When we started to clean up our diet and eat better, one of the first things we did was throw out all of the pre-packaged seasoning mixes and spice blends in our pantry. We quickly discovered that making your own spice blends isn’t hard!
The first recipe we tested was taco seasoning. It was a huge hit.
Since then, we’ve perfected 10 more homemade spice blends. Use these healthy spice mixes to give flavor to all kids of different dishes and meats.
10 DIY spice mixes to try
Click on any link below to jump to the details about the specific spice blend.
- Taco seasoning
- Ranch seasoning
- Chili seasoning
- Jerk seasoning
- Poultry seasoning
- BBQ seasoning
- Italian seasoning
- Curry seasoning
- Southwest seasoning
- Cajun seasoning
What’s in that taco seasoning packet?
This was the first question I asked myself when I started making seasoning blends at home.
These are common ingredients found in popular “packet” mixes:
- Milk
- Sugar
- Corn flour
- Vegetable oil
- Corn syrup
- Corn maltodextrin (a corn syrup solid)
- Silicon Dioxide
- Natural flavors
Huh?
Milk? In taco seasoning?
Two kinds of corn syrup and sugar?
What exactly are natural flavors?
Making healthy spice blends at home
If you are trying to eat healthy and minimize your intake of ultra-processed and pre-packaged foods with unhealthy ingredients, making your own seasoning blends at home is a great way to start!
Taco seasoning (or any other seasoning blend) doesn’t need added sugar, maltodextrin (whatever that is), milk or other unknown “natural flavors”.
All you need for good spice blends are the spices themselves and an easy recipe to follow.
Where to find quality spices
There are plenty of places to buy spices, but we like to have them shipped right to our door from Thrive Market! Thrive carries the Simply Organic brand of spices, which are some of our favorites!
If you’re not familiar with Thrive Market, check out our honest Thrive Market review. If you’re interested in trying it out for free for 30 days, just click here to sign up!
Save money and buy bulk spices
If you’re making a lot of spice blends at home, you can save some money by buying spices in bulk. You can buy bulk packages at stores or find them in the bulk bins. You can also find large containers of select spices at Costco.
We like to re-use our store bought spice jars and fill them up with bulk spices. That keeps our pantry clean and tidy and saves us money. It’s a win-win!
Storing your homemade seasoning blends
Once you make these spice blends, they need to be stored in an airtight container. Stash your spices in the pantry or a spice drawer to keep them away from light.
Some easy storage options:
- Re-use old spice jars
- Small glass jars with a lid
- These cute little Ball spice jars
- A spice jar kit with labels
These blends can be stored for several months, depending on the freshness of the spices being used to make them. Since the spices will settle, be sure to give them a good mix before use.
How much of each homemade seasoning mix do I use?
The general rule of thumb is to use about 2 tbsp of seasoning mix per pound of meat. However, it’s a matter of personal preference, so start with a smaller amount and taste. You can always sprinkle on a little more seasoning later!
Taco Seasoning
This is the seasoning recipe that started it all! No matter what kind of tacos you’re making, this taco seasoning is versatile and goes with beef, chicken, turkey and even seafood.
Use this versatile dish for everyday tacos and other fun dishes like:
Ranch Seasoning
A good homemade ranch seasoning doesn’t take any exotic spices and it’s perfect for making your own homemade ranch dressing. Drizzle it on salads or use it as a dip for veggies. It’s much better than that packet from the store and easy to make!
You can also use the ranch dressing or seasoning blend in recipes like these:
- Creamy Bacon Ranch Chicken Casserole
- Buffalo Ranch Chicken Pizza
- Sheet Pan Roasted Sausage and Vegetables
- Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
Chili Seasoning
A simple chili seasoning should be a staple spice blend in your pantry. This mix will season a hearty batch of chili so you can fill your bowl and dig in!
Use it for Instant Pot chili, white chicken chili or even some Keto chili.
Jerk Seasoning
You can get that classic jamaican jerk flavor at home with this unique seasoning blend. It’s primarily used for chicken but it’s also great on a pork tenderloin or slow cooked pork shoulder.
Check out our popular slow cooker pulled pork recipe, you could easily substitute jerk seasoning for the blend used in that recipe to switch things up a bit.
Poultry Seasoning
Poultry seasoning is a great all around seasoning mix. Use it for seasoning a whole chicken for baking or grilling. Or, sprinkle some on those plain old chicken breasts or thighs to add a big hit of flavor.
With its mix of flavorful herbs, this seasoning is perfect for pork and turkey as well. It’s also delicious on white fish like cod, tilapia or halibut.
BBQ Seasoning
We love to grill year-round, and we have a whole category of healthy grilling recipes. This BBQ seasoning is our go-to basic blend for any kind of grilling. It’s perfect for rubbing on a thick steak before you sear it on the grill!
If you’re grilling, don’t forget your side dishes! Check out this potato salad with bacon, asian cucumber salad or watermelon salad for your next BBQ!
