Three of the most-used seasonings in any Tex-Mex cuisine (Chili powder, Cilantro, Cumin) have incredible health benefits making “Taco Tuesday” even better!
Since moving to Texas a few years ago, we’ve learned to embrace the many flavors and dishes that makeup Tex-Mex cuisine. Three seasonings that have become essential to cooking those recipes are chili powder, cilantro, cumin. Who knew that some of these spices had so many health benefits? Now, on top of the deliciously cheesy, meaty, bean-filled tortillas, I can feel even better about feeding this to my family.
Originally Published On: August 23, 2018
Last Updated On: June 15, 2021
Chili Powder
Health Benefits
Chili powder is similar in production to cayenne pepper and is made from fresh peppers that are dried and pulverized. It can also add a kick to a meal, but in a different flavor than cayenne pepper. There are also different health benefits of chili powder.
- Antioxidant
- Blood Pressure Reduction
- Cancer-Fighter
- Cognitive Function Improvement
- Digestion Health
- Eye Health
- Hair Health
- Red Blood Cell Formation
- Skin Health
Cooking with Chili Powder
Chili powder is often used in Tex-Mex cuisines (my favorite use!), Indian, Chinese, Korean, and Tahi foods. Again, a little goes a long way with chili powder.
RELATED: Recipes using Chili Powder
Growing Chili Powder
Chili powder isn’t something that you can grow in a garden, but you can grow a lot of the ingredients. Chili powder is a mixture of multiple seasonings, most commonly paprika, oregano, cumin, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and onion powder.
Purchasing & Storing Tips
While it’s possible to grow a lot of the ingredients in chili powder, it’s much easier to buy a bottle of the seasoning from the store. If you are low or out, you can mix your own if you have all of the required spices. As with almost all other spices, chili powder can be found in the spice aisle and needs to be kept in an airtight container. Some will indicate if they are spicy or not, depending on which seasonings are in that particular variety, so pay attention to this when you are buying a new bottle.
Cilantro
Health Benefits
I know cilantro is one of those that people either love or hate it. There doesn’t seem to much in between. My family is all in the “love it” category, so we use it in our meals and have it growing in the herb garden. Some of the health benefits of cilantro include:
- Antioxidant
- Anxiety Reducer
- Blood Sugar Reduction
- Detox
- Digestion Health
- Heart Health
- Skin Health
- Sleep Improvement
- UTI Prevention
Cooking with Cilantro
The seeds of cilantro are known as coriander, and those have their own set of health benefits but aren’t as widely used in cooking, so I focused on just the cilantro leaves. Cilantro is commonly used in cuisines from Mexico, Asia, India, and the Mediterranean.
RELATED: Recipes using Cilantro
Growing Cilantro
Cilantro is one of the herbs I have growing on my windowsill and it is pretty easy to grow. I started it with seeds and covered them with potting soil in a glass jar. It sits in the window every day to get enough sun but stays inside because it doesn’t seem to do well in the intense summer heat in Texas and will bolt quickly.
The leaves of a cilantro plant will be ready to harvest within a few weeks to a month. For use in cooking, you’ll want the leaves on the top of the plant and leave the ones on the bottom to keep growing. Use cilantro fresh as it loses most of its flavor when it’s dried out.
Purchasing & Storing Tips
Even though cilantro can be purchased from the spice aisle, as mentioned, it loses most of its flavor when it’s dried out. For the most flavor buy fresh cilantro. Look for bunches with leaves that aren’t brown or wilted. Store it in the refrigerator for a few days with a towel to absorb moisture for 2-3 days. If you want it to last up to a week place it in a small jar with water like a bouquet of flowers.
Cumin
Health Benefits
Popular in Mediterranean and Southwest Asian dishes, cumin is made from chilis and tamales giving it a spicy and earthy flavor. When I smell it, I am reminded of packaged taco seasoning mix. Cumin has been used for medicinal purposes for many years, and new benefits have been recently discovered.
