Why buy a pre-made spice mix when you can make your own and tailor it to your own taste and skip the processed ingredients? I happen to be allergic to maltodextrin, which creeps its way into a lot of processed foods as a flavor enhancer, so I have to stay away from taco seasoning packets and other similar products anyway.

But don’t pity me, because this is way better in my opinion. I start with dried chili peppers and grind them in a spice grinder, then add cumin and garlic powder. You can vary up the types of chili peppers depending on what you can find locally. I used equal parts ancho, guajillo, and mulato in this mix. The mulato peppers have an earthier, slightly bitter flavor, so you might want to ease up on them if you want a brighter or sweeter flavor profile.

Use this to season taco meat or carnitas, or as a dry rub for grilling.

There are no exact measurements for this recipe, but you can use the following as a guideline:

3 ancho chili peppers
3 guajillo chili peppers
1-2 mulato or other chili peppers
~1/4 c. ground cumin
2 tbsp. garlic powder

Remove the stems from the peppers and break up into rough pieces. Grind one at a time in a spice grinder, seeds and all. (This is basically the same as a coffee grinder, but I wouldn’t recommend grinding coffee in this afterward.)

Add the cumin and garlic powder and stir to combine. Taste and adjust any spices as desired.

Store in a glass jar.