Have you ever actually read the ingredients on many of the spice or seasoning blends that you purchase, and ultimately consume? Well, here are a few examples of what you might find.
Silicon dioxide…that’s ‘sand’ to us common folk, one of the main ingredients in making glass. This is added to many, many items as an anti-caking agent so lumps don’t form. Didn’t your parents tell you not to eat sand when you were a kid?
Cellulose powder (or cellulose in any other form)…commonly called ‘sawdust’. This, too, is used as an anti-caking agent…works for beavers & termites!
Then there’s the ever-popular MSG, or monosodium glutamate. This is a flavor enhancer…why add more herbs when you can just throw in a chemical that makes it taste like there are more herbs? Make sense, right? MSG has recently enjoyed a comeback with its new moniker, ‘umami’, but it is still the same old MSG that many people are allergic to.
Some of my favorites include ethoxyquin (also used as a pesticide), calcium stearate (also used as a plasticizer for making plastics and as a surfactant, which is the sudsy stuff in detergents), and carboxymethylcellulose (I don’t know what this is, but can you even pronounce it?)
These “ingredients”, along with propionic acid, malic acid, guar gum, and many others, are labeled by the Food & Drug Administration as “food additives”. On average, Americans eat their weight in food additives every year. According to the FDA, a food additive is “any substance the intended use of which results or may reasonably be expected to result…in its affecting the characteristics of food.” In other words, they aren’t “food”, but they do things to our food. Many additives are actually derivates of foods, like paprika oleoresin, added for color…I mean, really…why not just use paprika, instead of a perverted form of paprika?
Because I want to ingest as little of this stuff as possible & because I don’t want my family to ingest it either, I make many of my own seasoning blends. This also allows me to control the amount of sugar & salt that is added to our food…I know, I’m a control freak…Son reminds me…often! Did you know that some Cajun seasoning blends contain over 30% salt? That means if you want more seasoning, you are also going to get more salt…a lot more salt, whether you want it or not. And many seasonings contain sugar or corn syrup derivates, but I don’t really want sugar in my tacos! So I am going to share with you my recipe for taco seasoning. It is sugar free & salt free, so you are free to adjust to your taste! This recipe is also free of sand & sawdust, so it may clump a little. Just break those little clumps up with a spoon & enjoy!
Taco Seasoning Mix
Servings/Yield: about 1 cup, enough to season 8 pounds of ground beef¼ cup chili powder (if you can’t find one at the store without all of the added “stuff”, try making your own with this recipe)3 tablespoons ground cumin3 tablespoons paprika2 tablespoons onion powder2 tablespoons garlic powder½ teaspoon cayenne pepperMethodMix all ingredients together thoroughly. Store in an airtight container. Use 1/8 cup (2 tablespoons) per pound of ground beef. Brown ground beef, add seasoning, water, & salt to taste; simmer for 10 minutes.
“The schweet life: the ramblings of a homeschool mom” is a blog by Karen Carter. Karen lives in Central Texas with her husband, Darren, & teenage son (She will refer to him as Son since he doesn’t want her to use his name). In another life she was a public school teacher. Karen taught high school Physics, Chemistry, & Math for many years before she and her husband decided to homeschool their son (best decision they believe they ever made!) In addition to teaching their son, Karen also tutors other students, some homeschoolers & some not, mostly with science & math. Since y have a complete high school science lab at our house & an extensive, mostly classical, library that includes works by Hitler & Marx, Karen has often joked that their family must be on the Homeland Security watch list!
When their son was younger, he kept breaking out in hives at the most random times. The doctor could not figure out why & finally concluded it must be a preservative or other additive used in foods. Karen decided she would have to try to eliminate as much pre-prepared food from their diet as possible. She has always enjoyed cooking, but this decision began a new chapter for her family. She now makes most of what they eat from scratch. The Carters try to eat as much fresh food as possible, growing what they can (they live in town, so space is limited)…lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, & occasionally meat (hormone & antibiotic free).