Italian Seasoning
A good Italian seasoning is something you can use year-round in a variety of recipes. Here are a handful of different recipe ideas for this seasoning:
- Creamy Bacon Mushroom Chicken Skillet
- Healthy Zuppa Toscana
- Spaghetti Squash Carbonara
- Instant Pot Italian Beef
Curry Seasoning
This seasoning adds a depth of flavor to recipes with a unique blend of spices like turmeric, coriander, cardamom and cloves. We use curry seasoning almost weekly to make these easy curry beef bowls. You could also try it out in this Thai coconut curry or curried butternut squash soup.
Southwest Seasoning
A versatile seasoning mix that can go on just about any meat, this blend is perfect for grilling, baking or searing in a pan. Use it for:
- Tex Mex burgers
- A southwest chicken casserole
- Seasoned french fries or tater tots
Cajun Seasoning
Spice things up a bit with this fun blend from down south! Use it for this easy slow cooker gumbo, a cajun shrimp salad or Instant Pot jambalaya. If this blend is too spicy (or not spicy enough), you can adjust cayenne pepper to your taste preferences.
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10 Easy DIY Spice Blends
Ingredients
Taco Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1.5 tsp paprika
- 1.5 tsp cumin
- 1.5 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
- 1/2 tsp cayenne, (adjust to taste)
Ranch Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp parsley
- 1 tbsp chives
- 1 tbsp dill weed
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp onion flakes
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
Chili Seasoning:
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp thyme
Jerk Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp allspice
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tbsp coconut sugar
- 2 tsp sage
- 2 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, (adjust to taste)
- 1 lime, juice of
Poultry Seasoning:
- 2 tbsp thyme
- 1 tbsp basil
- 1 tbsp sage
- 1 tsp tarragon
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
BBQ Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp sea salt
- 1 tbsp ground pepper
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp onion powder
Italian Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1 tbsp parsley
- 1 tbsp thyme
- 2 tsp basil
- 2 tsp sage
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp ground pepper
Curry Seasoning:
- 2 tbsp turmeric
- 1 tbsp coriander
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tsp ground mustard
- 1 tsp cardamom
- 1 tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, (adjust to taste)
Southwest Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp chipotle powder
Cajun Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp oregano
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, (adjust to taste)
Equipment
- Spice jars
Instructions
- Except for the Jerk Seasoning, to make each spice blend combine all ingredients together and mix. Store in an airtight container and mix again before using.
- For the Jerk Seasoning, combine all ingredients except lime juice together and mix. Store in an airtight container and mix again before using. Mix in the lime juice with the seasonings just before using.
Love this! Will do for Christmas gifts this year. Only question I have is how much ranch seasoning do I use to add to may/milk to make dressing? Or how much to sour cream to make dip?
I’d start with around 1 tbsp of seasoning per cup and adjust to suit your taste from there. Enjoy!
Good!
I want to make up enough to fill a 4 ounce jar to give as gifts. Do I triple the recipe (or more) They look fabulous!
Each of these will make about 2.5-3 oz so you’d just need to increase by 1.5. Or simply double the recipe and you should have a little left over for yourself :).
Las probaré. Me parecen geniales. Solo un par de preguntas Cuando dice sabio, es lo escrito en la traducción, se refiere a Salvia? Los condimentos, al solo nombrarlos, todos son en polvo o enteros
Mil gracias por compartir sus conocimientos
Sí, creo que la traducción a sabio debería significar salvia o salvia. Todos los condimentos deben secarse o pulverizarse.
Love these spice blends and use them regularly. I’m now looking for a variety of spice blends to flavour rice. Do you have anything like that you’re working on?
Glad you’re enjoying the blends. We don’t have anything currently in the pipeline for rice, but we’ll make note of it as a future recipe idea.
Where can you get those cute jars?
Here is the link to the jars.
Love these recipes! I use them all the time and have made a batch for a gift to a friend who, for health reasons, has to learn to cook more at home. Who ever said food had to be boring?!?!?!
The taco seasoning is delicious. When I make tacos, its the recipe I keep coming back to. Thanks!
We love to hear that so much. Thanks for coming back to let us know 🙂
Huge help!! Thank you very very much!!😊😊😊😊
tried the taco last night & it fooled hubby. Perfect!
Haha! We love that! 🙂
Instead of lime juice in the jerk seasoning, can I add dried lime peelings to the seasoning mix? I want to start experimenting with lime, lemon and orange salts.
Hi Heather – I don’t see why that wouldn’t work. Hopefully you enjoy the seasoning blend and your experiments turn out well 🙂
I have actually been using your spice mix recipes for years now! So easy, so much cheaper, they taste delightful and they’re good for us. Win-win!
Thanks Heather, I’m so glad to hear that you’ve used these for years 🙂
Excellent spice recipes, thank you!
You’re very welcome, we hope you enjoy them 🙂
Excellent way to figure out how to apply spice mixtures in the right amounts without carbs (sucrose, glucose, dextrose, and fructose) and without the seed oils.
Agreed! We hope you enjoy the mixes :).
I’ve made several of these blends and found them to be a delicious way to add great flavor to our foods. In fact, I am making the entire set of blends to give as gifts to family members this year. Stored in labeled glass containers, they are sure to be a hit!
