Chipotle Ranch Dressing

This chipotle ranch dressing is smoky, zingy and absolutely irresistible! Customize the heat level to your liking with adobo sauce.

Here’s a sauce you’ll want to drizzle on just about everything: Chipotle Ranch Dressing! This zingy, zesty dressing is creamy with just the right heat on the finish. It takes only 5 minutes to whip up, making it perfect for weeknight bowl meals. Even better, it uses our favorite dressing trick: a combination of yogurt and mayonnaise! It gives just the right amount of richness, but it’s a healthy spin on the traditional ranch. Here’s how to make this irresistible homemade dressing: you’ll immediately add it to your short list of kitchen staples!

Ingredients for chipotle ranch dressing

What’s a traditional ranch dressing made of? It’s typically made of mayonnaise, buttermilk, onion, garlic, spices, and herbs. But this chipotle ranch dressing is a spin on our healthy homemade ranch dressing, which has a little trick to cut back on the richness. Our secret? Plain yogurt! Mix it with mayo and it makes a lighter spin, while keeping the richness and flavor of the mayonnaise. Here are the ingredients you need for this chipotle ranch dressing:

• Plain yogurt
• Mayonnaise
• Apple cider vinegar
• Spices: Garlic powder, onion powder, and dried dill
• Adobo sauce from a can of chipotle peppers

All you have to do? Stir together these ingredients in a bowl! It’s that easy. But hold up: does this ranch dressing have actual chipotle peppers to make it spicy? Well, kind of. Keep reading…

The key: adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers

The key ingredient to this chipotle ranch dressing? Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, though you won’t use the peppers themselves: just the sauce! Adobo sauce adds a smoky nuance and complexity, but it’s milder than the chipotle peppers themselves. Another advantage to adobo sauce: you don’t have to dirty a blender to make this dressing! Just stir it together in a bowl. Here’s more about working with adobo sauce:

• Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce are easy to find near the Mexican products at most grocery stores. The can includes chipotle chiles: smoked and dried jalapeños that are rehydrated and canned, and adobo sauce, a purée of tomato, vinegar, garlic, and other spices.
• Use only the sauce in this can! Use a spoon to work around those spicy peppers. You can save them for later use.
• What to do with the leftovers? Refrigerate or freeze leftovers, and use it for more adobo sauce recipes, like chipotle aioli, tortilla soup, taco soup, fajitas, or enchilada sauce.

Customize the heat level to your liking!

The other great thing about making homemade chipotle ranch dressing: you can customize the heat level! Adobo sauce is not terribly spicy, so simply use more or less dpeneidng on your tastes.

• Mild ranch dressing: Use 1 tablespoon adobo sauce for a mild ranch — this is suitable for kids! If you’d like it to be more orange in color like the photos, you can add a little paprika for color.
• Medium chipotle ranch: Add 2 to 2 ½ tablespoons for a medium spicy ranch. We used 2 ½ and liked the subtle heat.
• Hot chipotle ranch: Amp the heat and use 3 or 4 tablespoons, or a combination of adobo sauce and Mexican hot sauce like Cholula.

Ways to serve homemade chipotle ranch dressing

This homemade chipotle ranch dressing is a new favorite around here! We made it for our Shrimp Rice Bowls recipe and the spicy drizzle makes it absolutely irresistible. But there are so many more ideas for using this versatile sauce: tacos, burritos, salads, dipping shrimp, etc. Here are a few ideas:

• Salad: Try it on Mexican Chopped Salad or a Wedge Salad
• Burrito bowl: Add it to Quick Burrito Bowl, Easy Rice Bowl or Shrimp Rice Bowl
• Taco salad: It’s a great dressing for Taco Salad (or Easy Vegan Taco Salad with the subs below)
• Veggies: Use it as a dip for carrot sticks!
• Fries: Dunk these Baked French Fries in a big bowl of ranch
• Shrimp: Serve as a dipping sauce of Perfect Sauteed Shrimp or Easy Coconut Shrimp

Dairy free and vegan options

Can you make this chipotle ranch dressing dairy free or vegan? Yes! Simply do one of the following:

• Use vegan mayo or cashew cream in place of both the mayo and yogurt
• Use vegan mayo and vegan yogurt in the same quantities as below, or
• Make Vegan Ranch Dressing and add adobo sauce

This chipotle ranch dressing is…

Vegetarian and gluten-free.

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