Homemade spice blends are a quick and simple way to add a boost of flavor when cooking a meal.  Of course there’s lots of ready made spice blends and rubs to choose from at the stores, but it’s really just as quick and easy to stir them together yourself with spices you may already have on hand in your pantry.

One of the spice blends that’s become a favorite at our house is our homemade Montreal Steak Seasoning.  We first started using and enjoying the McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning many years ago when my hubby was able to bring home some samples.  It was good stuff and I would buy it from time to time, but then the logical cheapskate in me took over and I decided it couldn’t be that hard to make my own and I would save some money too.

So I did some research and tested and tweaked a few batches.  The final result is my recipe below which we now use all the time, especially during the peak summer grilling season.  We love it!   It’s easy on the budget too because the base of this blend is simply salt and pepper, with a few other goodies mixed in.

Homemade Montreal Steak Seasoning

• 7 teaspoons salt

• 3 teaspoons black pepper

• 2 teaspoons onion powder

• 2 teaspoons garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)

• 1 teaspoon ground thyme

• 1 teaspoon rosemary

Measure out all the ingredients into a small mixing bowl and stir together to combine them well.  Store the mixture in a small airtight container.   (I use a Small Glass Spice Jar that has a shaker top covered by a screw on metal lid).

To use the spice blend, sprinkle on both sides of a steak before cooking or grilling.