Homemade Taco Seasoning

Tacos are a house favorite in my house.  Tacos, seem to be a popular staple in many peoples menus.  It makes sense.  They are tasty.  Incredibly easy.  Pretty healthy…hey…I said pretty healthy, not completely healthy. And let’s not forget fun.  There are those times where I get a a craving for tacos, not just any kind of taco, but homemade tacos.  There’s nothing special about my homemade tacos, but they are different than the kind you get from the fast food joints.  Once I sink my teeth into that taco I begin to float on cloud 9.  What can I say?  I love them.      

Now cravings have a funny way of coming on and they don’t care if your pantry is stocked with all the necassary items to quench your craving or not.  And that’s just what happened to me when I got an unwavering craving for tacos.  Assuming I had everything on hand, I started browning the meat like normal.  When the time came to add the seasoning, there wasn’t a packet to be found.  After quickly “googling” taco seasoning I came across a plethora of taoc seasoning recipes.  I looked over the ingredient list, then checked my pantry and discovered I had everything I needed to make homemade taco seasoning.  After throwing the seasoning together, with very little effort, I quickly finished making my tacos and then quenched my craving!

This seasoning can be thrown together with little to no effort.  Every ingredient in this recipe is a staple in my pantry, and probably is in yours, as well.  I promise it tastes every bit as good as the seasoning in those little packets; and it’s preservative free! 
 
Homemade Taco Seasoning

Ingredients:

4 Tbsp chili powder
3 Tbsp plus 1 tsp paprika
3 Tbsp ground cumin
1 1/2 Tbsp onion powder
1 1/2 Tsp garlic powder
1/4 Tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tsp black pepper
1/2 Tsp sea salt

Directions:

In a medium bowl combine chili powder, paprika, ground cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, pepper and salt and stir to combine.  Store in an airtight container until ready to use. 

To prepare taco meat: use 2 heaping tablespoons of seasoning and 1 cup of water for 1 pound of ground meat.  Allow mixture to simmer until liquid is almost completely gone.

Recipe source:  slightly adapted from Use Real Butter, originally from Mex Recipes