Keto Taco Seasoning (No Starch, No Sugar, 0.9g Net Carbs)
- Total time
- 5 minutes
- Makes
- 11 servings (1/2 tbsp)
- Net carbs
- 0.9g
- Calories
- 10
I turned over a taco seasoning packet one evening, half-way through browning the beef, and read the label properly for the first time. The first ingredients were not chili or cumin. They were corn starch and maltodextrin, with sugar a little further down.
So I mixed my own. It tasted great, but the meat came out dry and dusty, the spices sitting on the beef instead of clinging to it. That was when I worked out what the starch in the packet was really for: it turns the water into a sauce.
This keto taco seasoning is the spice blend without the filler, plus the small trick that gives you saucy, packet-style taco meat without any starch at all. Nine pantry spices, five minutes, 0.9g net carbs per serving.
Why Make Your Own Keto Taco Seasoning
Packets are mostly filler. Many store-bought mixes list corn starch, maltodextrin or sugar near the top of the ingredients. They add carbs and do nothing for the flavor. A homemade blend is just spices.
You control the salt and the heat. Packet seasoning is often very salty. Making your own means you decide, and you can turn the cayenne up or down for whoever is eating.
Tomato paste replaces the starch. A tablespoon fried with the spices and simmered with a splash of water gives taco meat the same glossy, clinging sauce a packet does. It adds a little over 2 grams of net carbs to a whole pound of meat, well under a gram per person.
Recipe Overview
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Makes: about 5½ tablespoons, enough for 2½ pounds of meat
- Serving: ½ tablespoon, one person’s share of a pound of taco meat
- Net Carbs: 0.9g per serving
Ingredients
| Ingredient | Quantity | Notes |
| Chili powder | 2 tbsp | Mild or medium |
| Ground cumin | 1 tbsp | |
| Smoked paprika | 2 tsp | Sweet paprika works too |
| Garlic powder | 1 tsp | |
| Onion powder | 1 tsp | |
| Dried oregano | 1 tsp | Mexican oregano if you have it |
| Fine sea salt | 1 tsp | Less if your chili powder is salted |
| Black pepper | 1 tsp | |
| Cayenne pepper | ¼ tsp | More for heat |
Check your chili powder. In the US, chili powder is itself a blend of ground chiles with cumin, garlic and often salt. Read the label. If salt is one of the first few ingredients, cut the added salt in half and taste the meat before adding more.
Mexican oregano is worth finding. It is more citrusy and earthy than the Mediterranean kind, and it is the flavor you know from a good taqueria. Regular dried oregano is fine if that is what you have.
Use fresh spices. Ground spices fade. If the cumin in your cupboard has been there for years and smells of very little, the blend will taste of very little too.
What Each Spice Brings
Chili powder is the backbone: the deep red color and a gentle, rounded heat. Cumin is the warm, earthy smell that makes a skillet of beef read as tacos the moment it hits the pan. Smoked paprika adds a quiet smokiness, the kind you would otherwise get from charred chiles.
Garlic and onion powder give savory depth without any chopping, and they dissolve into the sauce instead of leaving pieces. Oregano brings a fresh, slightly bitter herb note that keeps it from tasting flat. Salt and black pepper wake everything up, and cayenne is the dial for heat.
Recipe Timing
| Order | Step | Time |
| 1 | Measure the spices into a jar | 3 minutes |
| 2 | Shake or stir until even | 1 minute |
| 3 | Label and store | 1 minute |
How to Make Keto Taco Seasoning
1. Measure
Measure the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, salt, black pepper and cayenne straight into a small glass jar. Level each spoon, because the salt and the cayenne especially make a big difference at this scale.
2. Mix
Put the lid on and shake hard for 30 seconds, or stir with a fork, until the color is even all the way through and there are no streaks of pale garlic or onion powder. Break up any little clumps with the back of a spoon.
3. Store
Label the jar and keep it in a cool, dark cupboard, away from the stove. Heat and light are what make spices go dull.
