This homemade chili seasoning mix is the base of any delicious, hearty, from-scratch chili recipe you want. It's perfectly suited for beef, turkey, chicken chili, and any variety of bean chili you would like to use in a vegetarian or vegan version. Grab your pantry staple herbs and spices to make this easy DIY spice blend rather than going to the store.
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Homemade Seasoning Mix Recipe For Chili
My easy chili spice mix is just one of my many spice blends on Bake It With Love that make serving a tasty meal easier! Not only do you not need to panic if you're out of a packet blend, but you also get to control exactly what you put into your food!
My favorite chili recipes with this seasoning blend are prime rib chili, crockpot chili, venison chili, and chili mac!
🥘 Ingredients
This seasoning mix is mild to medium but can easily be adjusted for your flavor preferences. Omit the crushed red pepper flakes to keep this chili seasoning mild.
If you like more heat, add some cayenne pepper (I suggest adding in ¼ teaspoon increments of the cayenne pepper if desired).
- Chili Powder - 2 tablespoons.
- Smoked Paprika (or regular paprika) - 1 tablespoon.
- All-Purpose Flour - 1 tablespoon to thicken the chili. Use GF flour or all-purpose flour substitutes if needed.
- Coriander - 2 teaspoons.
- Cumin - 2 teaspoons.
- Garlic Powder - 1 ½ teaspoons.
- Onion Powder - 1 ½ teaspoons.
- Oregano - 1 teaspoon.
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes - ½ teaspoon.
Be sure to see the free printable recipe card below for ingredients, exact amounts & instructions with tips!
🔪 How To Make Chili Seasoning
Grab your measuring spoons and a spice jar to store plenty for future use!
This recipe will yield just shy of 7 tablespoons of spice blend. Each batch of chili mix should easily season 2-4 batches of chili, based upon your amounts and tastes.
Step 1: Combine. Measure out all of your spices, including 2 tablespoons chili powder, 1 tablespoon smoked paprika, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons ground coriander, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1½ teaspoons garlic powder, 1½ teaspoons onion powder, 1 teaspoon oregano, and ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes. Mix until the spice blend is evenly distributed before using.
Step 2: Adjust. Add salt and pepper to taste when making chili.
Step 3: Store. Place any remaining chili seasoning mix in an airtight storage bag or jar. Keep seasoning mixes in a darkened cabinet for best results.
⚖️ How Much Seasoning Mix Per Batch Of Chili
Season a large batch of from-scratch homemade chili using 1 pound of meat and lots of beans and tomatoes (up to around 120+/- ounces total).
The amount required per chili recipe varies, as you can see in my Texas chili (using 2 tablespoons) vs. homemade chili recipe (using 4 tablespoons). Of course, you can adjust the amount in any recipe to suit your taste!
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💭 Angela's Pro Tips & Recipe Notes
- To thicken your homemade chili, try using a few tablespoons of cornmeal rather than the standard cornstarch slurry for added depth of flavor!
- Note that the smoked paprika is a favorite for adding one of those 'secret ingredient' flavors to my chili seasoning mix!
- If you are on a specialty diet (such as keto, paleo, low-carb, or gluten-free), tomatoes are a natural thickening agent. Omit the flour and add more tomatoes, then let them cook down to thicken your chili!
- Try my slow cooker three-bean and beef chili for a super easy chili using this chili seasoning mix!
- This seasoning blend yields approximately 7 tablespoons of chili seasoning. I typically use 2-4 tablespoons to replace a packet of store-bought seasoning mix. Adjust to taste.
🧂 More DIY Seasoning Mixes
Do you love to make your own spice mixes and avoid the added preservatives from store-bought versions? I sure do!
- Garam masala spice blend for curry and so much more! It's divine in my banana cinnamon muffins!
- Corned beef spice blend mix is the best homemade seasoning for serving this hearty meat!
- Taco seasoning mix is a must-have here in my home as the whim to make tacos comes upon me all the time, and it never fails that I don't have any packets on hand.
- Steak seasoning is one of my favorite all-around spice blends in the pantry! It's perfect for practically any protein!
- And, of course, my Grandma Janet's traditional German gingerbread (lebkuchengewurz) Lebkuchen Gewürz spice blend!
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📖 Recipe Card
Chili Seasoning Mix Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika (regular paprika will work too)
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
(Note: 2x or 3x only changes the ingredient list)
Instructions
- Measure out all of your individual spices, including 2 tablespoon chili powder, 1 tablespoon smoked paprika, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoon ground coriander, 2 teaspoon ground cumin, 1½ teaspoon garlic powder, 1½ teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon oregano, and ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes. Mix until the spice blend is evenly distributed before using.
