Taco Seasoning

I love tacos, and quesadillas, and taco salads, and... well, you get the picture.  I love tex-mex recipes.  I love almost any recipe that calls for taco seasoning!  What I don't love?  The crazy additives and sodium content of packaged taco seasoning mixes.  In fact, the first two ingredients on the list for my favorite brand are maltodextrin and salt, neither of which are in my recipe.  There is also MSG (yuck), yellow corn flour (why?), partially hydrogenated soy bean oil (gag!), ethoxyquin (preservative, ick!), and silicon dioxide (which is basically sand and while it's supposedly harmless when used in such small amounts in foods to keep powders from clumping, it still bothers me that I'm eating sand).

This taco seasoning recipe has no salt, no preservatives, no MSG, and no sand.  The only ingredients are the spices used to make the food taste so delicious.

This particular recipe is directly from Annie's Eats.  Her Homemade Taco Seasoning is my favorite because it makes enough to use in 3 or 4 recipes before I have to make more, and the flavor is just exactly what tacos should taste like.

I love this recipe, and I use it on everything.  I use it in my Chicken Taco Chili, in chicken quesadillas, in Chicken Taco Casserole, for plain old tacos and taco salad meat, and I love to season hamburgers with it too!  I keep it on hand most of the time, but I almost always have the ingredients in the pantry to mix up some more in case I run out.

Check in on Wednesday for a new recipe that utilizes this taco seasoning.  Make your seasoning in advance, you won't be sorry.

Try this, you'll like it!

Taco Seasoning

4 Tbsp chili powder

3 Tbsp + 1 tsp paprika

3 Tbsp ground cumin

1 Tbsp + 2 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well to combine.  Store in an airtight container.

For taco meat, cook 1 lb ground beef, chicken, or turkey, or 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken in a skillet over medium heat. 

Add 2 Tbsp taco seasoning mixture and 1 cup of water.  Simmer until the liquid is nearly evaporated.

This recipe is easily tweaked to suit anyone's taste.  If you like it spicier add more cayenne or some crushed red pepper flakes.  If you prefer the taste of fresh onion or garlic you can omit the onion powder and garlic powder and add garlic and onion to your meat as you cook it (or leave the powdered stuff in and have a boosted onion and garlic flavor).  You will probably need to salt your meat a bit since this recipe has no salt in it, but even if you're heavy handed with the salt you probably won't exceed the amount of salt in the packaged stuff.