Quick homemade taco seasoning loaded with chili powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, and oregano. This perfectly balanced taco seasoning mix makes the BEST seasoning for tacos, burritos, chicken, and much more!
Taco Tuesdays just got a whole lot better! Homemade taco seasoning is a MUST in my pantry. I used to go through packs of taco seasoning every week but why use the packaged stuff when you can make your own? Don’t get me wrong, store-bought taco packets are very convenient and taste so good but are loaded with a whole bunch of fillers and ingredients we can’t even pronounce.
This quick DIY homemade version tastes even better and will save you a lot of time and money. You can mix a big batch and store it in a large mason jar or just mix a 2 tablespoon version to make the equivalent of one taco mix packet.
Homemade DIY Taco Seasoning: What you will Need
- 4 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 tablespoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried onion
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional)
Add all the spices to a mason jar. Cover tightly and shake! Enjoy on chicken, shrimp, or beef!
Tip: 2 tablespoons of taco seasoning is equivalent to 1 packet of store-bought taco seasoning.
The BEST Homemade Taco Seasoning
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 tablespoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon minced onion (dried), optional
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon corn starch, optional
Instructions
- Add all the spices to a mason jar or large zip-seal bag. Close and shake until fully combined.
Notes
The recipe is awesome if u do a tablespoon of salt you’ll definitely want sour cream, i cooked the meat in the seasoning then drained added water and a little more seasoning mostly for color I did less meat on the taco more veggies. My family loved them…will be making my own seasoning from now on
I love this recipe! I use it to make my own vegan ground beef substitute by combining with drained tofu, crumbled, and drying it in my air fryer. I’m saving a ton of money vs buying meat substitute and even my carnivore friends have loved chili and burritos and thought it was meat!
This is the best! Just what I want for my tacos!!
Confused. 2 Tbls equivalent to 1 taco packet but says one serving. Taco package says 6 servings or 12 tacos
You only need 2 T of the mixture plus 1/4 – 1/2 c of water.
Wish I had read the comments beforehand, already put in too much salt 🙄
Yes, ONE Teaspoon of salt for this recipe!
Someone needs to update this recipe so people don’t get sick.
The salt is for the entire batch of taco seasoning which makes the equivalent of about 4 packs of taco seasoning.
Loved this recipe & salt was good for us. I doubled all the ingredients & ended up doubling the amount I used in my ground beef, I also added 1/2 tsp of cayenne for a little more spice. I’m making my own taco seasoning from now on!
Thanks for the feedback!
Excellent taco seasoning recipe! I didn’t have paprika on hand but had cayenne so substituted that and used less salt! Nice to have a batch ready for next time! (I made chicken tacos and added roasted corn and salsa to the gr chicken!) I’m glad I didn’t have the seasoning packet! (I thought I bought the kit!?)
I didn’t have cumin so I substituted it wit h curry
How much water do you add for 2 table spoons of seasoning
1/4 cup should be enough but it would ultimately depend on the recipe you’re making.
Wish I had seen your post before I just made mine! Yikes – gonna need a lot of sour cream!
How long will this keep for? Thanks
Delicious! I used lite salt and felt it was still a little salty, so I’m going to use less next time. We don’t use that much salt in our cooking. Browned and drained the meat, added spices and 1/4 cup of water. Cooked on low for about eight minutes and it was perfect.
Tastes a lot better than pre-packaged seasoning. Loved it!
Is this really spicy? Mild?
It’s mild but a little on the spicy side.
Great recipe. Made a few changes. Less salt and added some turmeric. Family loved the tacos on Taco Tuesday.
This is very good and it taste better than the store bought mix. Thank you for posting this recipe.
How long does this last?
i was so amazed with this seasoning
a coworker gave me a taco 1 day at work i was amazed at how great it was
when asking him what seasoning packet he used, he said him and his wife made it homemade
gave me the recipe
i will never buy packets again
so much flavor
i myself did not use the cornstarch as it said its optional
I have many kinds of chili seasoning-what’s your favorite to use for taco meat? Dark, ancho, chipotle? Others?
I personally always go for ancho, or with a blend of ancho, serrano and poblano, as I feel chipotle has so much of its own flavor. If that’s what your into for the dish your making, then absolutely go for it! But ancho or ancho/poblano mix makes a great taco seasoning.
Just my 2 cents!
