Making your own spice mixes for home or to give as gifts is a great way to save money. When you do, you’re also tooling up to add great flavor to your cooking with little work or expense.
Homemade Taco Seasoning Mix jazzes up taco night while a jar of Jamie’s Spice Mix makes for easy pizzas. Forget what you’ve heard before about secret sauce, the secret is in the spice mix!
When you open my spice cupboard, you’ll find rows of little bottles of herbs and spices and bulk containers of herbs and spices, but you’ll also find mason jars of homemade spice mixes. These homemade blends are the first things I reach for when making dinner.
Why? Not only do I save money by avoiding commercial blends, but I also control what ingredients go in them. No weird fillers or anti-caking agents, thanks.
It’s become such a habit with me to use these spice mixes, that I rarely have to get out measuring spoons these days. I just sprinkle what I need onto meats, dressings, sauces, you name it.
From tacos to chili to salad dressings, dinner comes together so quickly when there’s a spice mix for that!
Why Do This
You’ll save money and avoid waste. Commercial spice blends can be pretty steep. When you mix your own, you save money and can mix just enough so you’re not stuck with a lot of jars you need to use up.
You add flavor. As homemade sauces can bring excellent flavor to simple dishes, so can homemade spice mixes! Choose one today and mix up a batch to run through its paces this week. I promise it will make your meals easier!
Spice blends make great gifts! Mixing up a few standard blends is quick, easy on the wallet, and makes a great gift for friends.
What You’ll Need
To make spice mixes to use at home or spice gifts to give to friends and family, you’ll need a variety of dried herbs and spices.
- Be sure to scroll down for recipes for some great spice mixes to make.
- To save money, buy your herbs and spices in bulk, either loose from canisters at the health food store or in larger tubs from warehouse stores or restaurant supply shops.
- Collect empty spice jars to repurpose or purchase new ones to fill. I love these spice jars shaped like Ball mason jars.
- You may also want to buy labels and baker’s twine or ribbon to decorate the jars.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s the basic process to make spice mixes at home or spice gifts to give:
- Combine the herbs and spices for your recipe in a bowl and stir well to combine.
- Transfer the spice mixes to the empty jars. Secure the lid, adhere and label, and decorate with twine if desired.
Store the spice mixes in a cool dry place until ready to gift. Be sure to make a set for yourself to keep and use in the kitchen.
Recommended Recipes
How to Make Spice Mixes to Give as Gifts
Equipment
- label
- baker's twine
Ingredients
- ingredients for your favorite spice mixes
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine all of the ingredients.
- Transfer the mixture to a small spice jar and seal the lid.
- Decorate with twine and a label if desired. Store in a cool dry place.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published on May 2, 2016. It has been updated for content and clarity.
Jude
Great to have such a variety of flavours – thanks, Jessica!
sarah
Fabulous post! We’ve used the Jamie’s Spice Mix and like it a lot on chicken and pork (haven’t tried it on anything else yet). Thanks for the great ideas and motivation to mix some of these up.