Homemade Old Bay Seasoning – just scratch

This homemade Old Bay Condiment combines 13 dried herbs and spices like celery salt, paprika, and ground bay leaves for a flavorful sweet and tangy spice blend. Makes about 3 tablespoons.

What is Old Bay Spice?

Old Bay is a spice blend originally made in Baltimore, Maryland and now marketed and sold in the United States by McCormick and Company. There is a whole story behind this spice mix, I urge you to visit Google and read about it sometime.

What is Old Bay seasoning made of?

According to McCormick, it’s a blend of 18 herbs and spices, and the label says: celery salt (salt, celery seed), spices (including red pepper and black pepper), and paprika. Obviously not a lot of information so I worked on this recipe and in the end mine only calls for 13 common spices and dried herbs. And in my humble opinion, it tastes damn similar. In it, celery salt, paprika, ground bay leaf and cayenne pepper are the most prominent flavors, but the subtle warmth of sweet spices like allspice, cinnamon, ginger and cardamom also play a role in giving this blend its unique flavor.

To make this homemade Old Bay Seasoning you will need:

• paprika – Adds color and subtle flavor.
• cayenne pepper – Gives this spice mixture its sharpness.
• celery salt – A mixture of ground celery seeds and salt. Adds a hint of celery flavor.
• dried mustard – Gives this spice a certain spiciness.
• ground black pepper – Adds some subtle bite and flavor.
• ground bay leaf – Imparts an earthy, slightly piney flavor with hints of black pepper.
• fine salt – Enhances the flavors in the wort.
• smoked paprika – Adds color and subtle smoky flavor.
• pimento – Imparts notes of cloves, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, star anise and fennel.
• Ginger (Floor) – Has a sharp, spicy and sweet taste.
• nutmeg (Floor) – Warm, aromatic with subtle clove notes.
• cardamom (Floor) – Fragrant with notes of eucalyptus, citrus and black pepper.
• Cinammon – Imparts a distinct warm and woody taste.

Ground bay leaf is not something I could easily find on grocery store shelves. So I pulled out my mortar and pestle and ground up as many bay leaves as it took to get 1 teaspoon. I sifted it through a mesh sieve to sort out hard stem-like bits.

NOTE: If making your own ground bay leaf I highly recommend wearing a mask or stuffing your nose with tissues as the dust is very strong and a bit numbing.

In a jar or storage container, measure 2 teaspoons each of paprika, 1 teaspoon each of cayenne pepper, celery salt, ground mustard, black pepper, and bay leaf. 1/2 teaspoon each fine sea salt, smoked paprika powder, 1/4 teaspoon each allspice, ground ginger, nutmeg, cardamom and cinnamon.

stir.

Until well mixed.

And that’s it! Secure lid tightly and store in a dry, dark place for up to 6 months or longer.

What to do with Old Bay Seasoning:

If you want to see more spice blends you can make at home, check out my growing list of 20+ DIY spices!

Enjoy! And if you try this Old Bay Seasoning recipe, let me know! Take a picture and tag me chirp or instagram!