Once you make this easy Homemade Taco Seasoning, you'll never go back to buying those overprice packets again! It's healthier and cheaper, plus it has none of the fillers. It's also great for more than just tacos, it tastes great on veggies, meats, and more.
This Homemade Taco Seasoning Recipe fits in perfectly with how I run my life--and my kitchen.
I just love making my own pantry staples, from non-dairy milks (like Easiest Almond Milk and this Easiest Coconut Milk) to Powdered Egg Replacer, Easy Homemade Ketchup, Homemade Salad Dressings, and more.
But one thing that I really get a kick out of (yes, I really get into this) is making my own homemade seasonings. Over the years, we've found or developed quite a few of them including chili powder, celery salt, this all-purpose seasoning and this Dorito® seasoning, but today I'm sharing a new one with you -- a Homemade Taco Seasoning recipe.
Making your own homemade seasonings (like this DIY Taco Seasoning) insures you will almost never be out of a seasoning you need for something you're cooking, and that means time and money saving.
For example, just the other day, I had a craving for taco salad, but hadn't made taco meat in years. So I had no taco seasoning in the house -- and on our budget (and with our food sensitivities and life-threatening food allergies), eating out is not a pleasurable or viable option so heading out for tacos wasn't going to happen.
Basically it's not my idea of a fun time to pay about $15 for my son to get a plain chicken breast and a side of steamed veggies.
Just have a few meals like that and pretty soon eating out loses its appeal.
Anyhow, it's frustrating to find yourself excited to cook something only to find yourself missing what you need. Sometimes you can find an easy substitute, but other times, like in the case of taco seasoning, you just need to have exactly what the recipe calls for.
So I got to work in the kitchen and tried out a few recipes and came up with a DIY Taco Seasoning that fits the bill.
And it's very easy to recreate in a flash.
Why Make Your Own Seasoning Blends?
Why indeed? Isn't it easier to just buy those pre-made blends at the store?
It can be, but here is why I love making my own spice blends.
- Control Over the Ingredients (no icky MSG type stuff or allergenic ingredients. For those of you with milk allergies, did you know that many taco seasonings have lactose (milk sugar) in them?)
- Save Money (individual seasonings are cheaper than blends)
- Have Fun with Kids - making seasoning blends is an easy way to involve your kids in the kitchen 🙂
- Save Even MORE Money (have you seen the prices of those packaged "Taco Seasoning" mixes at the grocery store? Ugh!
- Save Money and Time (no last minute trips to the store to get something that you can easily make yourself)
- Freshness - making your own seasoning blends ensures you use up your spices more quickly so spices will get old less frequently
More Pantry Basics / Homemade Recipes
I have a lot of DIY recipes / pantry basics here that are in the same spirit of this post. For example:
- Homemade Coconut Milk
- Homemade Protein Bars
- Powdered Sugar (or powdered sugar alternative)
- Homemade Sugar-Free Lemonade (a healthy version :-)!)
How to Use this Homemade Taco Seasoning Recipe:
There are so many ways to use taco seasoning, including:
Tacos (of course) - you will LOVE these Grain-Free Taco Shells (AIP)
Tortillas (here's a great recipe for Paleo Tortillas)
Taco Salad
Veggies
Salad
Popcorn
Chicken
Beef
Fish
Sides (like rice, potatoes, etc.)
Veggies
Soups (like this Creamy Root Vegetable Soup)
even Ice Cream!
Seriously, try this homemade taco seasoning on this Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream or this Chocolate Avocado Ice Cream.It's amazing!
Convinced? I thought so.
Oh, and if you have a loved one or friend on the AIP (Autoimmune Protocol or Autoimmune Paleo) Diet who still loves taco seasoning, here is my tasty AIP version. You will love it whether or not you are on a special diet. Oh, and if you aren't familiar with the AIP Diet, this Simple Guide to the AIP Diet is a great introduction!)
So now on to the homemade taco seasoning recipe that tastes great on so many things.....
More On this Taco Seasoning
I would strongly recommending purchasing organic spices. Many non-organic spices are irradiated and so aren't the best choice.
