Salty and sweet. Sweet and sour. Spicy and sweet. I tend to love contrasting combinations. So when my fiancé first told me about the Tajin spice blend and how he’d been wanting to buy some, I was excited. He said he’d had it many times on street fruit in Mexico. Seeing as I’ve yet to experience Mexico outside of Tijuana, which I know represents the country as much as Times Square does Manhattan, I’d never been exposed to mango and Tajin, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite snacks. I did think back to the spiced oranges I ate while hiking a volcano in Guatemala though, and that seems to be a similar delicacy.
When we moved into our new house recently the former occupants were kind enough to leave a few spices behind. And when we saw Tajin, we both got excited. Since then we’ve been putting it on mangos, apples, pineapples, strawberries and bananas. (I can’t wait till watermelon season!) I even used it to season cauliflower and tomatoes that I threw together to clean out the fridge the other day. But what exactly is Tajin?
Around since 1985, Tajin is the name of the Mexican company that makes this flavorful spice medley of mild chilis, lime and sea salt. If you pass on the Clasico version, you can opt for low-sodium Clasico or Habanero. The company also makes a savory spice blend, sauces and tamarind pulp. They have lots of pleasant looking recipes on their site.
If you’ve had a Michelada, you may have already, unknowingly tried it. I had apparently! But I guess I’d never really put too much thought into what made the Michelada rim taste so good.
Oh, and a tip for all you fellow citrus fiends: Enhance the flavor burst by squeezing some lime juice over whatever you’re seasoning!