Chili Powder

• Commercial chili powder consists of ground, dried chili and seasonings, such as cumin, salt, allspice, oregano or garlic powder. When purchasing fresh chili powder in a Mexican food specialty store, the consumer often has a choice of sweet, hot or mild chili powder. Paprika is a form of chili powder, made from sweet and mild chili. Countless Mexican food recipes call for chili powder, such as red chili sauce, corn soup, hominy soup, Guadalajara soup and enchilada pie.

Cumin

• Made from ground cumin seeds, cumin spice has a distinct nutty flavor and aroma. It lends its flavor to a variety of Mexican dishes. Without cumin, some chicken enchilada recipes would be missing a vital flavor ingredient. Other Mexican food recipes which often call for cumin include chorizo filling, chili con carne, hominy and red chili sauce.

Oregano

• While oregano is often associated with Italian cooking, many Mexican food recipes also call for it. Oregano comes from the leaves of the oregano plant and is technically an herb. Herbs come from the leaves of non-woody plants, while spices come from the seeds, bark, flowers, roots or fruits of a plant. If you make your own chili powder, oregano might be one of the spices you add to the powder. Recipes that typically call for oregano include spinach enchiladas, red chili sauce and hominy.

Garlic

• Garlic is a familiar seasoning found in a well-stocked pantry. Some cooks use powdered garlic or garlic salt, while others prefer to use fresh garlic cloves in their recipes. Recipes that call for garlic include red chili sauce, bean recipes and rice dishes. Use garlic to season meats used in many Mexican recipes.

Cinnamon

• Many traditional Mexican dessert recipes call for cinnamon, such as fried sweet puffs, calzones or coffee flan. There are some non-dessert recipes, such as chorizo filling, which also call for cinnamon.