Simple and delicious homemade poultry seasoning recipe using fresh or dried herbs. Much cheaper than McCormick, and you can go beyond chicken, try turkey or vegetables!
My husband said to me the other day, “What’s for dinner? And please don’t tell me chicken and sweet potatoes.”
As a family, we were on the Whole30 at the time. He cut out dairy and gluten two weeks before we started and two weeks into the first official month, he cut out nightshades as well.
While I did my best to offer variety, I will admit that the poor man had been eating A LOT of chicken and sweet potatoes.
His one saving grace – poultry seasoning.
What is Poultry Seasoning?
If you go to Walmart or any other grocery store, you can find this seasoning with all the other spices. It’s a blend of a few savory spices, including:
- thyme
- marjoram
- rosemary
- sage
I’m guessing you already have these in your pantry which is why you should make your own spice blend!
In addition to those lovely green herbs, there’s a little bit of nutmeg thrown in there too, which makes your nose go, “Mmm… I wasn’t expecting that.”
Simple and delicious homemade seasoning can be customized. You can mix and match the spices to reach your preferred taste.
Why Use Homemade Poultry Seasoning?
I saw “poultry seasoning” on the Whole30 shopping list when I first read the book and honestly, I ignored it. I didn’t want one more jar in my spice cabinet taking up space. How many recipes call for poultry seasoning, anyway?
I should have taken heed though because sometimes it’s nice to have something different! Making it homemade from your own spices saves you at least $3 a jar! Plus making it from scratch means no MSG!
DIY Poultry Seasoning is Versatile
- You can omit or substitute based on what you have at home. Truly, if you don’t have something, just leave it out! Despite what some people may say, you don’t HAVE to have sage to cook chicken, and you don’t HAVE to have any of the other spices either.
- Spice it up! If you’re feeling daring, add in some cayenne pepper or fresh ground black pepper. This would make for a nice twist to the usual!
- You can customize the blend. I like the texture differences between the spices and chose to leave all of them whole, but you can grind them in a cheap old coffee grinder or even your blender (I have this awesome blender) and turn it all into a fine powder.
Ingredients for Poultry Seasoning
This DIY Seasoning Doesn’t Have Salt
Salt is an essential nutrient that the body needs, but I intentionally left it out of this recipe. That way you can salt your dish however you want, without the salt from a seasoning blend interfering.
Remember to read the ingredients in your salt. Many table salts contain dextrose, an artificial sugar. It’s supposed to be there to prevent clumping, but it’s still fake sugar and not necessary.
Note: I buy this Real Salt.
Homemade Poultry Seasoning Instructions
Step 1. Combine all ingredients in a container. Use as desired to season your poultry, vegetables, and sauces!
Dried VS Fresh Herbs for Homemade Poultry Seasoning
I made this DIY seasoning using dried herbs because that’s what I have on hand. Most of the time, I buy my dried herbs from Walmart or ALDI. If you prefer to buy organic spices, Thrive Market has amazing deals!
You can definitely make it with fresh herbs, but it wouldn’t be cost-effective unless you either found ALL of them marked down at the same time, or you have an herb garden.
FAQS
Well, I’m sure it can eventually. As long as you keep them dry, dried spices have a VERY long shelf life. You can store them in your own jars with labels removed or use a set like this for your homemade seasonings.
Yes, you can use Italian seasoning instead of poultry seasoning. It contains a lot of the same ingredients and is flavorful. Try my homemade recipe for Italian seasoning!
Poultry seasoning does have a very strong flavor.
Seasoning Uses
I made a super simple chicken seasoning rub the other day, adding 1 Tbsp of poultry seasoning to 2/3 cup of almond flour.
You can sprinkle this homemade seasoning on anything that needs a flavor boost…
- Potatoes (baked potatoes or crispy potato wedges)
- Eggs (the best scrambled eggs!)
- Turkey
- Hamburgers or Meatballs (the best burger recipe or awesome 15-minute meatballs!)
- Soups
- Stuffing
- Sweet potatoes (fried sweet potatoes or crash hot sweet potatoes)
- Pasta sauces (homemade tomato sauce)
More Frugal Homemade Seasonings
Whole30 Meal Plan
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DIY Homemade Poultry Seasoning
Simple and delicious homemade poultry seasoning recipe using fresh or dried herbs. Much cheaper than McCormick, and you can go beyond chicken, try turkey or vegetables!
- Prep Time: 5 minues
- Cook Time: 0 mins
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1.75 Tbsp 1x
- Category: Sauces/Condiments
- Method: Bowl
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a container. Use as desired to season your poultry, vegetables, and sauces!
Notes
- You can definitely make it with fresh herbs, but it wouldn’t be cost-effective unless you either found ALL of them marked down at the same time, or you have an herb garden.
- You can omit or substitute based on what you have at home. Truly, if you don’t have something, just leave it out! Despite what some people may say, you don’t HAVE to have sage to cook chicken, and you don’t HAVE to have any of the other spices either.
- You can customize the blend. I like the texture differences between the spices and chose to leave all of them whole, but you can grind them in a cheap old coffee grinder or even your blender (I have this awesome blender) and turn it all into a fine powder.
- Spice it up! If you’re feeling daring, add in some cayenne pepper or fresh ground black pepper. This would make for a nice twist to the usual!
Nutrition
- Calories: 21
Keywords: poultry seasoning, poultry seasoning recipes, recipe for poultry seasoning, what’s in poultry seasoning
Hey Tiffany!
I have a recipe I’d like to share with you. Though it isn’t exactly poultry seasoning, it can be filed under sauces/condiments. Though I don’t remember where I found it, this is a homemade version of extra crispy Shake N Bake. Unlike the boxed version, which is usually only for chicken, you can use this one for chicken or pork! If you like, you could even try steaks with it as well. I might even try it with salmon! When you look at the recipe, you’ll notice there are no yucky preservatives. Nothing but ingredients you have right at home! I made this one at a cooking class hosted by Mama Jane, where I was the teacher that day. I made chicken with it. Let me tell you, none of her students could tell the difference! They all said that it tastes just like the store-bought version!
Extra Crispy Shake N Bake
You’ll Need:
3 cups Bread Crumbs
¼ cup Vegetable Oil (Optional)
2 teaspoons Salt
2 teaspoons Onion Powder
2 teaspoons Sugar
2 teaspoons Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon Black Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Chili Powder
1/2 teaspoon Parsley Flakes
1/2 teaspoon Basil
1/2 teaspoon Oregano
You Do:
1. Combine all ingredients and mix until well blended and there are no big clumps.
2. Transfer to airtight container.
To Use:
3. Preheat oven to 400 for Pork or 425 for Chicken.
4. Pour some of the mixture into a large zippered bag.
5. Wet each piece of meat and shake off excess water.
6. Place in the bag and shake to coat. Shake off excess breading, place on baking sheet.
7. Bake pork chops for 15-20 minutes.
8. Bake bone-in chicken for 40-45 minutes.
9. Bake boneless chicken for 20-25 minutes.
10. Let cool for 15 to 20 minutes, then store in refrigerator or freezer.
11. Heat in the microwave, an oven, or even an air fryer, serve and enjoy!
And, if you like, you can make the Crunchy Pretzel version by substituting 3 cups crushed, unsalted pretzels for the bread crumbs. Or if you want salted pretzels, you can eliminate the salt. Also, when preparing the oregano, parsley flakes and basil, make sure they’re made into powder so there are no visible specks. You can do this by putting them in a grinder, or simply crushing them in a plastic sandwich-size zippered bag with your hands.