- Anemia Fighter
- Antimicrobial
- Antioxidant
- Blood Sugar Reduction
- Digestion Health
Cooking with Cumin
There are a few other benefits to cumin but only when taken as a supplement. Using it as a seasoning will still give you some of these health improvements.
RELATED: Recipes using Cumin
Growing Cumin
Ground cumin, the spice used in most cooking, is the ground up seeds from the cumin plant. With the climate in south Texas, we could grow it here because the plant likes 3-4 months of weather that’s 85F or higher. I think we have only 3-4 months that aren’t 85F or higher, so we are good on that!
The seeds are harvested after the flowers have bloomed, which is usually about 120 days or so. Then the seeds have to have time to dry out before being ground into cumin powder.
Purchasing & Storing Tips
In other words, it’s more cost-effective to buy cumin at the store. While it would be neat to grow your own, it doesn’t seem practical. If you still want to do-it-yourself a bit, some stores sell cumin seeds so you can grind your own. Whichever you choose, the seasoning needs to be stored in airtight containers.
Related Posts
Want a printable version of the entire list of Essential Herbs and Spices and their health benefits? Click below to receive the list in PDF format.
Sources:
The following sources helped me gather information about chili powder, cilantro, cumin, and all of their properties.
- https://draxe.com/
- https://www.dovemed.com/healthy-living/natural-health/7-health-benefits-of-chili-powder/
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/9-benefits-of-cumin
- https://www.burpee.com/gardenadvicecenter/herbs/cilantro/all-about-cilantro/article10222.html
- http://www.kraftrecipes.com/cooking-tips/foodbasics/seasonalproduce/cilantro.aspx
- https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/herbs/cumin/cumin-herb-information.htm
I love Cilantro – and it’s a natural heavy metal “detoxifier” so that’s awesome too!
It’s amazing to learn all of the wonderful health benefits of the herbs we eat every day.
cilantro is seriously the best! i love it and use it and so much!
We use quite a bit of cilantro, too!
I love learning about all of the health benefits of herbs and spices. I think it is so amazing that plants can heal us like that. I use essential oils so I am always looking for information like this 🙂
I use essential oils, too, and I agree, it’s great when you can use natural ingredients to heal yourself like that.
Mmm I love cumin. It’s always my go to especially for roasted veggies like sweet potatoes or brussels sprouts 🙂
Me, too! I didn’t think about adding it to roasted veggies, though. I’ll have to try that next time.
I love learning about the many benefits of spices I use regularly. This is such a great resource!
I do, too! It’s so great to know what we are eating and putting in our bodies.
What a great post/series, Stephanie! I LOVE These spices and use them all the time (I’ve spent some time in Mexico so love to cook different types of Mexican as well as southwestern/Tex-Mex foods for my family) – so I thought I knew a fair bit about these spices, BUT I still learned new things from reading this! Well-researched and nicely done! 🙂
I’m glad you were still able to learn more! It’s always cool to know all of the health benefits.
I can’t believe people love or hate cilantro I never thought that it was white strong and suffer from a lot of utis thanks for putting the health benefits of each product in here ! X
I had only heard about the cilantro thing in recent years. I am personally in the middle about it, but I know those who love it and those who hate it!
I have really enjoyed your series on spices and herbs. I can’t imagine how good things will taste if it was fresh.
Fresh seasonings are the best! They always have so much more flavor than dried seasonings.
I keep all of these herbs in my pantry! I also grow fresh cilantro year round in my kitchen window!
We weren’t planning to grow cilantro this year but it started growing again in our garden on it’s own!
My husband makes so much fun of me because I don’t like cilantro. I do love chili powder though 🙂
I’ve found that cilantro seems to be hit or miss. But I agree, chili powder is delicious!
I love fresh and dried herbs and spices and use them regularly in my cooking. They add another taste level to cooked food and I cannot imagine eating food with no seasoning, spices or herbs. One of kids doesn’t like cilantro so I don’t use that one much.
We use a lot of seasonings, too. I prefer fresh when we can, but even having the dried herbs adds so much flavor to meals.
What an interesting blog. I will look into getting those items that my kitchen does not account for.
It’s great having natural remedies to help boost our health!