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A light, creamy, and healthy buttermilk dressing perfectly balances a crisp green salad. With lemon, fresh herbs, and just a handful of other basic ingredients, it’s a simple recipe that comes together in about 5 minutes!
Table of Contents
If you’re looking for more recipes with buttermilk, be sure to try this popular one-bowl buttermilk chocolate cake, our favorite one-bowl vanilla buttermilk cake, this classic Southern cornbread recipe, these 3-ingredient buttermilk mashed potatoes, and these 3-ingredient buttermilk biscuits, too!
This dressing will be our family go to dressing this summer. Easy and quick to make, goes with many types of salad, and mains, and is very good tasting. It has it all…
– Sandy
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- Creamy but not heavy or rich. This healthy buttermilk dressing gives you that great creamy, tangy flavor that’s so delicious on crisp green salads, but it’s not too thick, heavy, or rich. Instead, the dressing tastes light and bright, thanks to the addition of lemon and herbs.
- Easy. It’s tough to beat a simple homemade salad dressing that you can whisk together in just minutes!
- Great way to use up leftover buttermilk. Whether we’re making buttermilk pancakes or a skillet of our favorite biscuits, it seems like I always have some extra buttermilk stashed in the fridge. This is a great way to use up what’s on hand without much effort.
Ingredients
This is just a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need for our favorite buttermilk dressing recipe. As always, specific measurements and step-by-step instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Buttermilk: whole buttermilk or low-fat buttermilk will both work. Whole buttermilk yields a thicker, richer taste and texture, but either option is fine. Just make sure that you shake it really well before using. Since buttermilk is naturally tangy and acidic, you don’t need vinegar for this particular dressing.
- Mayonnaise: Duke’s brand is our favorite. This adds flavor to the dressing and also gives it a thicker texture.
- Lemon juice: for a little bit more acidic tang. The citrus also brightens up the dressing and cuts through some of the creamy, rich flavor.
- Dill: the perfect fresh herb for a creamy dressing.
- Kosher salt, ground black pepper, and a touch of sugar: to enhance the flavors of the other ingredients.
Directions
Southern buttermilk dressing is a creamy, tangy dressing commonly used in Southern cuisine, particularly as a salad dressing or a dip for vegetables. It’s known for its rich flavor and smooth texture, making it a delicious addition to your favorite vegetables or salads. Made from scratch in just 5 minutes, it’s so much better than anything store-bought!
You’ll find detailed directions in the recipe card below, but here’s the quick overview:
- Simply whisk, stir, or shake together all of the ingredients in a small bowl or in a mason jar with a tight fitting lid. That’s it! Five minutes of effort and your job is done.
- Store in the fridge until ready to enjoy.
- Give it a good shake or whisk right before serving.
Serving Suggestions
This buttermilk salad dressing pairs beautifully with just about any meal! We like to drizzle the dressing over a simple romaine or other lettuce salad tossed with sliced cucumber, but it’s also a nice dip for fresh veggies like carrot sticks and celery sticks.
You might also like to serve the homemade buttermilk dressing on an iceberg wedge salad with bacon, cheese, and fresh tomatoes; on a kale salad; or as a coleslaw dressing (see notes below). You might even like to dip your pizza or fried chicken in some cool, creamy buttermilk dressing!
Storage Tips
- This homemade buttermilk dressing will last in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. You can also freeze the dressing for up to 3 months.
- If you have leftover buttermilk in your refrigerator, you can also freeze the buttermilk to keep it for another use (here are 60 of our favorite recipes with buttermilk). I recommend freezing smaller, individual portions of buttermilk that you can thaw as needed. For instance, measure out ⅓ cup of buttermilk in small Ziploc bags so that you have it ready to go for this dressing recipe whenever the craving strikes. No more waste, and no more rushing to the grocery store!
