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Make this easy Homemade Taco Seasoning recipe in minutes with just a handful of common pantry spices. It’s cheaper and tastier than store-bought taco seasoning, and you can easily customize it any way you want to.
This easy homemade taco seasoning mix is just 5 ingredients plus salt, and the spices are pretty common and easy to find (hopefully in the back of your pantry). 2 tablespoons of this mix replaces one packet of taco seasoning from the store and is enough for one pound of ground meat of your choice.
My personal taco blend doesn’t contain garlic powder or onion powder because I like to add those ingredients fresh to individual recipes. I use fresh onions and garlic in my taco meat because I like the flavor better. DIY taco seasoning isn’t just about eliminating unnecessary sodium and preservatives from your recipes; it’s about making the best blend to truly elevate your food.
Having said that, any recipe is always a jumping-off point for negotiations. You should feel free to add garlic powder or onion powder to your own taco seasoning mixture, or anything else that sounds good to you. You are the executive chef of your own kitchen!
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Cayenne pepper: Feel free to eliminate this if you don’t like spice or are feeding children. Increase it if you crave the heat! Or substitute red pepper flakes.
- Cornstarch: This is a gluten-free thickening agent found in many store-bought packets. It’s optional here, so add it if you want to.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a small bowl with a whisk, or in a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine chili powder, cumin, paprika, coriander, cayenne pepper, and salt to taste (I like 2 teaspoons). Whisk in cornstarch if desired. Store in a cool dark place for up to 6 months.
- To make tacos, stir in 2 tablespoons of seasoning for every pound of ground beef or other ground meat. 2 tablespoons of seasoning is equivalent to one packet of store-bought.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes ½ cup taco seasoning (without salt or cornstarch). Assuming 2 tablespoons of seasoning per pound of meat, the full recipe as written is enough taco seasoning for 4 pounds of ground meat.
- Storage: Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place and use within 6 months. Double batches are fine if you make tacos regularly, but don’t mix up more than you’ll reasonably use in 6 months.
- Smoky: Substitute smoked paprika for the regular if you love that flavor. Chipotle chili powder can bring a similar smoky flavor and a pile of spicy heat with it, so tread carefully if you’re spice-wary.
- More spices: Add garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano, dried thyme, and black pepper if any of those sound good to you. Red chili flakes are great if you like heat.
- Ground Turkey Tacos: Ground turkey shows up where you least expect it, in the Best Turkey Tacos you’ve ever had. This recipe has a few tricks up its sleeve to make sure every bite is juicy and perfectly seasoned.
- Ground Chicken Tacos: These easy Ground Chicken Tacos are juicy, perfectly seasoned, and perfect for hectic weeknights. They are also lightning fast, ready in about 15 minutes.
- Taco Dip Recipe: If you have 10 minutes, you have plenty of time to classic Taco Dip, the best-ever layered Mexican dip that’s loaded with your favorite toppings and perfect for parties.
- Taco Roll Ups: Take taco dip on the road with my easy Taco Tortilla Roll Ups recipe. This make-ahead appetizer idea will have everyone coming back for seconds (and thirds).
- Taco Soup Recipe: Bring this easy, delicious Taco Soup Recipe to life with ground beef and pantry staples in just 30 minutes. It’s Midwest-meets-Tex-Mex in this fusion cult favorite.
- Dorito Taco Salad: Inspired by Midwestern-classic “walking tacos,” my crowd-pleasing Dorito Taco Salad is fully loaded with taco-seasoned beef, cheese, fresh vegetables, and nacho cheese chips.
- Stuffed Tomatoes: These taco-flavored Stuffed Tomatoes make a perfect, unfussy end-of-summer meal, when the nights are still hot and good tomatoes are plentiful. This easy low-carb recipe comes together in under half an hour, all in one skillet, using ground beef, zesty taco seasoning, and then loaded up with your favorite toppings like lettuce, shredded cheese, tomatoes, and sour cream.
Frequently Asked Questions
For this homemade blend, 2 tablespoons seasoning is equivalent to one packet of store-bought.
This blend has cornstarch as an optional ingredient to thicken your tacos. Arrow root is another gluten-free thickening agent. Standard all-purpose flour works to thicken taco meat, too.
