You may know Old Bay seasoning best as an indispensable ingredient in a classic crawfish boil or crab cakes with a lovely lemon sauce. But who said it’s exclusively the domain of seafood? Go on. Shake the seasoning on everything else…

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Why Our Testers Loved This

The testers are sprinkling this on everything they can find, and for good reason. They loved that this homemade Old Bay spice blend tastes authentic yet doesn’t contain preservatives. Many of them look forward to adding this to their arsenal of homemade food gifts to share with friends and family.

Brenda C. “enjoyed the freshness of the homemade version, which was well-rounded and complete.” Hubba, hubba!

What You’ll Need to Make This

Five glass bowls containing all of the spices required to make Old Bay seasoning.
  • Celery salt–Made from a combination of ground celery seed and salt, this contributes plenty of saltiness to the Old Bay-style seasoning blend. Keep this in mind when seasoning your food, as it may not need any additional salt.
  • Paprika–This spice, made from ground red peppers, adds depth of flavor to the spice blend. We recommend regular paprika here.
  • Ground mace–This is ground from the outer coating of the nutmeg seed. You can substitute ground nutmeg if necessary.

How to Make This Recipe

A glass bowl with the spices for homemade Old Bay seasoning in it and a person using a spoon to mix them all together.
  1. Combine all of the spices in a small bowl.
  2. Stir until thoroughly combined. Transfer to an airtight jar or container and store at room temperature for up to 2 months.

Common Questions

How long will Old Bay Seasoning keep?

Like most spice blends, it will keep for up to 6 months if stored in an airtight container in a cool, dark place. Given the options listed above, we doubt it will last you anywhere near that long.

When and where did Old Bay seasoning originate?

The original Old Bay seasoning blend was created in 1940 by Gustav Brunn, a German spice maker who came to the US as a Jewish refugee during World War II.

The spice blend was created in Maryland and was originally sold under the name Delicious Brand Shrimp and Crab Seasoning, before being changed to Old Bay Seasoning. The rights to the spice blend were purchased by McCormick in 1990.

What Can I Do With Old Bay Seasoning?

– Mixed into crab cakes, natch
– Sprinkled on sweet corn on the cob
– Shaken or stirred into a Bloody Mary
– Dumped on fries
– Incorporated into the flour for dredging pan-fried fish or pan-fried chicken
– Dumped into seafood gumbo
– Stirred into Spanish gazpacho
– Strewn atop a baked potato
– Dusted daintily over naan
– Stirred into egg salad without mayo
– Rubbed on grilled fish that’s destined to be wrapped up in soft corn tortillas (that is to say, grilled fish tacos)
– Melded into hot crab dip
– Tossed with homemade popcorn
– Whisked into egg white omelets
– Swirled into seafood soups and stews
– Whirled into homemade tartar sauce
– Dissolved in a brine for pork or poultry
– Sprinkled in bread crumbs for, well, just about anything
– Mashed into deviled eggs Injected into chicken or turkey
– Mixed into the coating for onion rings
– Heaped on homemade potato chips
– Added to mayo for a quick dip
– Mashed with butter, garlic, and Parmigiano-Reggiano and slathered on warm bread
– Rubbed between the meat and skin of a hen prior to roasting
– Sprinkled on homemade tortilla chips as they’re pulled from the oil
– Tossed with breakfast oven fries
– Added to stuffing or, if you prefer, dressing (and we’re quite certain you know the difference between them…right?)
– Combined with hummus
– Strewn on crawfish anything

Helpful Tips

  • For the most potent flavor, grind your own spices. Always measure the spices after grinding.
  • If you plan on using this seasoning mix frequently, double or triple the recipe.
  • If you prefer to be more precise in your measurements, a “pinch” can be measured as 1/16 of a teaspoon.
  • Store the spice blend in an airtight container in a cool, dark place.

Benefits

There are several great reasons to make your own homemade Old Bay seasoning. You can whip up as big or small a batch as you like, depending on how frequently you use it. You can also adjust the seasoning and blend of spices to accommodate your personal preferences, allergies, or dietary needs.