Taco Seasoning, like any seasoning that is, or is made up of peppers, should be stored in the fridge to prevent oxidation.
I also recommend storing your spices in glass spice jars instead of in plastic. I love some of the following for their compact shape as well as appearance (it's nice to have nice-looking things in your kitchen :)!)
Traditional Spice Jars
Small Glass Mason Jars
Simply Organic Spice Jars
Hexagon Spice Jars
Glass Jars with Hinged Lids
Really the possibilities are endless.
Substitutions for Special Diets
- Spice Brands: For my spice shopping, I really like Frontier Brand. I've done taste tests and the Frontier Brands have won out every time and boy, are they reasonable! Starwest Botanicals, has good options too.
- Homemade Chili Powder: If you would like to make your own chili powder, here's my recipe for The "Best" Basic Chili Powder.
- Use approximately 2 Tbsp taco seasoning mix for each pound of ground meat (or to taste, of course. Some people may prefer 1 Tbsp, others up to 4 Tbsp).
As with other taco seasonings, either use the mixture as is, or add approx. ¾ cup water to the beef and seasoning mixture to make a more "saucy" beef. - You can also flavor beans, like lentils, with this mixture. About 2 cups of cooked beans will be the equivalent of one pound of ground beef.
- Multiple Batches: And as I said in my "Saving Time in the Kitchen by Baking in Bulk" post, I recommend making more of this in homemade taco seasoning in advance so that you have it on hand when you need it. Cook once, use two three four times or more :-)!
- Standby Seasoning: We use this DIY Taco Seasoning even as a standby seasoning on our table. It tastes great on veggies and loads of dishes!
Recipe Notes
- Aleppo Peppers: For red pepper flakes, aleppo peppers would add a wonderful depth of flavor but red chilis are fine.
- Add More "Heft": For a DIY Taco Seasoning with a bit more "heft" to it, add about 1 tsp flour or starch of choice to the mix. Of course, if you use a whole grain flour, you will want to store the resulting mixture in the refrigerator 'cause whole grains will spoil at room temp.
- Salt: We love salt. The amount in this recipe is perfect for us and for many of my readers. However, some readers have said that it's way too much. I suspect some are adding it to a dish that already has salt, which we are not. Regardless, please adjust the recipe to your taste.
Homemade Taco Seasoning Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 Tbsp cumin
- 2 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste--see Recipe Notes)
- 2 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.
- Mix well.
- Store in a tightly closed container.
- 2 Tbsp is the standard amount to use for 1 pound of meat, but you can of course use this seasoning to taste.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is merely an approximation. Optional ingredients are not included and when there is an alternative, the primary ingredient is typically used. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts since they have been shown not to impact blood sugar.
I'd love to hear what you think about this recipe (or if there's another spice blend you'd like me to try to make a homemade version of.)
Let me know in the comments!
Thank you for the recipe. It was very frustrating trying to find it though. I kept scrolling down and down and down and couldn't find the recipe. Then I scrolled up and up and up to see if I had missed it. Finally found it and my frustration with blog recipes has been greatly reinforced. Why is the recipe I want always buried below so much chitter-chatter and 20 photos of the identical item? Does anyone else have this same issue?Sorry- I'm venting!
Hi Linda,
First of all, thanks for reading. I am sorry that you had a hard time finding the recipe. I had a "Jump to Recipe" button recently but we are moving to a new recipe system and not sure what happened to it. I will have to see if I can get it back again.
Some blogs just put a simple recipe and no images. Others like to tell a story and connect w/ their readers that way--some do a lot of photos. For me, I typically only have 2 photos but sometimes I do more and soon I will have a post w/ a lot since it's very much a step-by-step recipe. I think readers have different thoughts but I personally think that most blogs that only have a recipe can be a little "dry" without any personality. I like to hear the story behind the recipe sometimes, but not always. I do understand your frustration, however.
I hope that explains things. Let me know what you think.
Hello again, Linda. So I was able to figure it out more easily than I thought. Go back and check it out and see how it works--hope that makes things better for you! (Though I do hope that on occasion you might be interested in at least some of the background :)).
