Gluten Free Taco Seasoning
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Making your own gluten free taco seasoning at home is as easy as combining a few staple spices you likely already have in your pantry. Ditch the packets and have your own on hand at all times!
Between cake and cookies and brownies and sprinkles, I do eat regular food. In fact, I am a savory girl all the way and cannot be trusted with a plate of nachos, chips and dip, cheddar popcorn, or cheese and crackers.
Many years ago, I brought my taco seasoning recipe to the blog in preparation for sharing one of my favorite meals– baked taco casserole.
Since then, this super simple, super tasty, customizable gluten free taco seasoning recipe has been gracing many of your meals and I’ve heard from many of you who swear by the homemade stuff now and will never buy a pre-made packet again.
You all are my people.
Let me be clear, this is one of those “recipes” that is barely a “recipe” and more just a guide to throwing some things together to make something you can have at home so you don’t have to add it to your grocery list anymore. How do we like the sound of that?
DOES TACO SEASONING HAVE GLUTEN?
So this is a great question. Not all brands have gluten, but many do. Other common ingredients are oils, anti-caking agents, sugar, and other preservatives.
And yes, even sometimes milk products (so this “recipe” can also be classified as dairy free taco seasoning).
Pre-made food can be really great, but it can often be a place for “sneaky ingredients” that would surprise you.
There are absolutely gluten free taco seasoning brands, but making your own and keeping it in a cool dry place in your spice cabinet is so handy for so many reasons.
And my favorite part about this stuff is that I can use it on a meal-to-meal basis.
We are big on making a lots of meat at the beginning of the week and having it on hand for salads, to put in a wrap, to eat with eggs/rice/veggies, and we frequently season the meat with just salt and pepper and we flavor the meat with spices as we see fit for our tastes that day.
That’s where this homemade taco seasoning comes in super handy!
Not only can you use this seasoning like you would a typical taco seasoning packet when you’re browning a large skillet of meat for taco night, but you can also use it on a much smaller scale.
When I was still working outside of the home, I liked to make a big salad with all sorts of veggies, cheese, and salsa. I’d bring along a small container of meat sprinkled with 2-3 teaspoons of homemade taco seasoning and a little water to help soak it all into the meat.
Chicken, beef, turkey– you name it– it can be seasoned with a little sprinkle of the homemade stuff. Heat that up, toss it onto your salad, and in no time, you’ve got yourself a taco salad!
Crushed tortilla chips (or even better– DORITOS) optional, but of course, highly recommended!
To make this homemade taco seasoning, you need a few key spices:
chili powder
ground cumin
sea salt
black pepper
garlic powder
onion powder
paprika
red pepper flakes
dried oregano
That’s it.
And of course, you can (and should!) adjust the seasoning amounts to fit your tastes (side note: this is not too spicy at all, so if you really like heat, turn up the volume on the red pepper flakes).
Then you brown your meat, add the seasoning, a little water, and allow it to simmer on low for a few minutes. Tadaaaaa!
Use this taco seasoning substitution whenever you make tacos next, or use it in my beloved baked taco casserole. No matter how you choose to use it, I think you’ll be impressed enough to keep your own stash available at all times.
So there you go, friend… Get to browning your favorite taco meat! Because tacos (or something like it, like taco zucchini boats!) is what’s for dinner tonight.
Gluten Free Taco Seasoning
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons chili powder
- 4 and ½ teaspoons ground cumin
- 3 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 and ½ teaspoons freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 and ½ teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 and ½ teaspoons onion powder
- 1 and ½ teaspoons paprika I prefer smoked
- ¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¾ teaspoon dried oregano
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Pour into jar or container with a lid and store in a cool, dry place.
- To use: brown and drain or cook your meat of choice. Use 3 Tablespoons seasoning and ⅓ cup water per pound of cooked meat. Add seasoning and water to cooked meat, stir to coat meat evenly, and simmer approximately 5 minutes. You may also sprinkle 2-3 teaspoons of mix over a single portion of meat (like for a salad) with about 1 Tablespoon of water. Stir to combine before using.
Notes
Nutrition Disclosure
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
Add a side of jalapeno cream cheese dip with your tacos!
Homemade Taco Seasoning is the ONLY way to go! I’ve been making it for years, too, as so many pre-made packages have mystery ingredients that are most likely glutenous. LOVING that you shared this. Why did I never think of that? D’oh!
RIGHT?! And like… Oil?! Why??? I figured my GF friends probably had issues with the packaged stuff. Glad you’re already on the homemade train!
Now I seriously need to make our own taco seasoning! My mom makes a lot of Mexican food, and we always buy it. Yay now I’m so excited!
Oh yes, absolutely! And I think your mom would love HAVING her own!
Lynn I am so excited about this recipe! We just made tacos the other night from the box and the meat seasoning was SO bland! I was like what is this?! I thought then and there that I would find a recipe to make it from scratch and here you are! Look forward to trying this soon!
That is such a bummer! Homemade is definitely the way to go– you’ll love this, Jess!
I’ve been making more tacos recently. Having this taco seasoning on hand will make dinner prep easier. Can’t wait to try!
Yes, so much easier!
Is this spicy? I can do a little kick but I can not handle anything really spicy.
It’s a very mild spice! You can back off on the chili powder if you’d like.
Perfect blend! We have a jar on hand at all times now. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome, Jane!
I’m so glad I found this recipe!! I like it so much better than the packet and I’m going to make your zucchini boats next!
Awesome, Monica! Enjoy!