Add depth and complexity to your favorite dishes with this homemade Seasoned Salt.
If you are someone who loves to watch food shows, read cookbooks, follow chefs on Instagram, or all of the above, then you know how essential salt is to good food. Actually, even if you don’t partake in any of these things but you love to cook or just to eat, you know salt is the great food enhancer! Now, just wait until you see what happens to your food when you add your own homemade seasoned salt.
We have to thank Lawrence Frank, co-owner of the legendary Lawry’s Prime Rib Restaurant in Beverly Hills, for coming up with the brilliant idea of seasoned salt. In 1938, he mixed together salt, sugar, paprika, turmeric, onion, and garlic for patrons to sprinkle on their meat once it was carved. The next thing he knew, the concept and the product just took off. That same year, Lawry’s Seasoned Salt became a retail product and remains to this day a trusted favorite in kitchens all across the country.
And it’s no wonder. This zingy, savory blend of salt and spices has been elevating dishes for over 85 years! The Lawry’s you buy at the store includes Lawrence Frank’s original mix, along with a few other things (like celery seed) and some other extra ingredients that prevent caking and help with the texture. It’s yummy, for sure, but so is our recipe, and there are no extras in there. To make your own seasoned salt, all you need is salt, spices, and five minutes!
Customizing Seasoned Salt
We love the combination of tastes in our recipe for seasoned salt, but that certainly doesn’t mean you can’t change things around. First, you can adjust the amounts of spices we recommend according to your liking (more or less garlic powder, not quite as much cayenne if you want less heat). You can also add in flavors you love. Dried herbs, such as oregano and basil, bring an earthy Italian taste to seasoned salt. If you want to have a bit of Latin American flair, add some chili powder or some spicy chipotle powder. To balance the kick our recipe gets from black pepper and cayenne, try adding a little sugar—white or brown. And if you want more smokiness, finely grind some bacon bits and add those in!
FAQs & Tips
How Do I Store Leftovers?
Seasoned salt can be kept in an airtight container in a dry area of the kitchen for up to 1 year.
Will This Recipe Work With Fine Salt Instead Of Kosher?
Yes! Some people prefer kosher salt’s taste and texture to that of fine salt, but both work perfectly in this recipe.
What Kind Of Paprika Is Called For In This Recipe?
When a recipe, like ours, just calls for paprika, it’s usually sweet paprika—made from sweet red peppers. But there are other varieties of paprika, including smoked and hot. You do you!
Serving Suggestions
Seasoned salt is a great way to amplify the flavor of so many dishes. It’s delicious on Grilled BBQ Chicken, sprinkled over hot French Fries, swirled into Butternut Squash Soup, and is a game changer for foods that tend to be plain, like Hard-Boiled Eggs. In fact, there are so many ways to use seasoned salt that I don’t have enough room in this post to tell you about all of them!
But I can tell you about a few of my more surprising ways! One thing I love to do is make some Homemade Butter, stir in seasoned salt, and form it into a log to chill. Then I serve slices of it with Pretzel Bread. Delish. I also use a melted version of this seasoned salt butter to drizzle over Stovetop Popcorn or Roasted Chickpeas. And here’s a showstopper for your next dinner party: make this recipe for Roasted Shrimp Cocktail and use the seasoned salt instead of just salt and pepper in step two. And then serve this shrimp cocktail in martini glasses rimmed with seasoned salt (run a lemon wedge around the rim so the salt mixture will adhere).
Seasoned Salt
Ingredients
- 4 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 1/4 teaspoons garlic powder
- 3/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine all of the ingredients and stir well to mix evenly.
- Place the mixed spices in a sealed container. Shake it thoroughly before each use.
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