Hi Adrienne - Thank you for your thoughtful reply. I apologize for venting. (Proverbs 29:11) I have never commented on a blog before. Next time, I will count to ten, take a deep breath and look for the "jump to recipe" button! I can certainly handle two photos! Food photos are generally very beautiful and I do enjoy looking at them. But not when there are twelve photos of the same exact dish! Also, I love when a recipe has "step by step" photos. It's very helpful to me because I'm a novice cook. And, yes, I do enjoy reading blog posts. Somehow, they make the world seem a bit smaller. Thank you again.
Hello Linda - well I will send you the same comment back--thanks for your thoughtful reply. Your apology is accepted. That verse is pretty convicting I know :).
No kidding--a first time commenter :). I feel privileged.
I think more are doing the Jump to Recipe but some bloggers don't do it b/c it decreases ad income. It's a hard thing but ideally I want something that my readers like.
I am with you on the photos--hard to know what to do. I used to do 1 photo. Now I have more and in this post I put a ton in b/c I just liked them :). https://wholenewmom.com/whole-new-budget/vegetable-broth-recipe/
Hope to see you around again for sure! Blessings and thanks for taking the time to come back and comment again....so now you are a second time commenter.
I am looking forward to trying this recipe, I also want to try more recipes for seasonings.
Hope you like it! This post should interest you: https://wholenewmom.com/recipes/homemade-spice-mixes/
Excited to try many more than just the taco seasoning I was searching for!
Hope you like them!
We enjoyed this recipe. Thank you.
You are so welcome!!
Perfect blend. Used her homemade chili powder link as well. Love this. 5 star. Easy peasy. No more chemical additives for me.
So great - thanks for coming back to comment!!
Tried this today when I was out of taco seasoning. My kids say it's the best, better than taco bell! Used the whole recipe on 2 lbs of meat. Will probably reduce the salt next time, but I think it you don't use the whole recipe the saltiness will even out. Saving this to use again and again!
My husband made this recipe and used the entire recipe for 2 lbs. of hamburger meat! He did not read the entire article and our taco salad was really really salty ?
Oh no!!! You could have added more meat or beans maybe? Hope it works out better next time!
I found that it was also too salty. I will probably cut the sat in half next time. Other than that it was good.
This is gold! I have never thought about making my own homemade seasonings. Will definitely try this. Thank you for sharing.
I'm really digging Smoked Paprika too- but it's expensive~! I bought a little bottle not too long ago and it was $9 which I thought was really really over the top. However I must admit that I luv it and u don't really need much to get the sensation / taste / umami. However I like to consider myself a "Spice Witch" and I've never heard of nor ever encountered Smoked Cumin. WOW-- I can tell you that I will absolutely be on the lookout for it now and try to snag it as soon as I'm able to find some. Onion & Garlic powder themselves do not have MSG in them but I think the poster was trying to say that the Gov't is now using at least 7 different terms to hide MSG in foods by calling it Soy Protein Isolate or Glutamic Acid or Yeast Extract or Textured Vegetable Protein-- and there are several others too so that folks won't always be able to find it quickly. Most of us have heard of MSG’s role as a flavor enhancer. But how does this work? Concentrated free glutamic acid or MSG acts as a nerve stimulant & changes how the taste buds taste food. A yucky or even a really bad tasting food will taste fantastic when high levels of glutamic acid are introduced as a flavor enhancer.. Hope this info helps some folks...... Please, PLEASE do your research before buying anything u're not familiar with...
Hi Kaysee. Thanks for commenting. The whole MSG thing is confusing. I don't know if they are trying to hide MSG or just that they found something that tastes good and it happens to have a lot of glutamates in it? I have done a lot of reading about this and find it all to be a conundrum.
Just made tacos without a seasoning packet?. Best tacos ever.
I'm in the middle of making vegan fish tacos for dinner and needed some taco seasoning to mix with my sour cream. I found this recipe and had enough ingredients on hand to make a batch. Absolutely delicious. I did use granulated garlic and onion instead and increased those to 1 tsp each. I will definitely be making a larger batch to keep this on hand. Yum.
