By Erin Odom, Contributing Writer
Are you working to ditch processed foods and put more real food on the table? We're running a series called Real Food Made Simple: A Beginner's Guide to Eating Better. Our goal is to answer the questions you might have and make the transition a whole lot easier!
Even before I started cooking from scratch, I started making my own homemade spice mixes.
At first, it was out of pure laziness. I don't like to shop. Even before I had kids, I didn't like to run out to the grocery store for an item or two on my ingredient list if I could avoid it. And, hence, I started making things at home.
The very first spice mix for me to make on my own was taco seasoning. I think back then I googled a recipe, and when I realized I had all the ingredients on hand, I was elated.
The next time I was at the store, I checked the ingredient list on the back of the taco seasoning mix I normally purchased. Surely the ingredients would be the same, right?
Wrong.
The food labels on the bulk of store-bought seasoning mixes are full of fillers, preservatives and other unwanted fake flavor enhancers. These ingredients include:
- modified food starch (a thickener, often derived from GMO sources but not always),
- sugar,
- partially hydrogenated vegetable oils (trans fat and often made from a GMO oil sources, such as cottonseed, canola or soybean),
- MSG (including "hidden" MSG under other names)
- hidden gluten (dangerous for those with a gluten intolerance or celiac disease)
- natural flavorings (So what's the big deal here? Read this.)
- silicon dioxide (to prevent caking--not necessarily bad but an additive to know about nonetheless)
- spices (This sounds innocent...but what exactly are these anonymous "spices"?),
- and more.
After learning that store-bought spice mixes aren't always so wholesome, I committed to making my seasonings at home--for both convenience and health reasons.
How to Make Your Own
Seriously, making your own spice mixes is probably the easiest kitchen task you will ever do.
Supplies Needed:
- single ingredient herbs and spices
- measuring spoons
- glass jars (Depending on how much you want to mix up, anything from an old baby food jar to a canning jar will work.)
Method:
Simply combine all the individual spices together in a jar, shake the jar and--voila!--you have your spice mixes!
I have sometimes gotten in the rut of making just what I needed per meal at the time I am cooking. This is inconvenient and tags extra time onto dinner prep. I now mix up a whole canning jar at once, label the top with the ingredients needed to fill the jar as well as with the amounts needed in recipes I make frequently.
But what if you don't have all the single-ingredient herbs and spices?
No problem! Check out this handy list of herb and spice substitutions.
Homemade Spice Mixes
And now, the moment you've been waiting for: check out this full line-up of homemade spice mixes! I've also included some recipes that call for these mixes. Your family will thank you for never entering the spice mix aisle of the grocery store again!
Allspice Alternative
Use in:
- Cincinnati Chili
- Chocolate Chili (Yes, chocolate!)
Apple Pie Spice Mix
Use in:
- Slow Cooker Brown Rice Pudding
- 3-2-1 Custard (Paleo Breakfast)
Cajun Seasoning
Use in:
Chili Powder
Use in:
Image by Whole New Mom
Cinnamon Sugar
Use to:
- sprinkle on toast or other baked goods
- sprinkle in oatmeal
Curry Powder
Use in:
Dry Creamed Soup Spice Mix
Use in any recipe that calls for a "cream-of" soup.
Image by Stacy Makes Cents
"Emeril's Essence" Seasoning Blend
Use in:
Garlic Salt
Use in:
Italian Seasoning
Use in:
Image by The Nourishing Home
Lemon Pepper
Use in:
- Crock Pot Creamy Lemon Pepper Chicken
- as a seasoning on steamed or sauteed veggies--or even in a stir-fry
Poultry Seasoning
Use in:
Pumpkin Pie Spice
Use in:
Image by Day2Day Joys
Ranch Dip Mix
Use in:
- as a dip for Healthy Chicken Nuggets
- Ranch Cheddar Chicken
(Here's another good ranch dip mix recipe!)
Sausage Seasoning
Use it in:
Taco Seasoning
Use in:
Image by Your Thriving Family
Tumeric Newari Spice
Use in:
- Spicy Fried Chicken
- other Nepali or South Asian dishes
Need more inspiration? I'm constantly adding to my spices/sauces/dips/dressing board on Pinterest. You can follow me here.
