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This is a copycat recipe for Trader Joe’s seasoning blend, and other umami spice blends available at many grocery stores. I couldn’t find a similar blend locally (we don’t have Trader Joe’s), so I found a picture of the label and am running with the ingredients listed there (while making a few adjustments). The ratios of each spice are of course unknown, so I played around with my own and ended up landing on a blend that seems to work really well in my recipes. The Trader Joe’s bottle has salt as the first listed ingredient, so I also wanted to try one with minimal or no salt. This blend is still really flavorful without all that salt.
So what are you going to use this for? Well, it’s great for ramen soup, which recipe is coming up later this week. I finally cracked the ramen soup code and made a “proper one” and WOW. It’s going into the regular rotation. So this blend is a good one to have on hand if you want to make ramen soup. It is also great for adding to popcorn, stews, and broths in general.
This recipe makes about 60g of dry spice.
Umami Spice Blend
This is a "close copycat" recipe of Trader Joe's Umami Seasoning Blend. A few things are changed, but it lends a wonderful umami flavor to your recipes.
3.72 from 7 votes
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Course: Sauces, Spreads & Condiments, Seasonings
Cuisine: Asian, Fusion
Keyword: black pepper, chili powder, mushrooms, thyme, yellow mustard powder
Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes minutes
Servings: 24 Servings
Calories: 15kcal
Author: Jen deHaan
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp porcini mushroom powder See notes.
- 2 Tbsp mushroom blend powder Or white button mushroom powder. See notes.
- 3 Tbsp onion powder
- 1 Tbsp yellow mustard powder
- 1 Tbsp jalapeño pepper powder Sub crushed crushed red pepper, chipotle powder, etc
- 2 tsp thyme Dried spice.
- 1 tsp black pepper Or sub white pepper for a different flavor profile!
- 1/2 tsp sea salt Optional.
Instructions
If applicable, grind dried mushrooms in a coffee grinder until it's a find powder.
Add all ingredients to a bowl, and mix thoroughly.
Store in an airtight container, such as an old spice bottle.
Notes
I used dried mushrooms and ground them into a powder. This can be better, as you control what parts of the mushroom is included (some powders are made of stems and broken pieces as opposed to the full mushroom). If a concern, check for grit in advance by soaking a couple. See the recipe article for more notes about the mushrooms. 1/2 cup of dried mushrooms makes about 1/4 cup of powder.
I used a jalapeno pepper powder in this recipe, because it is finely ground. Use crushed red pepper flakes, or you could grind them in a coffee grinder too.
This recipe makes about 60g of dry spice.
Nutrition Facts
Umami Spice Blend
Serving Size
1.5 tsp
Amount per Serving
Calories
15
% Daily Value*
Fat
1
g
2
%
Saturated Fat
0.2
g
1
%
Sodium
55
mg
2
%
Potassium
64
mg
2
%
Carbohydrates
3
g
1
%
Fiber
1
g
4
%
Sugar
1
g
1
%
Protein
1
g
Vitamin A
100
IU
2
%
Vitamin C
0.4
mg
%
Calcium
5
mg
1
%
Iron
0.2
mg
1
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Tried this recipe? Customized it?Let us know how it was in the comments!
Changes, swaps, and alternatives
You can find mushroom powder or dried mushrooms easily online, and many grocery stores carry specific types of dried mushrooms. They are really easy to find: I found my bottles down the road out in a semi-rural area on an island. The Trader Joe’s bottle indicates white button mushroom powder, which I could not find locally so I used a general “forest mushroom” blend that turned out really well. I do recommend trying to find porcini mushrooms if you can. 1/2 cup of dry mushrooms makes about 1/4 cup of powder.
I found my jalapeno pepper spice locally at a standard grocery store. If you can’t find something like this, use a different chili based spice – the Trader Joe’s blend uses red chili flakes, which are standard in any grocery store. Grind them up if desired.
Omit the salt if you are SOS-free.
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Jen deHaan
Owner at Plant Based Recipe
Jen is a plant-based nutrition enthusiast and vegan living in British Columbia, Canada. She has over 20 years experience in software, graphics, and art, including many years in Silicon Valley corporations. Jen completed the Developing Healthy Communities graduate program at Tufts University's Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. Jen really likes dogs and dancing too.
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About Post Author
Jen deHaan
Jen is a plant-based nutrition enthusiast and vegan living in British Columbia, Canada. She has over 20 years experience in software, graphics, and art, including many years in Silicon Valley corporations. Jen completed the Developing Healthy Communities graduate program at Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. Jen really likes dogs and dancing too.
See author's posts
About Jen deHaan
Jen is a plant-based nutrition enthusiast and vegan living in British Columbia, Canada. She has over 20 years experience in software, graphics, and art, including many years in Silicon Valley corporations. Jen completed the Developing Healthy Communities graduate program at Tufts University's Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. Jen really likes dogs and dancing too.
Reader Interactions
Comments
Greer
Thanks for “doing the work” to reproduce TJ’s mushroom seasoning. I’ve been on a plant based diet for almost a year having been diagnosed with kidney disease. I’ve been pleasantly surprised to find the transition not nearly as difficult as I expected. But, the limit on sodium has been tough for this former salt freak!
I so often find prepared food that works for a low salt diet but is just too expensive, but I’m a gigantic failure in my efforts to reverse engineer them. Thanks also for providing the nutritional information. Again, another big help for those like me who need to watch intake of certain foods.
Question: What’s the serving size for nutritional info. provided?
Reply
Jen @ PlantBasedRecipe
Hi Greer! Serving is about 1.5tsp. And thanks! So glad this was helpful 🙂
Reply
rick e echeverria
I noticed in your recipe salt is last on the list while on the TJ’s Unami list of ingredients salt is first on the list… mush difference in taste?
By the way I use ancient pink salt now because they are finding a lot of micro plastics in sea salt now a days…Reply
Maïla
Great Umami mix. I used no salt (my husband and I prefer to adjust the salt -if we use any- as we cook instead of having it included on the mix), plus we used our own wild mushrooms that we picked last summer, and ground Chili flakes instead of jalapeño. Thanks for adapting this TJ recipe!Reply
Jen @ PlantBasedRecipe
Sounds great! Thanks for the tips!
Reply
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