On Wednesdays, my teenager, Elizabeth, make dinner.

It’s the day I run errands and take the younger kids to music lessons.

This is a great opportunity for kids to be responsible and learn valuable home economics skills.

This week, Katie helped and Liz took pictures of the process.

One of our favorite family meals is homemade tacos.

Name: Taco Seasoning
Total time: 5 min
Yield: 4-6 servings
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 2-3 T chili powder; 2-3 T garlic powder; 2 T onion powder; 1-2 t pepper flakes ((optional)); 2 T dried oregano; 2 T paprika; 2-3 T cumin; 1 T kosher salt; 1 T black pepper

Whenever we ask the kids what they want for dinner, their go-to is TACOS.

We make our own taco spice mix.

I made the spice mix so pretty, layered in a jar. It looks like sand art!

It’s much cheaper and healthier to make our own homemade taco seasoning.

Tacos are easy and quick to make and it’s a great frugal meal for a large family.

The girls browned two pounds of ground sirloin in a large pot.

Sirloin doesn’t have as much fat, so there’s nothing to drain.

You could also use a mix of ground beef and pork, or ground chicken or turkey – whatever you prefer.

About three tablespoons of taco spice mix for 2 lbs of meat.

Two cups of water and stir well. Eventually the water evaporates and leaves it just a bit saucy. After it’s mixed together, put a lid on top and let it simmer on low heat.

Katie enjoyed stirring in the spices.

Tacos are best with refried beans, cheese, and salsa – to make them even more delicious.

Alex and Tori like soft tacos.

Katie and I like taco salads. Liz likes crunchy tacos.

Why do we make our own taco seasoning?

It’s healthier and more frugal.

Spice mix envelope from the store:

Cuminum cyminum, Capsicum annuum,Origanum vulgare, Allium cepa, amalgam of globular proteins, glucose monomer of solanum tuberosum, citric acid, and sucrose.
In non-scientific jargon, it has chili pepper, cumin, paprika, oregano, onion, whey, salt, sugar, garlic, potato starch, and citric acid.
Cost per ounce = 58 cents.
I don’t need milk, sugar, potato, or preservatives in taco seasoning. And I like to know exactly what we’re ingesting. I like control.

My ingredients:

Chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder or flakes, crushed red pepper flakes, dried oregano, paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper.
Cost per ounce = 27.5 cents!
The homemade taco seasoning costs half what the pre-made envelope costs.

And the best thing about this is you can adapt it to your family’s tastes. Substitute smoked paprika or Mexican oregano for a different twist. If you like it milder, omit the red pepper flakes…if you like it with a capsaicin rush, double the pepper flakes.

It’s a versatile spice mix recipe. Customize it to your family’s tastes!

Taco Seasoning

Mix together ingredients in a jar or airtight container. Use 2-3 tablespoons for ground beef tacos or in all your favorite Mexican recipes! We like to keep a jar of this in our cabinet at all times. I really love lots of chili, garlic, and cumin. Feel free to add as much or as little as you like to create your family's special blend. It's a great spice blend for tacos, soups, slow cooker meals...lots of family favorites!

Course

Main Dish

Cuisine

Mexican

Prep Time

5 min

Servings

servings

Ingredients

Course

Main Dish

Cuisine

Mexican

Prep Time

5 min

Servings

servings

Ingredients

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Check out the other participants in the Kids in the Kitchen monthly blog hop!

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Comments

Vicky says

March 22, 2016 at 7:22 pm

We always buy our taco seasoning, but this recipe looks too easy.

JES says

March 23, 2016 at 10:50 am

Thank you for sharing your recipe with us. We love controlling our ingredients too. I am visiting from Coffee and Conversation. Have a lovely week!

Pili says

March 24, 2016 at 1:44 am

That sounds delicious Jennifer!! I also prefer homemade food without preservatives, sugar and lots of salt. Not only it is more budget friendly but way healthier. Pinning to try! I think this would be great on a lettuce wrap!
Thanks for sharing with us at #2usestuesday, enjoy the rest of the week!

Erin says

March 24, 2016 at 5:41 am

I wish my kids liked tacos!! No matter, the husband and I will love trying this taco seasoning.

Ali says

March 24, 2016 at 7:12 pm

I was just thinking about how to make this! Perfect timing. Thanks!

Maria says

March 24, 2016 at 7:36 pm

Taco seasoning is such a versatile ingredient, but it can get pricey. Mixing our own blend of spices not only saves more money, but it also allows us to customize the spice according to taste. Such a clever idea, Jennifer. Thanks for sharing it with us on #shinebloghop :)

Sherry says

March 28, 2016 at 2:49 am

We love tacos! I’m going to try your recipe. Thank so much for sharing with us at Funtastic Friday.

Haley Bradley says

March 28, 2016 at 10:51 pm

This taco seasoning looks amazing… I have picked you to be featured on Laugh & Learn Linkup tomorrow.
Thanks,
Haley
http://haleysvintage.com

Lori says

March 29, 2016 at 5:05 am

I make my own taco seasoning. I can’t remember what brand has MSG, but one of the national brands has it in there. MSG and Sodium are the two reasons why I started making most of our seasonings. I love knowing mine is healthier and it cost a lot less to make also. Thanks for sharing with Thankful Thursdays.

Cristina Mandeville says

March 29, 2016 at 10:36 pm

Love it!! Thank you so much for sharing this over at Healthy Living Link Party, I do appreciate it and I hope to see you again!

PS: I am featuring you for tomorrow’s party!

Lindsay says

March 30, 2016 at 10:46 pm

Thanks for sharing this! I’ve always wanted to make instead of buy taco seasoning! thanks so much for sharing at funtastic friday! pinned & shared!

Marla says

April 3, 2016 at 5:50 pm

Hi Jennifer,
What a great idea! Keeping the ingredients in a jar ready for use. I can sure agree with you that it is much cheaper and definitely healthier. If you take a look a the store bought version – filled with chemicals and additives. Thanks for sharing on Real Food Fridays. Pinned & tweeted!

swathi says

April 5, 2016 at 5:09 am

Homemade taco seasoning, always best, last month I made a batch,your taco seasoning is very nice. thanks sharing with Hearth and soul blog hop, pinning, tweeting. featuring on this week’s hop.

Frugal Hausfrau says

April 5, 2016 at 5:35 pm

Those little packets are such rip offs, aren’t they! I love your taco seasoning and it sure looks like everyoine was having fun! Thanks for linking up to us on Throwback Thursday!

Mollie

Gaye @CalmHealthySexy says

April 7, 2016 at 2:21 pm

Hi Jennifer – Thanks so much for sharing this recipe with the Let’s Get Real party.

emma says

April 7, 2016 at 9:16 pm

This looks great. I often make fajitas but generally just throw some spices in and hope for the best! So it’s good to have an actual recipe and perfect for the storecupboard. Thanks for linking with #freefromfridays

Shelley says

April 30, 2016 at 8:53 pm

This looks great! The store-bought seasoning comes in a package that can’t be recycled, so this is a perfect substitute as I’m trying to decrease the amount of landfill trash my family produces. We eat a lot of tacos, so I’m glad to find this recipe : )

Homemade Taco Seasoning – Kids in the Kitchen