Weekly Assignment: B4-3- This is the last week of doing this for your 3-month food supply items! Next week you’ll start ‘B4-3’ with your nonfood items like hand soap, laundry soap, and toilet paper.
Why spend extra on pre-made seasoning packets when you likely already have all the ingredients? Save some money by making your own seasoning packets, or adding the spices directly to your meat.
Taco Seasoning
2 Tbsp. dried onion
1 tsp. oregano
1½ tsp. chili powder
½ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. cumin
½ tsp. salt
This is enough seasoning for 1 pound of ground beef or turkey, or a pound of freshly cooked pinto or black beans. Cook the meat until browned, add the seasonings and ½ c. water or 8 oz tomato sauce; simmer for a few minutes until it’s the consistency you like. Want to make your meat go further? Add any of these: 1 cup of cooked rice, a handful of quick-cooking oats and a bit of extra water (or 1/4 c to 1 c. leftover cooked plain oatmeal), a can of beans (drained), 1/2- 1 c. shredded vegetable like carrot or zucchini, 1-2 c. cooked cracked wheat.
The seasoning can be adjusted to your own tastes; if you like cumin, up to 1½ tsp. can be good. I’ve also seen people add crushed red pepper or cayenne pepper, black pepper, smoked paprika, and a couple tablespoons of brown sugar. What if you overdo the spices? See how to fix that, here.
Something to know about chili powder is that there are two general kinds-- the first is nothing but powdered chili peppers, with a huge range of heat, depending on the type of pepper used. (If it's a spicy one, 1 1/2 tsp. of this in your recipe will likely be too much!) The second kind of chili powder is a mixture of spices-- including powdered chili peppers- but also including things like cumin, oregano, garlic, salt, and more. Check the label of your spice bottle to see what yours is made of; if it has salt, you may need to reduce the separate amount of salt. If it doesn't have salt, you may want to add 3/4 tsp instead of 1/2 tsp.
Multi-batch Taco Seasoning (some for now, some for later)
½ c. dried onion
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp oregano
2 Tbsp. chili powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. salt (use 1 Tbsp if your chili powder doesn’t contain salt)
Stir together in a small bowl. You can keep the whole batch in a glass spice jar and use 3 Tbsp each time you cook 1 lb of burger for tacos, or store single-use quantities in snack-size ziptop bags. For single use size, divide into four roughly equal portions. Put each one in a small ziptop bag or other airtight container. Label, date, and store in the cupboard or freezer.
Store in a dark cupboard or in your freezer.
You can even add tomato powder (see here how to make it and how to use it in your recipes)
Use this mix in taco salad, soups (1 batch of seasoning for 1-2 quarts of liquid), salad dressings, dips, Mexican dishes, as a rub for meat, on kebabs, and of course for tacos. (Add 1 tsp seasoning mix to one drained can of beans.)
Want to make more home-seasoned basics?
Marinara sauce
BBQ sauce
Or maybe you're needing ways to use all the tomatoes your garden is producing:
https://theprovidenthomemaker.com/my-blog/category/tomatoes
Why spend extra on pre-made seasoning packets when you likely already have all the ingredients? Save some money by making your own seasoning packets, or adding the spices directly to your meat.
Taco Seasoning
2 Tbsp. dried onion
1 tsp. oregano
1½ tsp. chili powder
½ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. cumin
½ tsp. salt
This is enough seasoning for 1 pound of ground beef or turkey, or a pound of freshly cooked pinto or black beans. Cook the meat until browned, add the seasonings and ½ c. water or 8 oz tomato sauce; simmer for a few minutes until it’s the consistency you like. Want to make your meat go further? Add any of these: 1 cup of cooked rice, a handful of quick-cooking oats and a bit of extra water (or 1/4 c to 1 c. leftover cooked plain oatmeal), a can of beans (drained), 1/2- 1 c. shredded vegetable like carrot or zucchini, 1-2 c. cooked cracked wheat.
The seasoning can be adjusted to your own tastes; if you like cumin, up to 1½ tsp. can be good. I’ve also seen people add crushed red pepper or cayenne pepper, black pepper, smoked paprika, and a couple tablespoons of brown sugar. What if you overdo the spices? See how to fix that, here.
Something to know about chili powder is that there are two general kinds-- the first is nothing but powdered chili peppers, with a huge range of heat, depending on the type of pepper used. (If it's a spicy one, 1 1/2 tsp. of this in your recipe will likely be too much!) The second kind of chili powder is a mixture of spices-- including powdered chili peppers- but also including things like cumin, oregano, garlic, salt, and more. Check the label of your spice bottle to see what yours is made of; if it has salt, you may need to reduce the separate amount of salt. If it doesn't have salt, you may want to add 3/4 tsp instead of 1/2 tsp.
Multi-batch Taco Seasoning (some for now, some for later)
½ c. dried onion
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp oregano
2 Tbsp. chili powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. salt (use 1 Tbsp if your chili powder doesn’t contain salt)
Stir together in a small bowl. You can keep the whole batch in a glass spice jar and use 3 Tbsp each time you cook 1 lb of burger for tacos, or store single-use quantities in snack-size ziptop bags. For single use size, divide into four roughly equal portions. Put each one in a small ziptop bag or other airtight container. Label, date, and store in the cupboard or freezer.
Store in a dark cupboard or in your freezer.
You can even add tomato powder (see here how to make it and how to use it in your recipes)
Use this mix in taco salad, soups (1 batch of seasoning for 1-2 quarts of liquid), salad dressings, dips, Mexican dishes, as a rub for meat, on kebabs, and of course for tacos. (Add 1 tsp seasoning mix to one drained can of beans.)
Want to make more home-seasoned basics?
Marinara sauce
BBQ sauce
Or maybe you're needing ways to use all the tomatoes your garden is producing:
https://theprovidenthomemaker.com/my-blog/category/tomatoes
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