Sazon Seasoning

Sazon is an essential blend of spices used in many Latin American recipes. An all purpose seasoning that gives the dishes a delicious umami flavor.

If there is only one spice blend I think everyone should have in their home is Sazon. The reason for this is because it is very versatile and gives the food a unique taste. If you ever tasted food from Latin American or Caribbean countries like Puerto Rico or the Dominican Republic you’ve already tasted Sazon seasoning. In fact, along with sofrito, sazon is one of the essential bases in Puerto Rican cuisine.

What is Sazon

Sazon Is a perfect blend of spices made with garlic powder, coriander, cumin, ground annatto, salt and msg. A staple seasoning used in many dishes around the world. Used in many recipes sometimes acting as a marinate and other times acting as the base seasoning.

Who invented Sazon

A Lot of people tend to think that Sazon was invented by Puerto Ricans. In reality, Sazon is a product created by a company named Goya that was established in 1936 by Spanish immigrants in New York.

Does Sazon have msg

Sazon does contain msg. It is an essential ingredient in your seasoning blend. The msg is key in sazon because it helps unify the flavors of the spices with its umami taste. If you can’t have msg you may leave it out but I must warn you that it won’t taste the same.

Is Sazon bad for you

It depends on many factors like any conditions you may have and what kind of sazon you are using. If you are using store bought sazon these contain a very high amount of sodium and if this is something you are trying to avoid then yes it can be bad for you in high quantities. Also, store bought sazon has color additives that make the sazon look very orangey.

Where can I find the ingredients for Sazon

Nowadays sazon ingredients are very easy to find. Most of the spices like garlic powder, cumin, coriander, salt and msg can be found in your local supermarket. The one that can be a little tricky is ground annatto. Which you may be able to find in a Latin supermarket. If you can’t find it near you I can assure you that you can get it online.

What do you use Sazon for

Sazon is a all in one seasoning that can be used for many things and in many ways. You can use sazon as your marinate for vegetables and meats. You can use it as the seasonings in soups like sancocho or shrimp soup. Also in other foods such as yellow rice or stewed beans. A great way is to use it in your ground beef as your taco seasoning.

How to store

A great way to store your sazon is in a mason jar or an airtight container. You can also use plastic storage bags. Keep it at room temperature and it will last many months. To know if your sazon is still good just give it a sniff to make sure your spice still has aroma.

How to make Sazon

Making sazon is super easy. You just have to measure your ground annatto, garlic powder, salt, ground cumin, ground coriander and msg. Mix them and store them in an airtight container. 

Sazon Variations

You can make many variations to your sazon like adding saffron. You can also add onion powder. You can even add some cayenne pepper to spice it up.

Ingredients

1. Ground Annatto- the annatto serves two purposes. First is the responsible spice for giving the sazon its color. It also adds a nice smoky flavor.

2. Garlic powder- is great to add that garlicky flavor.

3. Salt- We use a small amount of salt for flavor.

4. Ground Coriander- is great in sazon because of its lemony aroma.

5. Ground Cumin- is great but it may be a little strong for some people so is best to keep it at a minimum.

6. Msg- is essential to sazon because it really brings out the umami flavor in sazon.