Homemade Taco Seasoning

Empress your family on Taco night with this easy and delicious homemade taco seasoning that isn’t full of preservatives and additives that you find in store-bought packages. This recipe is a great way to add flavour to your tacos.

overhead view of a bowl of homemade taco seasoning, which is a blend of chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, oregano.

Taco Seasoning is made from a blend of spices and herbs and is used in Mexican-inspired dishes. There are different taco seasonings available in the grocery store but making your own means all the flavour without the additives.

No Added Sugar In This Taco Seasoning Recipe

Read a package of taco seasoning from the store and you may be surprised to see that sugar is added. When I started reading the labels on the foods I was purchasing, I was surprised to find sugar listed as the second ingredient in our favourite taco seasoning.

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Control The Salt

Salt was another concern I had with some of the foods we were purchasing. That same package of seasoning that contained sugar also contains 350mg of sodium in what they deem a serving. We usually doubled the amount of seasoning because we liked more flavour, so that meant more salt.

By making Homemade Taco Seasoning, you can control the salt. This recipe has 1 teaspoon of Kosher salt in the entire recipe, which makes approximately two dozen tacos. Less salt can also be added if you want less salt.

The Trick to Making This Taco Seasoning

To get this seasoning well mixed and free of clumps there are two tricks to making this recipe. One is an ingredient. The other is a method.

First the ingredient: Cornstarch. By adding cornstarch to the seasoning mix, you are adding a thickener. This allows the seasoning to mix with the liquid in your dish to create a thicker, richer flavourful dish.

Second, is the method of mixing the seasoning ingredients, a spice grinder. This is a wonderful tool that works well for seasoning mixes as well as rubs. By pulsing the spices in the grinder for 30 seconds to one minute, you are creating a more even blend. The grinder mixes the ground spices evenly so that every bit of seasoning has all the flavours.

No spice grinder, no problem. Just place all ingredients in a mason jar and shake until well blended.

Can This Recipe Be Doubled?

Yes! This recipe can be doubled, tripled or quadrupled. We make a large batch of this seasoning and store it in our pantry to have on hand. When making a large batch, we use a blender or food processor in place of the spice grinder.

Taco Seasoning is easily stored in mason jars in your pantry for up to 2 months.

How to Use Homemade Taco Seasoning

This seasoning can be used in ground beef for tacos. The amount used varied on your taste preferences. We use 2 tablespoons per pound of beef, but we are also usually cooking two or three pounds of meat at a time for our larger family. Start with 2 Tablespoons and adjust accordingly. It is better to have to add more seasoning than try to adjust after adding too much.

The seasoning can also be used on strips of chicken breasts or thighs for making tacos or fajitas. Or sprinkle it on fish or shrimp for tacos.

We also turn this seasoning into a marinade by whisking it with ¼ cup of avocado oil and the juice and zest of a lime.

It can also be used in our Easy Shredded Chicken recipe.

Need the ingredients to make this recipe? Why not try Voilà and have it delivered or order for curbside pick up?

overhead view of a bowl of homemade taco seasoning, which is a blend of chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, oregano.

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Stacy
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Course seasoning
Cuisine Mexican

Equipment

  • spice grinder

Ingredients
  

  • 4 Tbsp chili powder
  • 2 Tbsp ground cumin
  • 1 Tbsp paprika
  • 1 Tbsp garlic powder
  • 1 Tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp pepper

Instructions
 

  • Place all ingredients in a spice grinder and pulse for 30 seconds, shaking after two or three pulses
  • Store in a mason jar in a cool dry place for up to two months.
  • Use 2-4 Tbsp to season ground beef or chicken for tacos.
Keyword tacos

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