Two other helpful resources for all things homemade, including many condiments, sauce and more are the recipe ebooks Easy. Homemade. and also Restocking the Pantry.
Note: Even some single-ingredient spices contain hidden fillers! Be sure to carefully read the food labels and call the manufacturer if necessary. Many health food stores and co-ops sell spices in bulk. The Bulk Herb Store and Mountain Rose Herbs are two online stores that sell quality herbs and spices.
I've started reading the spices labels since I have some celiac friends, but I have started buying my spices in bulk from my local food coop. Do you think those are "better"?
BB that's what I used to do as well then I learned that WHERE they get their spices, HOW they're grown as well as HOW they process them, is also very important to our health. I also discovered that most of them were irradiated. So now I'm more careful in what spices and herbs I buy so that when I make my own, I know they are a truly healthy benefit to my family. Also, thank you Erin so much for putting all this together. It's a really great resource; as I'm always looking to add new mixes to my kitchen supply.
thank you so much!!
And THANK YOU so much for posting this. I am a "real food, whole food" newbie and have learned so much from your site. I really enjoy so much of what you post. Thank you for educating us and helping us live better! :)
I'd love it if someone has a great homemade fajita seasoning mix to share!
I seldom comment, however i did some searching and wound up here 17 Homemade Spice Mixes with Recipes & Why You
Should Use Them!
I do make my own and taco seasoning was one of the first. Sweet potato fry seasoning was the very first. Not a store bought mix but nevertheless I did not feel like getting out six or 8 jars to measure out 1/4 and 1/8 tsp each time
This. Is. Awesome.
My eyes were opened to this concept when I realized that several of my go-to recipes included dry onion soup mix (which, to my horror, listed MSG as an ingredient among many others that I didn't recognize). So when I did a little googling, I found an awesome substitute recipe and have never again purchased the stuff that comes in the packets. It's so much better homemade, too! :)
I really need to start making my own spices. Maybe this blog post will be the thing that gets me to finally do that! Thanks!
I was suggested this website by my cousin. I am not sure whether this post is written by him as nobody else know such detailed about my
trouble. You're incredible! Thanks!
I do make a few of my own mixes, taco seasoning, cream soup (but I am checking our yours to see how different they are), ranch mix & onion soup mix-which I think I use THE MOST. Thanks for sharing all of these!!! & the recipes to go w/them too.
This is great! Two that I would love to find would be onion soup/dip mix and Bells's seasoning mix. Has anyone figured those out yet?
I'm forever encouraging my friends & family to make things "homemade" instead of what the store has to offer. Keep telling them how simple it all is to make REAL FOOD! Blogs, such as yours, helps me convey that message even better. Thank you! I'm sharing it with them now. :)
Thanks, Erin! I'm so excited to get working on my spice cabinet now. :)
A very helpful post that I can use! Can you please tell me where I might find some of these smaller jars to make spices ahead and store them? I see canning jars as one but those might be too large at times for some of the spice mixes. Any recommended resource?
This is an awesome resource! Thanks! I'm keeping it handy.
Thansk for sharing this info! It would be lovely if this was available in a word or pdf form with all the recipes in one place so you didn't have locate, click, copy, paste, save, etc. Just download, print, and file!
Ditto :)
When I click on Italian Seasoning, it takes me to Italian Dressing Mix. Can I get the recipe for the Italian Seasoning?
Just wanted to advise that the link to Crockpot Stuffing goes to the link for the Breakfast Sausage. I've pinned this post & a couple of referenced recipes. Thanks! Now...off to try to find that crockpot stuffing recipe.
Just wanted to advise that the link to "Crockpot Stuffing" goes to the same link as the sausage listed below it. I've pinned this post and a couple of referenced recipes. Very fun, thanks! Now I'm going to see if I can find your crockpot stuffing recipe w/o the link. :-)
Thanks for sharing these, Erin. I am going to try to make Stacy's "Cream of" dairy free! Always up for an adventure!
Thanks for featuring my Cinnamon Sugar. I just shared on Facebook with my fans. :).
Great list. But I had to chuckle when i saw the cinnamon sugar on the list.... ingredients are listed in the name. lol
Well, yes but truly we did a "taste off" in our home with various blends. Come and see which one won - and how to make it "sugar free."
I just discovered you on Facebook! I look forward to see all you have to share. The article on making your own spices caught my attention. Thank you for sharing it !!
