilliant! 🙂
Thanks so much Bill!
HI Donalyn!
I’ve been retired for a few years now and I can tell you from experience, I still don’t have enough time to do all the things I dream of doing! Sounds like you two are making promising plans. I’m so excited for both of you and your new path to retirement enjoyment. Starting a business is a lot of work and it is so important to be friends with your partner:)
In the mean time, I’m going to enjoy this “Chivey” Ranch Dresssing. I have a tendency to always plant Chives, just in case:)
Thanks so much for sharing, Donalyn…
Thanks Louise – it really is going to be an adventure. And I’m glad that I am not the only chive-doubter!
This looks so fresh and delicious. . . I happen to have some buttermilk in the fridge, my chives are thriving and I’m sure I can scrape up some bacon. Will HAVE to make it this week!
I hope you do Jenn – I know you guys will like it 🙂
I think I will make this dressing for our upcoming family reunion. Looking forward to seeing how your plans evolve.
Thanks Kathy – hope your family enjoys it!
Retirement is great! Mrs K R and I are both lucky enough to be early retirees. My blog is in part my retirement “work!” I’m overloaded with chives, too (in fact they’re out of control — they’re growing faster than I can use them!). This is the perfect dish for me and my chive situation. 😉 Thanks.
Glad to help John – if you go through salad dressing like we do, you will be using them up for a change.
This sounds so delicious. I too have a ton of chives to use so I think I will give this a whirl. Retirement sounds like it will keep you busy for sure. That’s good because you are too young to be in those rocking chairs yet. 🙂
Yeah – no rocking chairs here, Tes – just a porch swing and margaritas!
That little business sounds like a great retirement plan! A lot of the locals in my neighborhood sell their “extra” at the growers market or just give it away. 🙂 With everything you have going there on your property it sounds like there is plenty of post-retirement activities. Love your recipe for Ranch dressing! I too have plenty of chives, so I’ll be picking some today. Thanks!
We do give a lot away MJ – there is always more than we could ever eat. Looking forward to selling a little too!
I could not be happier for you and I can’t wait to see what the two of you end up doing. We have awhile till retirement still, but we still think about what we want to do. I made sure to get some chives this last weekend and we had thing dressing on our salad last night. SO good!
Thanks so much Sallie – and really glad that you enjoyed the dressing 🙂
That sounds fantastic! I love the addition of bacon.
Cheers,
Rosa
Ah yes, Rosa – bacon makes everything better!
What an exciting time in your lives! This dressing has all of my favourite things in it too! 😀
Thanks Lorraine – it gets more exciting all the time!
My hubby would love your salad dressing…well, BOTH of us would. And congrats on Larry’s impending retirement. It sounds like you have some terrific projects in mind for the future. I can’t imagine Bill not doing anything, either….
This is one of those “moderation” recipes Liz – not for everyday use! 😀 By this time next year, we will be wondering when he ever had time to go to work at all!
Both my husband and I are retired and we’re always doing something or going somewhere. Life is very full. I love your dressing and chives add such a great flavor to almost all salad dressings. Your idea of adding bacon is excellent.
Gerlinde – one of the reason I am glad that I found your blog is because of the adventures that you relate – we are looking forward to some of our own!
You know the way to a guy’s heart – BACON!!!!
Yummo! Looks way better than the bottled Bacon Ranch we usually buy.