How to make your own Seasonings

Here are some simple seasoning mixes we use on a daily basis and which are easy to make up at home to replace the store bought variety. Mix all the spices together and store in sealed preserving jar. They also make great gifts in small airtight canning jars with a description of contents and date made and gift wrapped in a basket.

Base Seasoning Mix

• 1 Tablespoon Chili powder
• 2 teaspoon Onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt

The above can also be used as Taco Seasoning :

Home made Sloppy Joe Seasoning

• To the base mix add 2 teaspoon dry mustard

Home Made Fajita or Burrito Seasoning

• Add 1 teaspoon cumin to base mix

Home made Chili Seasoning

• Substitute 4 Tablespoons chili powder (or to taste)
• Add 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• 2 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon basil and
• Pepper to taste

It's fun to make up your own seasonings, sauces and dressing. Pick out your favourites (at the store), check the ingredients and experiment making your own with home dried spices, etc.  Happy discoveries!

Notes & References

• Always buy dried herbs and spices with no additives, such as colour, flavour or sulphites, and always buy onion or garlic "powder" and not "salt"
• MSG - Hydrolyzed (food enhancer) = Monosodium Glutamate
• Maltodextrin : is a sweetener derived from wheat, corn or potatoes and is widely used in canned foods
• Silicon Dioxide Quote Silicon dioxide is an additive they put into various foods to prevent clumping or caking. It has the ability to absorb almost 120% of its weight and stay free flowing. Silicon dioxide is used in such things as flour, salt, powdered foods (soups, coffee creamers, etc) and some chips
• In the past we had used “Emeril's Essence” for general seasoning and flavouring.
• We grow parsley, thyme, rosemary, sage, mints, lemon balm, chives, basil, horseradish, oregano and onions in small quantities in our garden.  Drying your own is always an option (with our northern winters) but there is no substitute for fresh!

Not so healthy Ingredients in Processed Seasonings

Here's a list of ingredients from some of the packet seasonings thrown out last year ~

Taco Seasoning  - Ingredients

(in no particular order from two manufacturers)

Dextrose, sugar, spices, salt, corn flour or starch, onion powder or dehydrated onion, garlic powder or dehydrated garlic, citric acid,canola oil, silicon dioxide, maltodextrin, caramel colour (contains sulphites), paprika, sunflower oil, calcium silicate. One mix had a Sodium Content per 33 gram serving of 2360 mg.

Burrito Seasoning Mix  - Ingredients

Maltodextrin, modified corn start, salt, pinto bean powder, chili and cayenne pepper, onion and garlic poweder, spice, hydrogenated soybean oil, modified tapioca starch, silicon dioxide

Sloppy Joe - Ingredients 

Dehydrated vegetables (onion, garlic, red and green bell peppers) cornstarch, salt, sugar, spice (including red pepper, wheat flour,hydrolyzed wheat protein, yeast extract, hydrogenated soybean and cottonseed oil.  And finally,

Words to watch for

Some of the label words which should be a “warning” sign are : hydrogenated, hydrolyzed, sulphites, yeast extract, etc. These items are included in the article on MSG .   As mentioned these are key words and “hydrolyzed” is really just another word for MSG and there is no way of knowing what percentage of the product is MSG. Basically most of the packages of processed sauces, seasonings, soups and gravies all have MSG in one form or another.  Notice also that sugar and salt are at the top of the ingredients list - the closer to the beginning of ingredients list, the greater the quantity in the product.