It’s easy to make your own 100% natural Taco Seasoning from chili powder, cumin, paprika and a few other common pantry spices. Dodge the packet from the store and perfectly balance every smoky, savory, mild or spicy nuance of flavor! 

This traditional, DIY blend of spices goes perfectly with many of our Mexican Recipes including chicken or beef Fajitas, Taquitos, and Shrimp Tacos. Make a big batch and use as a dry rub for meats, or to pep up savory dishes such as casseroles or chili!

A spice container with homemade taco seasoning lifted out by a spoon.

Taco Tuesday has become an American tradition and our household is no different. Our kids crunch through the hard-shell variety while my husband and I do Taco Salads topped with black beans, sliced olives and avocados. Switching from stale, filler-stuffed packets to the vibrant flavors of quality fresh spices means none of us can wait for Tuesday!

Ingredients in Taco Seasoning:

  • Chili powder: Itself a blend of spices.
  • Cumin: This lends that “Mexican” flavor that truly distinguishes taco seasoning.
  • Oregano: Fresher, cheaper and in more bulk in the Latin foods aisle. 
  • Paprika: Try smoked to add depth of flavor.
  • Cayenne: Just a pinch to add heat. Proceed with caution, a lot goes a long way!
  • Pepper: Fresh ground makes a big difference in flavor.
  • Garlic powder 
  • Onion powder 
  • Salt
The ingredients needed to make taco seasoning measured onto a board and labeled.
Ingredients in taco seasoning.

How to Make Taco Seasoning:

Combine the above ingredients well and voila! You’re done. Use 2 Tablespoons to equal a taco seasoning packet, or use the amounts in the notes section of the recipe card below if you only want to make the equivalent of one packet.

Two process photos for measuring and stirring taco seasoning together in a bowl.

To store Taco Seasoning:

Use immediately or store in an airtight container in your spice cupboard and use as needed. For maximum freshness use within six months.

If you enjoy Mexican cuisine, you may also fall in love with our Central and South American dishes!

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Recipe

A spice container with homemade taco seasoning lifted out by a spoon.
Prep 5 minutes
Total 5 minutes
Save Recipe

Ingredients
  

Instructions
 

  • Mix all spices together until well combined.
  • Use immediately or store in an airtight container in your spice cupboard and use as needed. Use 2 tablespoons in place of one "packet" of taco seasoning, or to season 1 pound of meat.
    A spice container with homemade taco seasoning lifted out by a spoon.

Notes

Yields about ½ cup taco seasoning. Serving size is 2 Tablespoons.
Store in an airtight container in your spice cupboard and use as needed. For maximum freshness use within six months.
Packet Taco Seasoning replacement: if you only want to make enough taco seasoning to replace 1 packet, use the following amounts:
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ¼ teaspoon onion powder
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper

Nutrition

Calories: 64kcalCarbohydrates: 11gProtein: 3gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 2575mgPotassium: 387mgFiber: 6gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 4967IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 89mgIron: 5mg

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HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?!

RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.

Photography by Nikole from The Travel Palate.

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About The Author

Lauren Allen

Welcome! I’m Lauren, a mom of four and lover of good food. Here you’ll find easy recipes and weeknight meal ideas made with real ingredients, with step-by-step photos and videos.

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    This might be just me but I find the flavor of cumin overwhelming so I use a much smaller amount and increase as necessary.

  2. 5 stars
    I used this recipe. Very helpful.
    I wanted to make tacos and realized I didn’t have any of the taco seasoning from the box.
    I found this and can say it tasted great!
    My boyfriend even said he noticed the tacos tasting 1000% better with this seasoning.
    Thanks.

  3. 5 stars
    I’ve made your recipe previously to go with your sheet pan chicken fajitas. It is now the only fajita/taco seasoning I use. It tastes so much better than the envelope kind, and I always have the ingredients on hand to make it. I like that I can control the salt in it to my liking. I’ve also added chipotle seasoning to add even more heat.

  4. 5 stars
    Very tasty and easy to make. Doesn’t have all the “extra” ingredients like preservatives etc.

  5. 4 stars
    Normally I’ll freehand season while cooking. but today I decided to try a recipe. I came across this website, and decided to go with these ingredients. I cut back the salt by only adding 2 1/2 tsp due to high BP. It was still the PERFECT blend of seasoning!! we loved it!!

    1. You can cut back the spicy part just like you can buy mild, medium, and spicy/hot packets. It’s about taste.

  6. 5 stars
    I have always bought the taco seasoning packets because they’re cheap and I like the flavor, but with COVID, they are hard to come by. I thought I would try this recipe and, I must admit, I don’t think I’ll ever go back to the packets. This was so easy and I LOVED the flavor! Plus…I love that it makes enough for several uses.