One of the little money saving things I do is to make my own spice blends.
A few months ago it occurred to me that I regularly season certain foods with various spices, and it would save me time if I put those seasonings together into a mix.
You can buy specialty spice blends for a premium price, or you can make your own. I decided to do a search for some recipes since it’s fun to try new things rather than stick to the familiar all the time.
I buy spices in bulk 1 kg bags and I have a nice variety of spices so I can make spice blends very affordably. I’ve made a chili spice blend and pumpkin pie spice in the past that I keep on hand, and now I’ve added a steak seasoning mix, a chicken seasoning mix, and a shwarma seasoning mix.
This is so easy but it is already saving me from having to individually measure out multiple spices when I cook. I measure the ingredients into recycled peanut butter jars and label the top of each jar so I can see at a glance what’s in each one.
I also added the recipe I used for each one and stuck it to the front, so that if I want to make more once it’s finished, I won’t have to spend time searching for what recipe I used.
As I said, it’s a small thing but it makes my cooking go more quickly and every little bit of savings of time and money adds up!
Avivah
6 Responses
Great idea.
Would you be able to share the recipes or links to the mixes
For these three mixes, you can magnify the picture and you’ll see the recipes on the front. You can also do a google search and you’ll find so many recipes to try out!
Excellent ideas Aviva, I love the idea of putting the recipe right on the jar for next time!!!
Glad to hear you liked the idea, Kelly!
i’d really love to see a time-cost calculation for all this, including a sensitivity analysis- how would the cost changed if you knocked over one jar by mistake? last i checked, spice blends cost pretty much the same as individual spices. i don’t buy in bulk. too much freezer space and too much infestation. and any time i bought bulk packages to divide into manageable ones, there was loss due to spillage. in addition, i don’t know how you measure out spices to sprinkle over something without a shaker top, but could it be that an open-top jar causes you to use more at a time? or you had bulk packaging anyway so that doesn’t change?
It takes about the same time to make a larger recipe as to mix the spices for a one time recipe – you use 1/4 c. instead of a T, for example. But every time you use it from that time forward, you’re saving time.
I have almost never had an issue of infestation of a spice – only once in over thirty years, and that was because the spice was stored in a container that wasn’t fully closed. It was a small container so not much of a money loss, maybe three shekels.
I have space for what I buy. When all of my kids move out I doubt I’ll continue buying in the larger size packages. For now, I use generous amounts of seasoning when I cook, I cook larger amounts, and I also let my married kids take whatever spices they want to refill for their kitchens.
I don’t have a spillage issue because I use a funnel.
Regardless of bulk or standard packaging, I don’t pour directly from the container. I don’t use a shaker top since it’s usually too small a measurement for me. I tend to pour some spice onto my palm or the lid of the jar, and sprinkle from there according to what looks right to me. When I cook, I’m focused on the achieving the end flavor that I want, not how little spice I can use and still have it be edible.
Did I answer all of your questions? 🙂