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Sunday, June 20, 2010

Ranch Dressing a Favorite, Even with Questionable Ingredients

Ranch dressing is the most popular salad dressing offered in restaurants of North America, according to Mintel Menu Insights.

Kraft Ranch Dressing came in at the 'Numero Uno' position  and of course I wonder why that is because the writer made no inclusion of the ingredients.

As fro me I'd leave this on the shelf after viewing some of the ingredients I highlighted.

According to Kraft, their Ranch dressing contains -
WATER, SOYBEAN OIL, SUGAR, GARLIC JUICE, BUTTERMILK, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF SALT, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, WHEY, PHOSPHORIC ACID, MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE, EGG WHITES, VINEGAR, XANTHAN GUM, CITRIC ACID, POLYSORBATE 60, SPICE, NATURAL FLAVOR, ENZYMES, WITH SODIUM LACTATE, NATAMYCIN, AND CALCIUM DISODIUM EDTA AS PRESERVATIVES. CONTAINS: MILK, EGG.

And the label sports this information -
  • Nutrition Facts
  • Serving Size
  • 2tbs
  • Servings per Container about
  • 24
  • Amount Per Serving
Calories120Calories from Fat110
% Daily Value*
  •    Trans Fat 0g

  • 0 %
  •  Protein 0g



Here in a report posted Yahoo's 'Shine' pages you'll find the report -

So how did we choose our test subjects? Some were easy--you can't think of the words Hidden Valley without Ranch attached--but some required more thought. So I took myself to an Associated Supermarket (a New York chain akin to Giant, Safeway, and the like), stood in front of the dressing aisle, and let my hand wander to bottles like the planchette on a Ouija board. Just kidding; this choice involved email discussions among colleagues and many a chat with grocers.

Once I arrived back to the office, plastic bags in hand, we set out to decide which brand is the best. The only fair way to do this was a blind taste test, so that no one on staff knew which dressing was which. And baby carrots were the vehicle of choice, because "baby carrots and ranch dip is the official food of preschoolers everywhere," said Executive Editor Victoria von Biel.

#1 Kraft Ranch Dressing & Dip
Nutrition: 1 serving = 120 calories; 12 g fat; 370 mg sodium
Cost: $2.19 for an 8oz. bottle at Associated Supermarket
Blind Tasting Notes: "Nice bright white color"; "Well balanced"; "Tastes like my childhood"

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