Cafe Rio Dressing is one of our favorite copycat recipes because it’s delicious, fresh, and tastes like it came straight from the restaurant. It took us about a dozen tries to get it just right, but we are happy to report that everyone who has had it feel like it’s the real thing!
For this dressing, ranch mix, mayo, sour cream, cilantro, lime juice, jalapeños, buttermilk, and tomatillos blend together into the perfect dressing for tacos, chips, quesadillas, salads and bowls.
We love having this on hand for all the food we make because it’s such a great topper. It tastes restaurant-style, takes just minutes to make, and is easy to thin with a little extra buttermilk until it’s just how you like it.
If you love this, you’ll also love our Cafe Rio Sweet Pork and Cafe Rio Chicken recipes.
Why you’ll love it + Why it works:
- So simple. Creamy copycat Cafe Rio Dressing made in the blender.
- The perfect topping. It’s great for so many dishes like salads, tacos, bowls, chips and more.
- Tomatillos add tang. They give the dressing a fresh, slightly tart flavor that balances the creamy base.
- Buttermilk controls the texture. Adding more as needed makes it easy to create a thicker dip or thinner dressing.
Cafe Rio Ingredients and Substitutions
- Ranch dressing mix (1 packet or 3 tablespoons): Adds classic ranch flavor and seasoning in one easy ingredient.
- Mayonnaise (1 cup): Creates a creamy, rich base for the dressing. We prefer Duke’s or Hellman’s.
- Sour cream (1 cup): Adds tang, creaminess, and helps balance the flavors.
- Cilantro (1 bunch): Gives the dressing its fresh green flavor and color.
- Minced garlic (2 teaspoons): Adds savory flavor and depth.
- Lime juice (2 tablespoons): Brightens the dressing and adds fresh citrus flavor.
- Garlic powder (1 teaspoon): Adds extra garlic flavor throughout the dressing.
- Onion powder (1 teaspoon): Adds savory onion flavor without any chopping.
- Chili powder (½ teaspoon): Adds mild warmth and Tex-Mex flavor.
- Diced jalapenos, deseeded (2-3 tablespoons): Adds a little kick while keeping the heat manageable.
- Buttermilk, plus more if needed (1/2 cup): Thins the dressing and adds tangy flavor. If you don’t have buttermilk, whole milk can be used or our Substitute Buttermilk recipe.
- Tomatillos (3-4): Adds bright, tangy flavor and help give the dressing that Cafe Rio-style taste.
How to Make Cafe Rio Dressing
Blend all ingredients in the blender. Add milk until it’s the consistency you want (I did about ⅓ cup).
It’s that easy to make this cilantro ranch dressing!! But be warned: just try not to drink it all!
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- Deseed the jalapenos for a milder dressing, or leave a few seeds in if you want more heat.
- Add extra buttermilk a little at a time until the dressing is the consistency you like.
- Chill before serving so the flavors have time to blend.
- So many things to add it to! We love to use this Cafe Rio dressing on any salad, but also love it on these recipes: Chicken Tacos, Southwest Salad, Chicken Quesadillas, Loaded Nachos, and Homemade Tortillas.
- Add more heat. For more spice, add more jalapeno or leave the seeds in.
- Fresh is key. If possible, use fresh garlic, fresh lime juice and fresh tomatillos. They always make the dressing even more flavorful.
- Make-ahead tip: prepare the dressing a day ahead and refrigerate it, then stir or shake before serving.
Cafe Rio Dressing Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 packet ranch dressing mix, or 3 tablespoons
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- 2-3 tablespoons diced jalapenos, deseeded
- 1/2 cup buttermilk, plus more if needed
- 3-4 tomatillos
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients in the blender. Add milk until it’s the consistency you want (I did about ⅓ cup).
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
We like to make this dressing a day or two ahead of when we want to use it, because then it has time to sit in the fridge and let the flavors all combine.
Put it in an airtight container, a glass jar with a lid, or even reuse an empty dressing bottle. If stored properly, it should last for 1-2 weeks in the fridge.
More Recipes Like This:
Serve this With
More Cafe Rio recipes
Cafe Rio Sweet Pork Recipe
6 hrs 5 mins
Cafe Rio Shredded Chicken
3 hrs 5 mins
Flour Tortilla Recipe
45 mins
Easy Nachos Recipe
15 mins
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This recipe was first shared April 2011 and has been updated to be even better.
Can you freeze this dressing recipe!
Freezing creamy, dairy-based dressings like Cafe Rio dressing is often tricky because they tend to separate upon thawing, leading to a lumpy, grainy, or watery texture that’s hard to fix.
I’ve tried this before and love it. But I have to make it for a potluck. About how many oz of dressing does this recipe make? TIA
This makes about 40 ounces of dressing and have found that it is enough for a large group.
Am I living in an alternate reality or did this recipe change? I’ve always made it from this page and don’t believe I’ve ever had tomatillos in mine. Is there an older version you’ve posted before? If so, how do I get that one back?!
I believe the older version you’re looking for is as follows:
1/3-1/2 cup milk
1 packet (3 tablespoons) Ranch Dip or Dressing mix
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 bunch cilantro
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1-2 teaspoons diced jalapeños
Delicious! Another great hit, Kristyn! We’ll use this on many, many things! And will help me to eat more salads 😄 We had on tacos last night and it was perfect! Oh just so you know, your link here to making buttermilk substitute goes to your recipe for buttermilk syrup 😊 There’s a link in there for your buttermilk making method so I did get there, I just thought you might want to know. Thanks again for another great recipe!
Definitely does not taste like cafe rio. Tried this recipe 3 different time
How do you store this dressing? and how long can you store it for?
Yeah, you can put it in an airtight container, a glass jar with a lid, or even reuse an empty dressing bottle. If stored properly, it should last for 1-2 weeks in the fridge.
How long can the Cilantro Dressing keep in the fridge?
Sounds delicious! Can’t wait to try!
I’m a little confused. Do you use the ranch dressing mix or ranch dip mix? Those are 2 different products.
You could honestly probably use either, but we use the seasoning/dressing mix.
I think the nutrition facts is off… per serving it’s 2052??? Not a chance.
Not per serving. That would be for the whole batch/recipe. 🙂