Steakhouse House Salad (Outback Copycat)
This Outback Copycat House Salad with ranch dressing is top notch delicious! Make it just like the restaurant but at home in less than 30 minutes. A creamy homemade dressing with garlicky croutons makes the perfect side dish to any meal.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 325kcal
Ingredients
Ranch Dressing
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup buttermilk
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1-1 ½ tablespoons ranch dressing mix
Croutons
- 12 ounce loaf of bread french or italian loaf, sourdough, ciabatta, etc.
- ½ cup salted butter melted
- ¾ teaspoon cajun seasoning i.e. Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
- 2 minced garlic cloves
Salad
- Iceberg or Romaine lettuce chopped
- cherry or grape tomatoes halved
- cucumber peeled and chunked
- red onion thinly sliced
- freshly grated cheddar cheese
- freshly grated Monterey Jack cheese
Instructions
Ranch Dressing
- In a medium bowl, combine mayonnaise, buttermilk, garlic and onion powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and ranch dressing mix.
- Whisk until well combined. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Croutons
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Cut bread into bite sized squares and spread on a sheet pan. Bake 12-16 minutes or until the bread is slightly browned.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together butter, cajun seasoning, and garlic.
- Carefully remove the sheet pan from the oven and lower the temperature to 350°F. Pour the melted butter mixture over the toasted croutons and toss until all of the pieces are coated well. Return the pan to the oven 6-8 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.
Salad
- In one large bowl or individual bowls, build the salad with lettuce, tomato, cucumber, red onion, cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, and croutons.
- Toss or top with desired amount of dressing.
Video
Notes
Approximate nutrition information based on the size of an Outback Side Salad with Ranch Dressing. This is approximately 2-3 cups of raw vegetables, 6-8 croutons, and 2 tablespoons dressing.
- Fresh and Crisp Vegetables: Use a combination of iceberg lettuce and romaine and ensure they're fresh and crisp for the best greens base. Use fresh and blemish free tomatoes, cucumbers and red onions for the ultimate pop in color and flavor.
- Uniformity in Chopping: One of the best tips for achieving the perfect salad is aiming for uniformity in chopping the vegetables. This ensures each bite has a balanced combination of flavors and textures.
- Homemade Ranch Seasoning: Not a fan of store-bought ready-made ranch mix or just want to experiment with the flavors of homemade, check out my Homemade Ranch Seasoning Mix.
- Chill Ingredients Before Assembling: For an extra refreshing experience, chill the fresh ingredients before assembling.
- Topping Options: You can add your favorite vegetables or toppers or take away whatever ingredients you'd like for this basic salad. Some topping you could add are shredded carrots, dried or fresh fruit, nuts, bacon bits, banana peppers, green onions, olives, and fresh herbs (just to name a few).
- Dressing Options: Don't like ranch? That's ok! Swap the ranch with any dressing like balsamic vinaigrette, blue cheese dressing, thousand island, or your favorite homemade dressing.
- Cheese Options: Besides cheddar cheese and Monterey Jack cheese, you can also use shredded pepper jack cheese, parmesan, feta, or bleu cheese crumbles.
Nutrition
Calories: 325kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 8g
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