I added freshly ground coriander seeds x 2 table spoons and instead of chilli powder I added 6 freshly ground dried peppers as well as a pinch of brown sugar. It makes for a sweeter and spicier seasoning
Are used a mixture of ancho and Chipotle chili powder’s and this was a great seasoning mix
Do you use water
Absolutely amazing
two TBSP equals 1 packet. Do you also add water? if so how much? love your site bye the way! Thank you
Thanks so much, Floria! Yes, 1 packet of taco seasoning is about 2 tablespoons. Do you mean add water to the dish? I guess that would depend on the dish you’re making. For ground beef, I add 1/4 cup for every pound of beef.
Could you Substitute onion powder for dried onion and if so how much do you think I could use
Yes, feel free to go ahead and substitute using a 1:1 ratio.
Justctrid this recipe using the 1 tsp salt. It was perfect. We made taco pizzas the the meat. VERY TASTY!
This is the best taco seasoning recipe that I’ve ever used. I will be using this all the TIME now.
How much seasoning w shrimp?
Do i add water to seasoning w beef?
The seasoning would depend on the recipe you’re making and the volume of the shrimp. Yes, I would add 1/4 cup of water to a pound of beef.
WE HAVE MADE THIS WE ARE RUNNING LOW SO OFF TO SAM’S CLUB!!! THANK YOU IT REALLY IS AWESOME!!!
Better than the store bought stuff and so easy to make. It’s excellent
Way too much salt!!!!
This is a complete seasoning mix so no extra salt needed.
You are only to use 2 T of the mixture plus 1/4 – 1/2 c water for 1 lb of hamburger.
I’ve been looking for a good home made taco seasoning for years. i don’t exactly love most of the store bought packets except for Chi Chi’s here in Mn. This mix is what I’ve been looking for and my family loves it!. Instead of 2 Tbls chili powder, i use 1.5 tbls chili powder and .5 tbls chipotle chili powder. I also add 2 cubes of cilantro bullion powder and cut the salt in half. I also add a tsp celery seed. It really is fantastic!
thank you
The first time i made this, i used it in everything from black beans to tortilla soup! I came back to print the recipe out so i have it handy. best seasoning i have found!
I know this might be frowned upon, but I add a bit of tomato puree to it while it’s reducing down. Test tonight on the recipe as some idiot (Me) grabbed a store fajita seasoning not taco mix. Let’s see if girlfriend can tell.
My family and I truly enjoyed this. Easy to Makeand I had all the ingredients. This tasted better than store-bought. I am making more!! Thank you!
Yass! So much better than store-bought! Enjoy 🙂
What does the cornstarch do? I know it says it is options, but would you recommend that it’s better with it rather than without?
It’s mostly used as a filler by companies but I find it helps the meat develop a crust and helps the spices stick to the meat. You can do without or without it in terms of flavor though!
WhaT PUrpose does the corn starch serve in this recipe?
The corn starch makes the crust light and crispy. It’s optional but highly recommend!
This is a great basic recipe. This time i used 2 Tbls of chipotle
Chili powder in place of plain chili powder. I used 3 tbls of the seasoning mix, 1 poUnd ground turkey, 1/2 Onion, 1/2 red bell pepper, and 1/2 cup water to make taco Filing.
Discovered this recipe a few months back. it is now the only taco seasoning this family uses; we LOVE IT!! tacos, burritos, nachos, the whole enchilada!! Thank you for this recipe. it is a game changer. no more prepackaged store bought envelopes!
I used this for the first time tonight and my husband said to never use anything else. The flavor was amazing.
I used this taco SEASONING in a chili taco soup and It was wonderful. I used ITALIAN seasoning instead of OREGANO, and I used a little bit of seasoned slat for salt. I OMITTED the minced onion and the cornstarch. It was much better then the STORE BROUGHT stuff.
just made this its amazing
This Looks wonderful but how do you use it?
I use two tablespoons of the seasoning mix in a pound of browned ground chuck. Add about a half cup of water. Simmer until slightly thickened (that’s the reason for the corn starch). To make soft tacos, I put a couple tablespoons of seasoned meat in a soft tortilla, fold it over, and place on a cookie sheet sprayed with Pam. Put in a 350-degree preheated oven for 20 minutes. Yummy!
Homemake taco seasoning iN last longer can be us???
For about 6 months in an air tight container stored with your other spices.
This is a great recipe! I use onoin po instead of drIed onions i omit the orEgano and Use white pepper insted of black pepper! Yummy
so good!