Homemade Taco Seasoning

In great-grandma's day, commercial mixes weren't available. If you wanted cakes or biscuits or certain seasonings, you made them yourself from scratch. Back then, I'm sure there were a few busy moms who would have loved to been able to throw a mix together!

I made another batch of this homemade taco seasoning today, and thought I'd share the recipe with you. Making your own taco seasoning is a little more trouble than just tearing open an envelope of the pre-made stuff, but you really can taste the difference. It's fresher and brighter tasting. There aren't as many chemicals and preservatives in seasoning you make yourself, and you can control the sodium, too, if you want. It goes together pretty quickly. You'll enjoy having a stash of this in your pantry, and with the holidays coming up, it would make a nice little hostess gift.

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Makes about 1/2 cup of seasoning

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon kosher salt (I do recommend the kosher salt, but if you need to use regular salt, use half the amount)
1 tablespoon black pepper
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder (not garlic salt)
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (I used ground red pepper)
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a container with a tight seal, and shake before using. I keep mine in a small canning jar. 

Use 1 to 2 tablespoons plus about 1/4 cup water per pound of beef, chicken, or veggies, or to taste. I find that 1 tablespoon is plenty. This seasoning is delicious in Taco Soup. I even like a sprinkling of it on scrambled eggs! :)

Adapted from Macheesmo.com