I’m so happy to have found this recipe, it’s just what I was looking for. DELICIOUS! I also like your recommendations for ways to change it up for coleslaw, along with suggestions for using different spices, depending on taste. This dressing made my salad extra special with an extra good flavor punch.
– Connie
Tips for Success
- This is a thin, pourable dressing. If you prefer a thicker salad dressing or a dip for vegetables, simply add more mayo to reach desired consistency.
- To make this buttermilk dressing for coleslaw, you’ll want a thicker consistency because the cabbage and other veggies in coleslaw release liquid and will otherwise make the sauce too thin and watery. As a result, I suggest using about ½ to ¾ cup mayonnaise and adding 1-2 tablespoons of sugar for that classic sweet coleslaw taste. This is our favorite coleslaw dressing recipe.
- For a buttermilk ranch dressing, add extra fresh herbs or dried herbs, such as parsley, basil, and chives, garlic or garlic powder, onion or onion powder, sour cream, and Worcestershire sauce.
More Homemade Salad Dressing Recipes to Try
Pepper Jelly Vinaigrette
4 minutes mins
Creamy Caesar Dressing
5 minutes mins
Balsamic Vinaigrette
5 minutes mins
Buttermilk Dressing
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup buttermilk, well-shaken
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh dill (or sub with ½ teaspoon dried dill)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- Dash of ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together buttermilk, mayonnaise, lemon juice, dill, salt, sugar, and pepper until completely. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired.
- Store dressing in the refrigerator for up to 1 week until ready to use.
Notes
- This is a thin, pourable dressing. If you prefer a thicker salad dressing or a dip for vegetables, simply add more mayo to reach desired consistency.
- To make this buttermilk dressing for coleslaw, you’ll want a thicker consistency because the cabbage and other veggies in coleslaw release liquid and will otherwise make the sauce too thin and watery. As a result, I suggest using about ½ to ¾ cup mayonnaise and adding 1-2 tablespoons of sugar for that classic sweet coleslaw taste. This is our favorite coleslaw dressing recipe.
- For a buttermilk ranch dressing, add extra fresh herbs or dried herbs, such as parsley and chives, garlic or garlic powder, onion or onion powder, sour cream, and Worcestershire sauce.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published in July, 2019. It was updated in June, 2024.
I’ve just started making my own salad dressings, and I love this recipe. But what prompts me to write is the beautiful jar holding your dressing. Where can I get one of those? Thanks for posting this.
Hi, Chris! Thank you for your kind note! That’s a Weck jar, and I absolutely love them. I have many, many Weck jars in all different shapes and sizes. I use them for storing everything from nuts, seeds and dried cranberries in my pantry, to salad dressings, berries, carrot sticks, jams and pickled red onions in my fridge. Anyway, the one that you see there is the small “tulip jar.” You can find them in kitchen supply shops, online at Amazon, and I think on websites like Williams-Sonoma or Sur La Table. Hope that helps!
I’m so happy to have found this recipe, it’s just what I was looking for. DELICIOUS! I also like your recommendations for ways to change it up for coleslaw, along with suggestions for using different spices, depending on taste. This dressing made my salad extra special with an extra good flavor punch.
Thank you, Connie! We’re so glad you enjoyed it!
This dressing will be our family go to dressing this summer. Easy and quick to make, goes with many types pf salad, and mains, and is very .good tasting. It has it all keep up the good work. Tried your Irish stew for our annual St Patty s Day party and our guests raved about it SaS
We’re so happy to hear this, Sandy! Thank you for trying it out and taking the time to leave a review.
Followed the recipe perfectly and ended up with something so lemony it was unusable. Tossed it after all the doctoring could not save it.
Hi, Jean! I’m so sorry that you didn’t care for it. With only 2 tablespoons of lemon juice (no lemon zest), mayo, and 1/3 cup of buttermilk, it shouldn’t be too lemony at all.
I’m from out west and this is the dressing I’ve been looking for! Thank you!
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that, Christine. Hope you love it!