Ready-made mixes: Homemade goodness made simple, one jar at a time.
Does your family love tacos?
Taco night is a favorite around our house, especially when it's chicken tacos made with my homemade Taco Seasoning Mix. Learning to make our own seasoning mixes is just one way my family is taking more pride in what we produce in the kitchen. It's also one small step toward self-reliance. By that, I mean we don't eat out anymore (hardly ever), and we don't buy prepared food from the store nearly as much as we used to. Instead, we're learning to make things at home. But we still like convenience. That's why we started making ready-made mixes for the things we use all the time, like taco seasoning.
Why bother making your own seasoning mixes?
You may think it's silly to make DIY seasoning mixes when all a person needs to do is hop on over to Costco to buy a year's worth of any given seasoning mix for cheap. I don't disagree that Costco offers some great prices in the seasoning aisle. But there's at least two reasons I hold out for homemade when it comes to taco seasoning (or chili, enchilada, or fajita seasoning mixes, etc.)
Craft. As a culture, we've become dependent on the industrial food machine to dictate to use what food should taste like. Like other heritage skills, herb and spice blending is a lost art to many of us. Rediscovering the craft of blending your own herbs and spices can not only breathe fresh flavor into your cooking, but also new enjoyment. It's fun to discover the individual spices and then construct your own seasoning blends from the ground up. As you work with the unique flavors of each ingredient, you become more knowledgeable and skilled as a cook. Your confidence grows. And pretty soon, you're making ALL your seasoning blends. But it all starts with deconstructing the first one, and seeing how it all goes together. That's what we're going to do today (so keep reading)!
Self-reliance. Are you tired of depending on the industrial food machine for every last little thing? Join the revolution! No matter how small it may seem, every time you make something homemade, you take a baby-step in the direction of regained self-reliance. When I speak of regained self-reliance, I'm thinking of what we've lost since our grandmother's ruled the kitchen. Not only did they make their own bread, milk the cow, and can tomatoes, they knew how to blend seasonings. We need to be liberated! By making our own seasoning blends,we're no longer limited to whether or not we have a silly store-bought packet in our cupboards. You want tacos for dinner? No need to drop everything and run to the store. Just open your spice cupboard and make some magic! Not sure where to begin? Today's recipe for taco seasoning can get you started!
How to make your own Taco Seasoning Mix...
Ingredients
1/2 cup minced dried onions
1/2 cup chili powder
1/4 cup garlic powder
1/4 cup cumin
2 tablespoons oregano
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes*
* Red pepper flakes will make the mix spicy--adjust more or less to taste.
Instructions
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk together until thoroughly blended. Store your taco seasoning in a pint-size jar, or another air-tight container in your pantry.
To Use
Use 1 to 2 tablespoons taco seasoning mix per pound of meat cooked. Cook and drain meat, then sprinkle on the seasoning. Allow to cook for another minute or two, then turn off the heat.
Don't forget your FREE PRINTABLE LABELS! Each mix post in this series comes with a link to a free downloadable page of 8 labels and instructions to attach to your homemade mixes. These labels are simple and easy to read, and done to look a bit retro (which I love) with their lettering and color scheme. You can print your labels onto white card-stock, cut them out, and use double-sided tape to stick them to your jars of mixes. Or, keep it super simple and print your labels onto this sticker paper by Avery. Just cut them out and stick them right to your jars. Enjoy!
WANT TO SEE MORE POSTS LIKE THIS?
What homemade dry mixes are a must in your pantry? I'd love to hear your story.
Until next time...
Joy--Fearless Farm Girl,
"Farm girl: it's a verb, because it's what you do."
Until next time...
Joy--Fearless Farm Girl,
"Farm girl: it's a verb, because it's what you do."
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I am so excited to try your recipe. I don't know how may dry mix packets I have bought over the years but I always wonder just how much of what is in them. I plan on making a batch of your seasoning this weekend. Thanks
ReplyDeleteYay! I'm glad you're going to try this, Emily!
DeleteShould the second ingredient be chili "powder"?
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, yes! I've corrected that now. Thank you.
DeleteMelody Joy