- Add salt and pepper to taste when making chili. Adjust as needed.
- Place any remaining chili seasoning mix in an airtight storage bag or jar. Keep it in a darkened cabinet for best results.
Notes
- For very mild chili, omit the crushed red pepper flakes.
- For more 'heat' in your chili, add cayenne pepper. I suggest using ¼ teaspoon increments of the cayenne pepper and adding until the desired flavor has been reached.
- To thicken your chili try using a few tablespoons of cornmeal rather than the standard cornstarch slurry (or additional flour) for an added depth of flavor!
- If you are on a specialty diet (such as keto, paleo, low-carb, or gluten-free), tomatoes are a natural thickening agent. Omit the flour and add more tomatoes, then let them cook down to thicken your chili!
- This seasoning blend yields approximately 7 tablespoons of chili seasoning. I typically use 2-4 tablespoons to replace a packet of store-bought seasoning mix. Adjust to taste.
Debby says
This blend is perfect for my taste! Makes the best tasting chili.. Thank You
Anonymous says
I have a family member who can not do any real spice, so I omitted the red pepper flakes.
I also used 2 cups of water with chicken bullion powder and 2 cups of water with beef bullion powder for the added flavor and salt.
I did use a very small amount of corn starch slurry to thicken just a bit.
That being said, this was by far my most favorite chili I have made to date.
Ty for sharing the spice recipe.
Diedre B says
I used two cartons of beef broth for the flavor and tomato paste to thicken it. It worked out really nice.
Judy says
Someone said 2 tbsp. Of this chili mix to each lb. of ground meat used. Is that correct?
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
The seasoning amounts for 1 batch of this chili mix will total just shy of 7 tablespoons of seasoning that I use with 1 pound of meat and 75 ounces of beans (around 5 cans) plus 36 ounces of tomato products. You can mix and match as desired but total up your ounces to be around 120-130. Enjoy!
Chiliman says
Your seasoning recipe sounds good but are you sure you meant 75 ounces of beans for one pound of meat. 5 cans? Can't really imagine that in all my chili making years.
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
Yes, indeed. I usually use between 3-5 cans of beans for real 🙂
Casey F says
I agree! I used 2 cans of ranch style beans and 2 cans of kidney beans minimum! Then I add a can of tomato sauce and 3 cans of varied diced tomatoes. I add ingredients with my heart. I used this entire spice mix in one go and it's tasty.
Cindi says
Hi Angela, My recipe is usually 2 lbs of meat and 4 (1 lb) cans of beans, large can crushed tomatoes, 15 oz tomato sauce, onions, celery and green pepper. How many tablespoons would I use in that case? It sounds so good but I'm not understanding the ratios.
Thanks, Cindi
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
The recipe as-is makes 7 tablespoons of seasoning that I typically use to season approximately 120 ounces or 7 pounds of chili (meat, beans, tomatoes, onion, all of the ingredients combined). Sounds like your measurements will be really close to this total too, so try it out with the whole recipe batch. Enjoy!!
Paulette says
I use this recipe all the time, I use it in my chili, tacos and even my spaghetti. I keep it on hand in bulk and keep in a glass jar with my other spices. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful mix.
Anonymous says
Could you do this without meat?
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
Yes, definitely! Just increase your amount of beans (or beans and tomatoes) to replace the total amount of beef. Enjoy!
Adam Myers says
I know it has been said before, but this is such a life saver when you don't want to go all the way to the store for seasoning mix, besides it tastes better than store bought in my opinion.
Shakira says
Needed a chili seasoning and found this recipe. Perfect as perfect can be.
Kevin says
I ran out of chili seasoning packets and found your recipe as a replacement. It was so good this is my new chili seasoning!
Marisa says
If I make a large batch for storing and future uses, what is the measurement to use for each batch of chili? Like how many cups or tablespoons per batch?
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
The seasoning amounts for 1 batch of this chili mix will total just shy of 7 tablespoons of seasoning that I use with 1 pound of meat and 75 ounces of beans (around 5 cans) plus 36 ounces of tomato products. You can select to 2x or 3x the recipe on the recipe card, as well use the slider by clicking on the number of servings in the recipe card. Note that this only changes the ingredient amounts and does not change any of my notes for the single batch of chili seasoning. Hope that helps!
Marisa says
If doing a large batch to store what measurement does it come out to be? Like how many tablespoons or cups per batch of chili?
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
I use 1 batch of this seasoning mix for my large batch crockpot chili - that includes 1 pound beef and about 111 ounces, or just shy of 14 cups, of tomatoes and beans. Scale the first batch with this in mind, but if you let me know your desired portion I could give a better estimate. Thanks for asking!!
