Best Homemade Taco Seasoning
We know everyone says this about their own recipes, but we think this is the BEST Homemade Taco Seasoning! It’s also way better than store-bought and super easy to make.
We love to create scratch-made recipes, including recipes for homemade sauces and spice blends like this signature seasoning mix. It has just the right balance of smoky, spicy, earthy, savory, and slightly sweet flavor. We love it so much that we always have a jar of it in our pantry. If you do any cooking at home, chances are you probably have most or even all of these spices on hand already.
Add this seasoning to ground meat, plant-based meat, roasted potatoes, scrambled eggs, shrimp, etc. The possibilities are pretty much endless with this seasoning. Have fun with it!
Why Use Homemade Rather Than Store Bought Spice Blends?
We’re big fans of making food from scratch at home and we love knowing exactly what goes into the food we’re eating. That doesn’t mean that we don’t ever partake in pre-made meals or ingredients, because sometimes you just can’t compete with that convenience. But we love the freedom to control flavors and make things precisely to our liking.
We also think that making spice blends at home allows you to use your preferred brands and amounts of individual spices. It’s rewarding when we cook with the flavors we love!
Why You’ll Love This Seasoning
- Easy to make. Literally all you have to do is mix a bunch of spices together. That’s it. Easy and quick and full of flavor.
- Customizable. The great thing about making your own seasoning mixes is that you can customize it for your needs and preferences. Want more garlic flavor? Add a little more! Don’t like spicy food? Use less cayenne!
- Full of pantry staples. Most of the spices used in this homemade taco seasoning are pretty standard, so you might already have them in your spice drawer or pantry. We tend to use many of these same spices in a lot of our recipes, so it’s a good idea to keep them around.
- Small batch that can be scaled up, if needed. Not everyone wants a huge container of taco seasoning gathering dust in their pantry (hello, giant store-bought versions!). We love this recipe because it starts small, but if you want to make more, it’s super easy to scale up too. Just be sure to store it in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. If kept dry and airtight, it should last as long as each of the spices would last on their own.
- It’s versatile. Taco seasoning tastes good on so many things. Obviously, it’s great on any kind of taco meat or taco fixings, but we also throw this on roasted potatoes or veggies, beans, eggs, roasted meats, soups, and more. The possibilities are almost endless!
Ingredients in the Best Homemade Taco Seasoning
- Cumin – cumin is a crucial part of this taco seasoning. It provides an earthy, woodsy flavor.
- Chili powder – chili powder is actually a blend of herbs and spices, like mild dried chilies, garlic, cumin, oregano, salt, and others, depending on the brand.
- Onion powder – onion powder gives this taco seasoning a mild allium flavor.
- Garlic powder – we add just a little garlic powder to this taco seasoning for mild garlic notes.
- Cayenne pepper – we like our taco seasoning with just a hint of spice, but if you don’t like spicy food, you can reduce the amount of cayenne in this recipe.
- Dried oregano – we like the subtle herby flavor that oregano gives this seasoning. If you can get your hands on dried Mexican oregano, that’s even better.
- Smoked paprika – while not typically in taco seasoning, we include smoked paprika in our signature taco seasoning for its smoky undertones. It elevates this taco seasoning and makes it that much better than store-bought.
- Sugar – this is another ingredient that you may not always find in other versions of taco seasoning, but which we very strongly support using. It balances out the more savory allium, chili, and cumin flavors. It also aids in browning and caramelization of ingredients when used in recipes.
- Salt – we use some salt in this seasoning to add depth and flavor.
- Black pepper – we like the smoky heat that freshly cracked black pepper brings to this seasoning mix.
Making the Best Homemade Taco Seasoning
This taco seasoning is super easy to make. All you have to do is mix together the ingredients until they’re fully combined. We suggest adding each spice to a jar or another storage container, topping it with a lid, and then shaking it up until everything is mixed together.
Use this mixture as a seasoning for chicken, potatoes, shrimp, or anything else you want to elevate with savory, smoky, and slightly spiced flavors.
Best Homemade Taco Seasoning
Ingredients
- 2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper powder
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp granulated or cane sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl.2 tsp cumin powder, 1 tbsp chili powder, 2 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp garlic powder, ¼ tsp cayenne pepper powder, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp granulated or cane sugar, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp black pepper
- Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place until ready to use.
