Just Do It…Yourself!

This was going to be just a recipe for tacos because I’m feeling lazy and I’ve been sick this week, but lucky you, it’s going to be a full rant from my brain! I know that’s why you come here, just be honest.

So I decided yesterday while in my bed coughing like an old smoker and ordering my groceries online (yeah, even I do it) that I wanted to make tacos this week. As I went looking for the Old El Paso seasoning packet that I’ve been using since I was 5, I realized that it’s high time I come up with my own spice mix and stop relying on that nonsense (it is really tasty though).

So, to cheat a little because I’m not that creative, I went and looked up that packet of stuff to see what they put in it and honestly, I regret it. Well, I don’t regret it because now I’m extra glad that I’m deciding to make my own but I do regret it because blech.

Two words I never thought I’d read in a food product: anticaking agent. I mean, come on, what could possibly sound less appetizing except maybe something involving bleach. Anticaking makes me think of cat litter or something involving makeup- basically just things nobody is trying to put in their bodies.

I’ve been a big fan of making things myself- tomato sauce, salad dressings, other various condiments- for many reasons.

1. You get to pick and choose exactly what spices and flavors are going into your mixture. Tomato sauce is a great example. Maybe you’re not as big of a fan of garlic (I can’t relate but I’ve heard it’s true) and pretty much all of the jarred sauces have garlic in them. If you make it yourself, you get to opt out of that ingredient and include more herbs or more onion. It is literally up to you and your taste buds.
2. You can avoid any of the icky stuff (like anti caking agents) or other preservative chemicals. Oy, the CHEMICALS. Preservatives- sure, they’re necessary, but only if you’re trying to keep something shelf stable for an extended period of time. When you’re making the sauce yourself, it may not last as long, but you also aren’t mass producing for a big box store. We really should stop putting foreign chemicals that are meant to preserve into our body. Anyone trying to be a mummy yet? No? Great. So preservatives just aren’t imperative right now.
3. It’s cheaper! Buying ingredients yourself will go a lot further because you’re not paying the markup for the manufacturer’s profit. Everyone likes to save money right? Well, consider this: companies have to spend money to support the mass manufacturing of their products right? Where do you think that comes from? Tomatoes aren’t that expensive, neither is garlic or salt. It’s the jars. A regular jar of tomato sauce can be about three to five dollars and one jar is only good for one meal (for the most part.) For about four bucks you can buy about a pound of fresh tomatoes or two big cans of whole or crushed tomatoes, and that will produce the equivalent of 2-3 jars. I know math is hard but this one is pretty easy.

If none of that appeals to you, how about the aspect of fun? Getting creative with sauces, dressings, or condiments gets you more familiar with your own tastes and with ingredients. You learn so much about the power of a lemon when you’re trying to experiment with its applications.

Not sure how to start? Just google a basic recipe for whatever it is- a vinaigrette, taco seasoning, or pasta sauce. Get comfortable with the ingredients and the process, and then start changing it up. Throw in something spicy, something sweet, something extra acidic- see what happens! It’s just food.