So happy to hear that Sandra! What a great gift idea too :).
Just about to mix some up, look and aroma is fantastic. Cheers Graeme M. King’s Beach Qld Australia 👍
Hope you enjoy them!
I like to cook…But I’m REALLY Lacking on what Herbs & Seasonings to use ..on what… Unless it REALLY Simple ..like #Chili Powder!” Is there a good source or method for an INEXPERIENCED COOK LIKE ME?? I Would GREATLY Appreciate your help!!
Hi There! If you check out the details in the post above, we give examples of recipes and uses for the different seasonings :).
I am a culinary instructor in Wisconsin. I am looking for posting your spice combination chart into my classroom for my students. Is it possible you could provide me with directions as to how I can have access to your poster sized chart? Please and thank you in advance –
Hi Michael, if you right click the image on the web page you can download it to your computer. From there you should be able to print it out.
Thx for the10 Spice Blends! I enjoy mixing my spices up rather than going to the store for that one particular item. Regarding the lady commenting about Creole seasoning, Creole cooking is a lot less spicier than Cajun cooking. Both styles are great for me!
Can you mix the chili seasoning with sour cream to make a dip? Do others of these make good dips?
I’m sure mixing the chili seasoning like that would make a great dip :). We haven’t tried the this, but it would probably work well for the Ranch and Southwest seasonings too!
You could also try adding smoked paprika & ketchup together to make your dip it’s really good when I make onion soup dip with it
When the recipe says 1-1/2 tsp or tbsp, is that 1 and 1/2 or 1 to 1/2?
1-1/2 means one and 1/2 (1.5) tbsp.
Do you know approximately how long these blends will keep?
Thank you…..
Lori
If you store them in a cool, dry place in an airtight container they will last just as long as the underlying herbs used in the blends.
The chili blend of fab. I used it to make a big pot of chili beans by quadrupling the spice blend and added to 3 lbs of ground beef and two cans each red bean, pinto beans, black beans and petite diced tomatoes in juice. Salt and cayenne to taste. Simmer for about an hour. It will be my “go to” recipe from now on. Thanks!
You’re welcome, we’re so happy you enjoyed the recipe!
The Creole seasoning is so good on popcorn!
Do any of these spice blends get mixed with some type of liquid or are they a rub? Thanks!
They are intended to be a rub. However, you could mix them with some oil/vinegar/juice if desired to make a marinade. Also, check out our post for 5 easy homemade marinades.
HI there! I am always on the lookout for creative way to get use natural herbs. One of the problems I have is understanding which herbs can be combined to compliment flavors. I very much appreciate articles like this one! Thanks for sharing.
What’s a good way to make a bunch and store for future use? And then use it how would you measure it for a recipe?
That’s a good question. We’d just prepare the seasonings we’ll use for the upcoming week, and store them in an airtight container. We generally don’t make big batches but just enough for use in one recipe at a time to avoid the seasonings going bad.
You can store them in mason jars.
Are these gluten free?
Yes, every ingredient in each blend is just a spice or natural ingredient so they are all gluten free.
Not always true. Make sure that the company you buy your spices from doesn’t also make gluten products. If it does than you can have cross contamination. Spices themselves are gluten free. I only say this because we did have someone who had issues because the spice was in a Facillity that also made gluten products.
That makes sense. I think what we mean is that you get to control the spices you put into these blends based on whichever brands you use in your own home. So if you are diligent about the brands you purchase and are comfortable with their practices, you should be good! Thanks for sharing! That’s a great point to make.
Is chili powder the same as the chili seasonings recipe?
No, chili powder is a separate seasoning.
I will be trying these out on my kids this week!
Excellent! Hope you find some winners! Let us know what your kiddos enjoy! 🙂
I will be gifting these for christmas !! Thank you so much for the recipes 🙂
That is awesome! I hope the gift turns out great!
What is the difference between smoked paprika and regular?
Normal paprika is crushed dried chilies, smoked paprika uses chilies that are smoke-dried and then crushed. Smoked paprika has a noticeable smoky smell and flavor.
Looks like the taco seasoning mix is missing the units on pepper; 1/2 ground pepper
I assume 1/2 tsp ground pepper
But wanted to check. Thanks, great recipes!
Thanks for bringing this to my attention. Your assumption was correct, I’ve updated the recipe. Enjoy!
Is ground pepper the same as black pepper? Thanks.
Yes, it sure is! Thanks for double checking! 🙂
Not necessarily. Ground pepper means the peppercorns are put into a pepper mil and ground up. There are many different kinds of peppercorns, such as white, black, red etc. You can also crush peppercorns with a large knife, using the end near the handle and pressing it down on a few peppercorns on a board. This is more “cracked”pepper.
Red pepper (the berries) is not really pepper. It’s a different kind of plant, is not spicy and overall quite bland. It’s mainly used to pep up the look of a dish or pepper mix and adds practically no flavor. OTOH, white, green and black pepper are all the same thing processed differently.
Thanks for sharing!
I usually use a tri coloured mix of peppercorns white red and black. Love the multi flavors.
Yes. It is.