More Great Seasoning Blend Recipes

Write a Review

If you make this recipe, or any dish on LC, consider leaving a review, a star rating, and your best photo in the comments below. I love hearing from you.–David

A hand sprinkling homemade Old Bay Seasoning in a small glass bowl

Homemade Old Bay Seasoning

4.79 / 51 votes
This Old Bay seasoning recipe is a blend of celery salt, paprika, black pepper, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, ginger, and other spices that are exactly what you want to sprinkle on shrimp, crab boil, fish, fries, chicken. Anything, really.
David Leite
CourseCondiments
CuisineAmerican
Servings2 tablespoons
Calories7 kcal
Prep Time5 minutes
Total Time5 minutes

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • Stir together all the ingredients in a small bowl. Transfer to a container of some sort that has a tight-fitting lid—a glass jar with a screw-top lid works spectacularly.
  • Set aside in a cool, dark place and use within a couple months.

Notes

  1. Scale up the recipe–If you plan on using the spice blend frequently, double or triple the recipe.
  2. Storage–Old Bay seasoning should be stored in an airtight container in a cool dark place for up to 2 months.
  3. Grind your spices–For the strongest flavor, grind your own spices. Always measure the spices after grinding.
  4. Measuring a “pinch”–If you prefer to be more precise in your measurements, a “pinch” can be measured as 1/16 of a teaspoon.
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Nutrition

Serving: 1 tablespoonCalories: 7 kcalCarbohydrates: 1 gProtein: 0.2 gFat: 0.4 gSaturated Fat: 0.1 gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.2 gSodium: 3489 mgFiber: 0.4 gSugar: 0.1 g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Tried this recipe?Mention @leitesculinaria or tag #leitesculinaria!
Recipe © 2009 Todd Wilbur. Photos © 2021 David Leite. All rights reserved.




About David Leite

I count myself lucky to have received three James Beard Awards for my writing as well as for Leite’s Culinaria. My work has also appeared in The New York Times, Martha Stewart Living, Saveur, Bon Appรฉtit, Gourmet, Food & Wine, Yankee, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, and more.


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83 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Thank you David you were a life saver! We cannot find Old Bay Seasoning anywhere here in Hong Kong and so glad I found your recipe. I used it in my crab stuffed founder and it was so delicious. I will be adding your link to my recipe and will be posting it soon.

    1. Bam’s Kitchen, you’re more than welcome. Todd Wilbur did a great job recreating the flavor of a wonderful spice mix.

      1. Rick, I have seen it in the groceries store. I’m in NB and I’ve seen it in Sobeys or Atlantic Superstore (Loblaws chain). Or even the Bulk Barn would probably carry it. Worse case scenario, you should be able to purchase on Amazon!

  2. Copious amount of Old Bay, a bit of chopped bacon and onion added to a pot of fresh (or as happens most times, canned) green beans is delish! We don’t eat them any other way!

  3. I see this post is older but hey I am new here so this post is new to me. I can not wait to try to make my own Old Bay! I have a embarrassing kinda comical story about Old Bay. Twenty years ago we moved from our hometown of Lexington. KY, to New Smyrna Beach, Fl. We met some locals and they took us crabbing. We had a blast and were quite successful in our attempts at catching crabs. On our way home we were told by our new local friends that we needed Old Bay seasoning to make crab cakes. We had never heard of it. (Gasp, can you imagine?)

    So we went into the local store to pick some up. Being fresh from KY we had heavy accents, even though we didn’t think we did. We looked all over for what the locals had called “Crab Boil.” Finally we asked the sales clerk. We kept saying we needed Old Bay crab boil. I reckon it sounded like we had a mouth full of mush. They could not understand us! We sounded like O-boy crab oil. LOL. Finally a customer from W. Virginia heard us repeating our self over and over and translated our hillbilly for the clerk and we were able to get the Old Bay… aha the memories.,…