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Homemade Taco Seasoning
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup chili powder
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (see note 1)
- salt
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch optional (see note 2)
Instructions
- In a small bowl with a whisk, or in a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine chili powder, cumin, paprika, coriander, cayenne pepper, and salt to taste (I like 2 teaspoons). Whisk in cornstarch if desired. Store in a cool dark place for up to 6 months.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Cayenne pepper: Feel free to eliminate this if you don’t like spice or are feeding children. Increase it if you crave the heat! Or substitute red pepper flakes.
- Cornstarch: This is a gluten-free thickening agent found in many store-bought packets. It’s optional here, so add it if you want to.
- Yield: This recipe makes ½ cup taco seasoning (without salt or cornstarch). Assuming 2 tablespoons of seasoning per pound of meat, the full recipe as written is enough taco seasoning for 4 pounds of ground meat.
- Storage: Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place and use within 6 months.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
I was hoping this would be share able. I try to keep my recipes in one (or two places)
Hi Janet, you should be able to pin this to Pinterest for later! Or you can generate a PDF and save it. Thank you! -Meggan
I have made most of your recipes all of my life, but never measured anything. I am so glad to finally have the correct measurements. Your recipes are delicious. Thank you so much for sharing.
You’re so welcome, Jean! I’m glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for trusting my recipes! – Meggan
Should i add water to the meat?
Hi Tabitha, nope! – Meggan
Make ahead. Perfect blend, healthier and fresher than purchased alternative
Thanks Rhonda, so glad you like it! – Meggan
I just love this recipe. Don’t buy the packets any longer.
On your chili powder question!! One day my wife was getting ready for company and realized that she had no chili powder in the house for her recipe, so she asked if I would go get her some. I went to my supply of whole chiles in the pantry and took equal weights of all my chiles and put them in the food processor till they were small flakes and gave the blend to her. She says it is much better than any chili powder she ever bought.
Here are the chiles I included; Chile de arbol, Jalapeño, Serrano, Cascabel, New Mexico, Chipotle, Pasilla, Ancho, y Japon.
This is my new go-to recipe for tacos; I make large batches, and freeze half to keep the seasonings tasting fresh.
Meggan: Thank you for your quick response. Your info to my question is very helpful. I will certainly look forward when you post your own chili powder recipe. Thank you again.
Darn,
I accidently unsubscribed!!!
Victoria, you are so sweet! Thank you so much! And yes I’ll get chili powder on the list… someone else asked about homemade adobo sauce so I’ll be doing that too. 🙂 Happy New Year and thanks again!
I have a family member that is highly allergic to garlic. U unfortunately, garlic is a hidden item in many things, i.e. it might be listed as “seasoning”, which in most cases it includes garlic. I have learned that garlic could be one of the hidden ingredient in chili powder. Would you know of any chili powder brand that is “garlic free”. OR is there a replacement for chili powder that can be used in your taco seasoning recipe? Thanks
Hi Victoria! I will definitely work on a homemade chili powder. I did a search in Google and a lot of the blends I found don’t actually contain any kind of dried chilis at all… they are basically just tasty spice blends. And they all contain garlic, but you could definitely leave that out if you were making it. I trust Alton Brown, so here is a link to his (just omit the garlic). http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/abs-chili-powder-recipe-1943055
If you want something with less exotic chilis, you could try this one (and again omit the garlic): http://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/homemade-chili-powder-22859
Good luck Victoria!
Can you use Himalayan pink salt instead of Kosher?
Hi Jess, sure! The only potential issue I see is if you grind the pink Himalayan sea salt more finely than kosher salt, but you use the same quantity, your seasoning might be too salty. So just keep an eye on that! Here is a handy conversion chart about salt by size in case you can match up your pink salt grind. http://www.mortonsalt.com/article/salt-conversion-chart/ Thanks!
Why cornstarch? To thicken?
Yes, to thicken! You can easily leave it out. I always leave it out if I’m doing any kind of paleo/whole30 diet, just traditional store-bought packets have a thickener and that’s what I was trying to mimic with this recipe. Thanks for your question!
I love this recipe! It’s the perfect amount of heat and flavor! I omitted the cornstarch in mine, but I’ll have to try that next time!