~No Secrets in Hidden Valley Ranch's Secret Sauces~

I am a huge fan of Hidden Valley ranch dressing.  If you and yours are too, be it a picnic, potluck or party, Hidden Valley Ranch has a secret sauce ready and waiting on a shelf in a grocery store near you.  Labeled as Golden, Spicy, Smokehouse and Original, there is one that is guaranteed to be a great mate to whatever fare you're serving.   No one enjoys a scratch-made condiment more than me and no one enjoys a creamy scratch-made condiment more than me, but, I gotta be honest, when I come across one or four in my store, no one enjoys a high-quality time-saving product as much as me either.  It's as if these four were made just for me -- lucky me.

No secrets in these off-the-shelf sauces -- they're all delicious.

What’s in their Secret Sauces?  Long story short, nothing exotic --  that said, they are all gluten-free, which is important information if you are a Celiac.  Hidden Valley has released these four distinctly different and delicious sauces, all of which are Hidden Valley ranch-dressing-based, and, all of which will add a unique and complimentary flavor to almost anything you want to sauce or slather a dressing on -- they'e simply ranch dressing with some common spices and flavors stirred in.  Interestingly, the brand didn't categorizie the flavors in terms of specific sauce names (honey-mustard, sriracha, barbecue, etc.), but rather, used general descriptors to let us consumers explore their unique tastes and possibilities.  The names of this foursome:  Golden, Spicy, Smokehouse, and, of course, Original.  I've tried them all, and I have a few favorite uses:

If you're a fan of a Big-Mac-type burger, I predict you'll be making their Original secret sauce a staple in your pantry.  And, take it from me, their slightly-sweet Golden secret sauce, which contains honey, is divine drizzled over fried buttermilk-brined chicken or beer-batter-dipped deep-fried fish sandwiches.  It goes without saying their Spicy version, which contains habanero pepper, will add creamy-heat to anything you like your hot sauce on -- I particularly like this one on beef tacos and chicken quesadillas.  It goes without saying that Smokehouse has the smokey undertones associated with all things Southwestern with a touch sweetness which comes from molasses.  Do I think any of them are compatibly appropriate for Asian fare?  The answer is:  no, not really, but, I can only hope they soon come out with one containing soy sauce or wasabi!

To learn the Hidden History of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing:

"We are all in this food world together." ~ Melanie Preschutti

(Recipe, Commentary and Photos courtesy of Melanie's Kitchen/Copyright 2022)