With the holiday season upon us, we dedided to give you a gift.  We know right now your mind is focused on ham, turkey, roast, lamb or some other holiday delight, but soon you will want to return some standards like good old fashioned chili or tacos.  We have noticed a lot of questions on the internet about how to make chili and taco seasonings from scratch with very few good answers.  Some say it is mostly Cayene pepper, nope.  Others suggest spices hotter than most can handle.  Now I like spicy, but for the rest of the family I need to tame it down to a normal level.  And for you that is just what we are going to do provide a normal level of heat.

An interesting note.  Those that can stand more heat from spices have less taste buds and are less sensitive to variations in taste.  If you cannot stand the heat, you may have a more delicate palette, that is you are more discerning in taste sensations.  You may perceive the chocolate notes in a wine while your spice loving counter part can’t find it.  Too spicy a food can actually numb the taste buds to other tastes, but the heat from hot pepper’s capsaisins is more a sensation than real damage.  Butter, tomatoes, milk rice, yogurt or lime are good ways to turn down the effect of something too hot.  The capasisins are oil based so water will not reduce the heat, instead it will spread the oil across the mouth.  It is also important to realize that different spices are more evident in different places on the lips, in the mouth and at the back of the throat.  Some persist and other pass quickly.  Understanding how spices and heat react within the mouth help expand the taste experience.

Why would anyone want to make their own spice combination.  Simple, where some companies make their spices with out unnecessary additives, some just can resist making the product more than is should be.   And when you make it from scratch it has not laid on a warehouse shelf for months if not years on end, it is fresh!  Here are two fun and easy recipes that will compare very well to the best on the market.  And for those of you that like it hot, you can simple turn up the heat.

These recipes are from our soon to be released cook book, they along with other recipes demonstrate just how easy it is to make almost anything that comes out of the kitchen.  For most commercial seasonings like these they are listed as: Chili powder, spices and salt.  Some times they will tell you Chili powder Cayenne power, spices and salt along with a chemical to keep the product from clotting under humid conditions.

Chili seasoning (mild with just a hint of heat)

2 tbs Chile De Arbot (chili) powder (very mild heat)
1/4 tbs of garlic powder
2 tsp paparika powder
5 1/2 tsp Ancho Chili powder (very mild heat)
1/4 tsp cayenne powder
1/4 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp ground cumin (this is the majority of the heat)
1/2 tsp salt

Blend well and use 2 tsp per 1 quart of chili.  Need more heat add another 2 tsp for a pleasant heat.

Taco seasoning (lots of flavor minimal heat)

2 tbs Chile De Arbot (chili) powder (very mild heat)
4 tsp of garlic powder
1/2 tbs onion powder
1/4 tsp paparika powder
1/4 tsp Ancho Chili powder (very mild heat)
1/4 tsp cayenne powder (this is the majority of the heat)
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt

Blend well and use 2 tsp per 1 pound of meat.

We made the mixtures in small quantities so that you could experiment, but as is we think these recipes are great and the fresh spices make a big differnce.  In the long run it cost about half what the commercial stuff does, but this is more about taste since you don’t use tons of these spices each month.  It is also about keeping harmful chemicals out of your families food.

You can order the spices at:

http://www.spicebarn.com/chile_ancho_ground.htm

https://www.myspicesage.com/index.php

Both sites have some of the best pricing on the internet and offer fresh spices.  They both provide plenty of detail as to what the spices are and how the might be used.  Both sites guarentee freshness and quality.  They also are willing to talk to you about your spice needs.  Buying in volume saves you more, but to start you might buy just a few ounces and then expand into the pound quantites as you see the need.  The spices listed above are actually in a number of commercial products on the market like catsup or chili sauce and can be used for a variety of dishes that are from countries like Mexico or India.

You might even consider going the extra mile and growing these peppers, creating your seasonings from the ground up.  The peppers are dried, seeds removed and ground into a powder.  you can dry them in a 120F oven or in an in-expensive food dryer.  On a hot day you can dry them outside sandwiched between two screens to keep the bugs away.  We get a kick out of serviing food to our family and friends that have been created from scratch.  Just how far you go depends on, well to some degree just how crazy you are.  Crazy in a good sense, crazy about healthy food for your family and friends.

We hope we have spice up your life, Happy holidays