Put Tajin on These 5 Summer Ready Dishes to Make Them 100x Better

Put Tajin on These 5 Summer Ready Dishes to Make Them 100x Better
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Ready to level up your mangoes? Instead of eating it raw or mixed into a salsa, next time you should try to spice it up by adding some tajin seasoning to its juicy flesh.

Tajin will give any dish an immediate kick, adding an addictive chill and lime flavour that you’ll be tempted to sprinkle on everything. You might have stumbled across this zesty combination in the wild, whether it’s been added on top of some popcorn, mixed into taco meat or maybe you’re already familiar with our pickled onions recipe?

Similar to the success of Trader Joe’s Everything But The Bagel seasoning in the US, tajin is another condiment that’s always fun to keep in your kitchen pantry or spice rack.

What is Tajin seasoning?

Delicious, that’s what. Tajin (pronounced Ta-HEEN) is a Mexican seasoning that tastes like chilli and lime-flavoured salt. It’s typically made from a combination of dried ground chillies, sea salt and dehydrated lime juice. Just try not to confuse it with tajine, a North African dish that is used to cook casserole-like meals.

So you’re probably wondering – is it spicy? The answer is not really.

While there is a zing to it, the spiciness is mild, if not low. If you’ve ever tried those big bags of chilli and lime soy crisps from your local supermarket, you’ll know that it’s not really spicy at all.

The best dishes to spice up with Tajin

Fruit, but specifically, mangoes

Tajin seasoning on fruit
Image: Tajin Chili

If you’ve ever had a craving for something sweet, but also salty, allow me to introduce you to tajin on fruit. Put it on mango, dragonfruit, watermelon, any fruit you fancy really.

The first time I ever encountered tajin, I saw it sprinkled on some mango once and boy, did it look good. The bright red seasoning complimented the sunny, yellow colour of the mango in a way that made my mouth water.

Popcorn

Popcorn
Image: iStock/vasiliybudarin

Butter and salt on popcorn is cool and all, but why not add some zing?

The next time you whip up some popcorn at home when you’re hosting a movie night, grab your tajin and shake it inside the microwave bag before serving. I guarantee you’ll be addicted.

Cocktails

Mangonada
A mangonada. Image: iStock/VeselovaElena

Most people love to cover the rim of a tequila shot or margarita in chilli powder. But what can really elevate the taste is decorating the edges of the glasses in tajin.

Better yet, in the summer you can make a mangonada (like above) using a mixture of:

  • tajin
  • chopped mangos
  • cup of lime juice
  • 1/4 cup of granulated sugar
  • 1 cup chamoy
  • 1 cup of water
  • 3/4 cup of tequila or rum

Blend it all up and garnish with some more of your new favourite seasoning once thoroughly mixed.

Corn on the cob

Mexican street corn on rectangular platter
Image: iStock/pjohnson1

There’s something about corn on the cob that is just superior to nibbling on pea-sized kernels.

One dish you can make at home is elote, which is a popular street food in Mexico. It features a big ear of corn on a stick that’s charred until tender before it’s slathered in a creamy lime sauce and topped with melted cheese and tajin.

Of course, you can always just grill a regular corn on the cob, bathe it in butter and roll it in tajin instead.

Avo toast

Avocado on toast
Image: TAJIN

While most of us like to load up our avocado toast with eggs, bacon, feta or fresh salsa, you can bring a zesty and spicy kick to yours by adding a sprinkle of tajin seasoning.

You can even mix it into some homemade guacamole too.

Where to buy tajin seasoning in Australia

Unfortunately, you’re unlikely to find a bottle of tajin at your local Coles or Woolworths. Trust me, I’ve looked. But don’t worry, I’ve put together a small list below of some places where you can order some online.

Ebay Australia will get you two 142g tajin bottles for $15.99 and that’s a bargain, if you ask me.

However, if you’d prefer to just grab a single bottle, then head on over to Amazon Australia where you can grab a 125g bottle of tajin for just $4.76.

But if you’re keen to grab a bigger size, then this 400g one is available for $13.43.


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At Lifehacker, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.

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