Chili says
I need to know beans ect- is this for 1lb meat gets too confusion talking about beans and all and I’m allergic to beans so dose this do 1lb or more of meat
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
"The seasoning amounts for 1 batch of this chili mix will total just shy of 7 tablespoons of seasoning that I use with 1 pound of meat and 75 ounces of beans (around 5 cans) plus 36 ounces of tomato products. You can mix and match as desired but total up your ounces to be around 120-130."
The total ounces of 120-130 (divided by 16 ounces per pound) is roughly between 7-8. This means you can make a chili that is any combination of meat and tomato and use roughly 1 tablespoon of the chili seasoning mix per pound or each 16 ounces. - So, if you were to use 1 pound of meat and 16 ounces of tomato sauce with a touch of tomato paste, I would use 2 tablespoons to season the chili. Taste and adjust to your liking. Hope that helps, and please let me know if you have any other questions!
Lisa Jones says
I will never buy packet mix again! I use this for chilli, enchiladas, tacos and wraps. Love it!
Sarah says
I rarely mention anything when I try a recipe online. This is a chili seasoning mixture I tried months ago and I normally save them and today is the first time I found it again. Saved for sure this time! Like many cooks I modify ingredients but this one to me is like baking. Exact if you want to taste what was posted…a slight ingredient off sometimes can smell and taste like taco seasoning so just do what she recommends!!! Obviously we make a ton of it and share with numerous friends but this one gave me the most rave reviews. I put many other things in my chili but this base is absolutely the best thing on earth and convinced this is what our framily loves the most! It’s no longer winter and have to make it again tomorrow for some chilly rainy days and because I’m addicted. You can certainly tell the difference between this and packets of junk at the store and literally worth the time and is seemingly less expensive. So why not try it out!?!?
Susan M says
I love making my homemade chili completely from scratch with this seasoning mix. I've never been disappointed no matter how many beans, tomatoes, or types of meat that I have combined. The flavor is spot on and easy to tailor to your tastes. Thanks much!
Wes Becker says
Best chili I have ever made with this seasoning mix! You are right, the Smoked Paprika is the secret ingredient that makes it so delicious. Thank you.
Desiree says
Quick question. - what is the purpose of adding flour to a spice mix?
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
Most commercial blends have flour or cornstarch to thicken the sauce (chili seasoning, taco seasoning). To make a truly homemade version that works like the store-bought packets there needs to be a thickening agent. You can control the thickness of your chili by reducing a bit of liquid too. Hope that helps!
Julie Morris says
I use refried beans black or pinto to thicken my chili. Also I add a tablespoon or so of creamy peanut butter. Yummy
Swahl says
Delicious seasoning! Used it all for a big pot-full and it turned out amazing!
nance says
Best chili seasoning I’ve ever tried. It will be my “go to” recipe from now on!
Curtis Days says
This was very good. I typically do a onions with garlic; pound of ground beef, half pound of sausage and then I’ve recently started adding pre cooked 100% beef meatballs chopped up. It’s very good. A few cans of died tomatoes and one Rotella. All of the chili beans (mild so I can control the heat in spices) then canned tomato juice. This spice mix was the perfect “cherry on top” to my ingredient experiment. Thank you.
Christy says
Thank you for the recipe. Used a batch tonight for our plant-based chili and since we like spicy food, i used a 'hot' smoked paprika, but not the cayenne and i think I'll throw the cayenne in next time. My flour was in the pantry and i didn't feel like getting it, so i subbed masa harina. Was really great!
Ashley says
This was sooo good! I used more garlic powder and left red pepper flakes out, my 14 yr old doesn’t like spicy- added chili lime seasoning from Trader Joe’s. It was perfect! My son loved it☺️
FreyaFL says
Exactly what I was looking for! I used half the amount for my quick chili (using 1 lb smoked sausage, 2 cans tomatoes, 2 cans beans, 2 small cans mushrooms, and 3 cups mixed veggies.) I also added 1 tsp salt. I think I'd use a full recipe for when I use ground beef/turkey, though.
Thank you!
Rebekah says
How much beef does this recipe season?
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
The batch of seasoning mix will season 1-2 lbs of meat for your chili, depending on your tastes (we use 1 recipe of our chili seasoning mix to every pound of meat). Thanks for asking!!
Fay says
I am going to try smoke paprika and oregano today as I have been using the same ingredients as your recipe. However, I washed 2
cups of kidney beans and slow cooked them instead of buying cans. I then use some of the liquid from the cooked beans instead of water. I puree 1 large can of whole tomatoes with 1 small can of tomato paste and 2 tsp of brown sugar-no thickener needed!