Thank you for sharing! So glad you liked it! I have never had fish tacos - will have to try it!
How do you make vegan fish tacos? (Not being sarcastic, I'm dead serious) I'm a new vegan and always looking for yummy stuff!
I have enjoyed keeping bulk amounts of commercial seasonings for tacos on hand but the ingredients seem to be changing all the time and I do not trust them to hide gluten or MSG or other nastiness where ever they can. I will make this by the cup or 2 cups at a time as we like mexican flavors on lots of things. I suggest using smoked cumin and smoked paprika, the flavor is amazing.
I love smoked paprika. Have never tried smoked cumin - haven't ever seen it - sounds great! I keep bulk seasonings on hand too!
Just the other day I read an article about trans fats and it plainly stated that if the serving is small enough, and that the industry deliberately changes the size of the serving so it is, the govt. regs. do not apply when listing it as an ingredient. I would believe this about MSG in a New York minuted, especially as I am finding it as an ingredient in things that didn't have it listed in the past.
Yes, they manipulate serving sizes of Splenda too so that they can label it as having less than 1 carb but if you eat what a normal person would it affects your blood sugar. I have had several people tell me about diabetic reactions after eating Splenda.
Thank you! This recipe is perfect for taco seasoning!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for coming back to tell me!
This was great. I added some tomato bouillon. Better than pkg mixes
What did you do w/ the tomato bouillon? Just blend it in?
Hi ! I don't understand why you made a taco seasoning recipe if it is the same mix of spices that you used in the chili powder ( cumin , paprika , oregano , garlic powder , onion powder, salt ...) ??!
I mean it's quite the same , I'm not trying to be rude 🙂 I'm french and kind of interesting in mexican food 🙂
thanks you
Hi Anna. The Taco Seasoning uses the Chili as a base, which is fairly typical. And the chili is similar b/c I tried to make it without the typical chilis since they are not something most people have in their pantry. I hope that explains :).
This recipe is amazing! I used it for ground turkey tacos and it's addicting! I'm never buying a packet of taco seasoning ever again. I cut out half the salt. Also I didn't add I onion powder or garlic powder because I was cooking this with onions and minced garlic. Very very delicious.
Oh great!!! Thanks for taking the time to share!
There's something about packaged mixes that makes me hate the taste. I can't quite put my finger on it, but it's very distinct and ruins the taste for me. I've tried this recipe (and leave out the oregano b/c I don't like it) and love it. It gives me great tacos without that yucky taste from packaged mixes. Thanks!!
So glad to hear it - thanks for taking the time to share!
Tried this tonight for chicken tacos and worked great! While I prefer the convience of pre mixed seasonings (due to health issues), it worked great for having it on hand for when I run out.
Fabulous, Stacey! I guess if you make a lot at one time it won't take much more time than buying it at the store. Thanks for taking the time to comment. I know when you aren't well even little things are hard. Hope you can heal.
The problem with this is that it states no MSG or preservatives!!! However, garlic & onion powder are both full of MSG! No, it's not listed on the label. However, we have learned that if the serving size is small enough, they don't have to list certain ingredients. So, a better bet is to get dried minced garlic. as it doesn't need to be preserved the way that garlic powder does, and throw it in your food processor!! Enjoy!!!
Hi there. Can I ask why you think that they are full of MSG? I don't think that is for sure the case. Thanks!
I am curious to know the same. There is no reason for plain garlic and onion powder to have MSG.
Hi Beth.
I know there are some people spreading around things about MSG that may or may not have any substantiated data behind it. I sent some data to a physician refuting something he was telling me about free glutamates in gelatin. It went against what one of these people is saying. Hope that helps.
You are wrong. Onion Powder and Garlic Powder do not have MSG, I am allergic to MSG and I am a professional chef and whenever I eat things that have MSG i break out in hives and and get a headache and Onion powder and Garlic powder doesn't do that, again there is no MSG in Onion Powder or Garlic Powder, all Garlic Powder is is dried Garlic that is ground, and Onion powder is just dried onions that's are ground