Next to salsa, ranch is a big deal down here in Texas. I was pretty horrified the first time I looked at the ingredients of the ranch seasoning packet at the grocery store. Monosodium Glutamate, or MSG, is the second ingredient! Other ingredients include 'spices' and 'natural flavors', which are veritable minefields of harmful chemicals that your body cannot functionally use. Your body will either try to eliminate it by sending out antibodies to attack and contain the chemicals, or it will try to assimilate by altering it's cellular makeup to accommodate the new chemical. Neither of these reactions is a good thing. Long term ingestion of these toxic chemicals can lead to a slew of health problems such as autoimmune disorders, chronic inflammation, and cancer.
Not wanting to live a life without ranch, I decided I could do better. It took a few attempts, but I think this one fits the bill! The best part: you probably have most (if not all) of these ingredients already in your kitchen.
In a few minutes, you can have homemade ranch seasoning that stores well for your favorite ranch recipes (potatoes, burgers, salads, dips, etc.)
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of dried parsley
2 tablespoons of dried chives
1 tablespoon of dried dill
4 teaspoons of garlic powder
2 teaspoons of onion powder
2 teaspoons of sea salt
1 teaspoon of ground black pepper
Crush the parsley, chives, and dill in a mortar and pestle OR in use a sandwich baggie and rolling pin or wine bottle. You're looking for a fairly fine, almost powdery texture. Add garlic powder, onion powder, sea salt, and black pepper and continue to crush until the mixture is mostly uniform (it won't look like the seasoning from the ranch packet, so don't worry too much about it).
Store in an airtight container in your pantry for up to 3 months. Use wherever you would use the seasoning packet from the store. I find using anywhere from 1 - 2 tablespoons is usually enough for most recipes.
