I appreciate everything about this detailed comment, especially the inclusion of the Hidden Valley packet.
From TheNerdyMel:
My “secret” dressing recipe is inherited from my mom. It’s basically doctored Hidden Valley Ranch for potato salad (but also tasty on lettuce or as a dip).
The real secret is grating a medium to large onion into a 16 oz container of sour cream (full fat is a noticable difference here and worth the caloric splurge). And you have to do it by hand. I don’t know why, but it doesn’t taste right if you mix this in a food processor. Maybe it needs the blood from when you inevitably scrape a knuckle on the grater.
I like to add some finely minced fresh parsley and a thorough grind of good black pepper at this stage, but my mom didn’t do that.
To that you add a quarter cup of wine (mom’s version) or cider (mine) vinegar. (Really whatever mild vinegar you have around the house or even lemon juice is fine. Avoid balsamic and rice vinegars because the flavor overwhelms.), a couple of spoonfuls of mayonnaise and a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch mix.
For lettuce salad dressing, I cut back on the mayo and sometimes up the vinegar. For dip, I only add a couple of teaspoons of vinegar (tasting after each one) and omit the mayo entirely.
With vinaigrettes, I’ve found that the secret is to have a seasoning blend you really like as the base. I’m partial to Penzey’s Fox Point, which is pricey with its freeze dried garlic and scallions (and has enough salt to be a problem if you’re not paying attention), but also basically instant and like any good vinaigrette base, infinitely adjustable. I don’t think I’ve ever made Fox Point vinaigrette the same way twice, but I also don’t think I’ve ever made it come out wildly different except by using a very strongly flavored oil like sesame.
