Learn how easy it is to make your own Homemade Sazón Seasoning! A vibrant and flavorful spice blend that is a staple in many Hispanic and Caribbean dishes. So easy to make, and so versatile, you’ll be sprinkling it on all your savory dishes!
Sazón Is The Latin Spice You Didn’t Know You Needed
Visit any home in the Caribbean, and pretty much most of Latin America, and you’re bound to find packages or jars of sazón seasoning in the kitchen. This magical spice mix is a staple of Latin cuisine because it adds rich color and brings instant Latin flavor to savory dishes without any spiciness.
Many Latin cooks rely on mass-produced, premade sazón blends from big brands. The problem is, most are full of artificial food coloring, preservatives, and additives such as MSG.
- Sazón Is The Latin Spice You Didn’t Know You Needed
- What Is Sazón?
- What are Annatto or Achiote Seeds?
- Ingredients Notes And Substitutions
- Variations And Substitutions
- Sandra’s Top Tip
- How to Make Homemade Sazón Seasoning
- Ideas For Using Your Delicious Sazón
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Storage Tip
- Did you try this recipe?
- Homemade Sazón Seasoning
Being Dominican, I take my sazón very seriously. I started making my own home blend years ago and it works brilliantly, not just for so many of my beloved Latin dishes, but for just about any savory dish. You can use it on meats, soups, stews, fish, beans and rice dishes.
Making your own sazon seasoning recipe at home is easy, quick (just 5 minutes!), customizable, and more cost-effective in the long run. Plus, the fresh and vibrant flavor is unbeatable. Once you make it, you’ll be amazed at how often you reach for this tasty all-purpose seasoning.
What Is Sazón?
Sazón (the Spanish word for seasoning) is a beloved spice mix used in a wide variety of Latin American dishes such as arroz con gandules, pollo guisado, ropa vieja, and arroz con pollo. It’s an all-purpose blend that adds color, aroma, and flavor to everything it touches.
With its origin specifically from Puerto Rico, what sets sazón apart is its unique mix of dried spices. Achiote, also known as annatto seed powder, is the only dried spice you may not stock in your pantry, but it is pretty essential for giving sazón its signature red hue. Cumin, onion, coriander, and garlic powders complete the complex flavors of this delicious sazón.
From the shores of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, to kitchens across Latin America, sazón has been a beloved seasoning for generations. While you can find sazón packets at your local grocery store or local Hispanic market, making your own homemade version gives you control over the ingredients without sacrificing flavor. It’s a fantastic way to bring the essence of Latin cooking into your everyday meals.
What are Annatto or Achiote Seeds?
The words annatto or achiote are used interchangeably—the seeds are most commonly used as a natural food dye and seasoning. The seeds hail from a tropical tree with roots in Latin America and you can find annatto as whole seeds, used in a ground spice mix, as a paste, or an oil.
You may be surprised to know that it’s annatto that gives some dairy spreads like butter and margarine, Cheddar cheese, some custards, cakes, and other baked goods their color. Without annatto, many of the foods we know would actually be quite pale.
Ingredients Notes And Substitutions
Here’s what you’ll need to create your own delicious sazón at home:
- Ground annatto (achiote powder) – For color and mild peppery-nutty flavor, this ingredient is essential for a good Sazon. If you can’t find achiote powder, a great substitute is to use an equal amount of paprika (not smoked) with a small pinch of turmeric or saffron.
- Ground coriander – Adds floral citrus notes.
- Ground cumin – Adds warm, earthy flavor.
- Garlic powder – Lends the essential savory component to this Sazon.
- Onion powder – The other savory component in this seasoning.
- Salt – I add only a bit of salt to my sazón but feel free to omit it altogether, if you prefer.
- Black pepper – Adds a little depth and complexity.
Variations And Substitutions
- Add a bit of heat —> Puerto Rican and Dominican dishes are extremely flavorful but they’re not supposed to be spicy. That said, if you like a little heat in your dishes, feel free to add a bit of cayenne powder to your sazón.
- Add oregano —> I set out to recreate the leading brand of sazón con achiote packages which do not include oregano so I left it out. However, I do separately add oregano to pretty much all my Latin dishes. Feel free to add 2 teaspoons of dried oregano to your homemade sazón, if you wish.
- Add turmeric —> Similarly, I don’t add turmeric to my sazón but a lot of people do. Feel free to add a teaspoon, if you wish.
Sandra’s Top Tip
Use fresh spices! This homemade sazón will stay vibrant and flavorful for 6 months or more, but only if you use very fresh spices to make it. Ground spices will lose their potency if they’ve been open for a while so use recently purchased spices, if possible.
How to Make Homemade Sazón Seasoning
- Place all the measured spices in a bowl or jar.
- Mix until well combined.
- Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place for up to 6 months.
Ideas For Using Your Delicious Sazón
This versatile spice blend goes well with just about every savory dish. Use a few teaspoons of sazón to brighten up soups, stews, and marinades, or as a dry rub on meats and seafood before grilling or roasting. Here’s a few ways to use your sazón:
Meats: Without sazón, there is no pernil, or any Hispanic-style pork roast for that matter. But sazón is also great for rubbing all over a steak, or adding to this rope vieja or this turkey picadillo. Sazón is also excellent for seasoning chicken. Use it on grilled chicken, these reader-favourite chicken thighs, pollo guisado, or even this bang bang chicken.
Fish: For a simple delicious meal, sprinkle shrimp, cod filets, salmon or your favorite fish with sazón spice.
Potatoes: Roasted baby potatoes, sweet potatoes, or French fries would be delicious sprinkled with sazon.
Eggs: I love adding sazon to scrambled eggs. It would also be great in a frittata or this shakshuka.
Roasted vegetables: Drizzle vegetables with olive oil then sprinkle with a few teaspoons of sazon before roasting. Try it with potatoes, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, or sweet potatoes.
Rice: Sazón is an essential ingredient in Arroz con Pollo, Arroz con Gandules, Arroz Amarillo or any Moro de Habichuelas.
Beans: I can’t imagine making a pot of Dominican beans, or refried beans without my beloved sazón.
Mexican dishes: Use your sazón to make these chicken fajitas, ground taco meat, or this chicken tinga.
Frequently Asked Questions
To make this homemade sazón seasoning recipe, I highly recommend you do your best to make it with achiote powder. If you can’t find achiote powder, sweet paprika with a small pinch of turmeric will be a very good substitute.
This will depend on the application. For example, if adding to a soup or stew, start with just 1 teaspoon and add a little more if needed. A general guide would be to use about 1 to 1½ teaspoons of seasoning per pound of meat, vegetable or cup of rice.
Absolutely! I season all my taco meat, fajitas, refried beans, and even soups with this sazón.
This sazon seasoning recipe makes a little over 6 tablespoons but you can easily halve it if you need a lot less, or double or triple so you can use it many times.
Storage Tip
Keep your homemade sazón in a tightly sealed spice jar in a dark place away from heat or moisture. It stays fresh for up to 6 months, but chances are you’ll use it up long before then.
Did you try this recipe?
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Thank you!~Sandra
Homemade Sazón Seasoning
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons ground annatto seeds (see notes)
- 1 Tablespoon ground coriander
- 1 Tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Place all the measured spices in a bowl or jar. Mix until well combined.
- Use immediately or store in an airtight container, in a cool, dark place for up to 6 months.
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