How to Make Saucy Taco Meat With It
This is the part the packet does for you without telling you how. Here is the version without starch.
| For 1 pound of meat | Amount |
| Ground beef, turkey or chicken | 1 lb |
| Keto taco seasoning | 2 tbsp |
| Tomato paste | 1 tbsp |
| Water or broth | ½ cup |
Brown the meat in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking it up as it cooks, for 6 to 8 minutes. Spoon off most of the fat if there is a lot, leaving about a tablespoon. Add the seasoning and the tomato paste and stir them into the meat for a full minute, so the spices toast in the fat and the paste darkens a little. Pour in the water, scrape up the bottom of the pan, and simmer for about 5 minutes, until the liquid has cooked down into a thick sauce that clings to every piece.
Recipe Tips and Variations
Smoky heat. Swap the cayenne for the same amount of chipotle powder, which brings heat and a deep smoky note.
Mild for kids. Leave the cayenne out and use a mild chili powder. Put hot sauce on the table instead.
Salt-free. Leave out the salt entirely and season the meat as it cooks instead. Handy if you are watching sodium.
Make a big batch. The recipe multiplies perfectly. Triple it and you have taco night sorted for weeks.
Serving Suggestions
Spoon the taco meat into crisp lettuce cups, or into soft keto almond flour tortillas with cheese, sour cream and a big spoonful of keto guacamole. Over cauliflower rice with salsa, it is a taco bowl.
The seasoning works well beyond tacos, too. My beanless keto chili uses 2 tablespoons of it, and a teaspoon stirred into half a cup of sour cream makes a quick dip for sliced peppers and cucumber.
Storage
In an airtight jar in a cool, dark cupboard, the blend keeps for up to a year. It tastes best in the first six months, while the spices are still bright. If it ever smells faint when you open the jar, it is time for a new batch.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is taco seasoning keto?
Spices themselves are, but many store-bought packets are not, because they are padded with corn starch, maltodextrin or sugar. A homemade keto taco seasoning is only spices and salt.
How much taco seasoning per pound of meat?
Two tablespoons per pound, which is about the same as one packet. Use 2½ tablespoons if you like it bold.
Does homemade taco seasoning have carbs?
A little, because spices are plants. Half a tablespoon has 0.9g net carbs, so a pound of taco meat made with 2 tablespoons carries under 4g of net carbs in total, before the tomato paste.
Can I use it on chicken or fish?
Yes. Rub about a tablespoon over a pound of chicken thighs, shrimp or white fish with a little oil before cooking. It is also good stirred into ground turkey, which needs the extra flavor more than beef does.
Why is my taco meat dry?
There was nothing to make a sauce. Fry a tablespoon of tomato paste with the spices, add half a cup of water or broth, and simmer until it reduces and clings to the meat.
More Keto Taco Night Recipes
- Low-Carb Taco Skillet — ground beef, peppers and cauliflower rice in one pan, in 30 minutes.
- Easy Taco Pie — eggs and cream set around the seasoned beef, at 2.6g net carbs a slice.
- Creamy Taco Soup — ground beef, taco seasoning and cream cheese in one pot.
- Keto Taco Salad — seasoned ground beef over crisp romaine with all the toppings, in 25 minutes.
Recipe Card
The spice blend is in the card below. The taco meat method is in its own section above.
Keto Taco Seasoning
Equipment
- Small glass jar with a tight lid
- Measuring Spoons
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp chili powder mild or medium
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp dried oregano Mexican if possible
- 1 tsp fine sea salt less if your chili powder is salted
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper more for heat
Instructions
- Measure: Add the chili powder, ground cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano, fine sea salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper to a small glass jar.
- Mix: Shake hard or stir with a fork until the color is even and there are no streaks or clumps.
- Store: Keep airtight in a cool, dark cupboard for up to a year.
- To use: Brown 1 lb ground meat, add 2 tbsp seasoning and 1 tbsp tomato paste and stir 1 minute, then add 1/2 cup water and simmer about 5 minutes until saucy.
Notes
Keep cooking