Okay, I'm smacking myself on the head. I'm an avid label reader, but I never thought to check the chili powder label. (Mine's from Aldi, just like yours.) Thanks for all the the great recipe links. Looks like I'll be making some chili powder. :)
I remember that feeling as well. I love Aldi, but I skip the spice rack--unless I'm stopping to take a pic with my phone for a post. ;)
Thank you! I love this--can't wait to get started on making my own mixes!!
enjoy!
Hi there - I love to make up my own spice concoctions, but I really need to put some organization around it. Thanks for this!
Jodi
fantastic list of spices people probably use all the time.. even if you buy from a specialty spice store, they still use some of the same fillers, sadly.
Thanks! Yes--it's sad. :(
This is an amazing post for a "real foods beginner" like myself. I've NEVER look at the ingredients of seasonings, mostly because who would think there would be so much extra junk in them! I will definitely be adding this to my 'To Do' list.
Thanks!
Thank you, thank you, thank you! I have been avoiding many of the spices I find at the typical grocery store for a while now. Your recipes are a God-send!
Thanks for much for sharing this comprehensive assortment of homemade spice recipes. I have pinned it so I can refer to this regularly! Appreciate you including a couple of my personal favorites! What a super helpful post, Erin! Blessings, Kelly
oops, I meant Thanks SO much! LOL!
Thank you thank you thank you! While I may try a few of the recipes for the mixes and uses, the tip to label the jar with the mix recipe is priceless. I almost always have an empty spice mix jar on the counter waiting to be refilled. It waits there for days just because I don't want to dig out the recipe!
Thanks! This is great information!
What a great list! Thanks for working so hard on it Erin!
Is there a recipe for Italian Seasonings? I can only find a recipe for Italian Salad Dressing.
I really only make taco seasoning! I love the idea but I just don't use most of these very often. I often use single spices. Hmm...maybe I ought to make my own unique spice blends based on what I do use? :)
These are great. I've used a few but glad to have more ideas! I read the link you indicated was the problem with natural flavoring. I admit there's an ick factor to using something extracted from beaver glands, but it doesn't appear unsafe, even mildly antibacterial? Just wondering what your concern was with it. Many in this community aren't exactly squeamish about animal consumption, lots of WAPF-ers, etc. Otherwise though I agree simple, homemade, fewer additives=always better?
It's the ick factor, and the fact that the label "natural flavors" is so elusive and deception. And the fact that they take something natural (the beaver "parts") and create something that tastes totally different in a lab somewhere. Seems to be the exact opposite of "natural" to me...and I'm betting the vast majority of the general public would freak out a little if they knew what those natural flavors are! ;)
There are wonderful Indian recipes that use the spices you listed above and much more. They are not that complicated to cook and are incredibly wholesome and delicious!
Great post, Erin!! Love this :D
We started making our own spice mixes after seiing the Alton Brown episode on chili and we were hooked. One other really good reason to make your own blends is the amount of sodium that's found in store bought ones. When we looked at the amount they contain we were shocked.
I hope you enjoy these, Prerna! I discovered an Indian market here the other day...I may have to check them out for some single spices to make more mixes!
Wow, this is awesome! I'm totally pinning! :-)
Yay! Glad you liked it!
Perfect timing! I just mixed another one-meal-sized amount of hamburger rub last night and wondered why I didn't just make a huge batch. And yes, those weirdo ingredients are scary! As soon as I use up our store-bought taco seasoning, I'm off to make yours.
This is so timely! I stopped buying spice mixes a long time ago for the reasons you mentioned, but never got around to learning new recipes. I use a home made taco mix for dinners and all spice mix for breakfast muffins or pancakes. We're pretty sick of that, my husband has requested no more cumin for some months! I've been playing with some asian inspired mixes with garlic, ginger, and red pepper (cayenne and crushed), but have not moved past that. These recipes are just what I need to get going. My 3 year old loves measuring for me, so making a few batches of spice mixes sounds like a wonderful Saturday morning project for us :)
Yay! Hope your hubby likes the mixes!
Ooh... I have pinned this AND bookmarked it.. Being in India, we do make a lot of our own spice mixes at home.. but this is SO awesome.. Cajun and "Cream of" and the Cinnamon Sugar.. Genius! Thanks Erin!