The Best Ever DIY Taco Sauce

Name: The Best Ever DIY Taco Sauce
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 cup tomato sauce - passata (240 ml/ 8.1 fl oz); 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar (30 ml/ 1 fl oz); 1 tbsp ground cumin; ½ cup water (120 ml/ 4 fl oz); 1 tsp onion powder; ½ tsp garlic powder or 3-4 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tsp dried oregano; 1 tsp Mexican chile powder (ancho for mild, chipotle for hot); 1 tsp sweet or smoked paprika; 2 to 3 tsp Erythritol or Swerve or 3 to 6 drops of stevia; ¼ tsp cayenne pepper; 1 tsp sea salt, or to taste

Martina SlajerovaUpdated 14 July 2026★★★★☆4.4 (58 ratings)

Ready in 15m
0.6 g net carbs
4 kcal
Serves 28

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The Best Ever DIY Taco Sauce (low-carb, keto, sugar-free)

This delicious homemade taco sauce has been a staple in my house for years. Seriously, it's so easy to make and tastes way better than any store bought taco sauce I've tried before.

This taco sauce is low-carb, keto and sugar-free but you can easily make it sweetener-free if you prefer to avoid all sweeteners. It will be just as delicious! Depending on the desired heat, you can use any ancho chile powder for mild, or spicy chipotle or arbol chile powder for hot.

I keep my Taco Sauce refrigerated for one to two weeks but it should last for longer provided you keep it sealed. And did I mention it's freezer-friendly too? You can spoon it in an ice tray and freeze. Once frozen, pop the cubes out of the ice tray and store in a freezer bag for up to 6 months. Easy!

Special thanks to our talented recipe developer Dearna Bond for taking such beautiful photos of my Taco Sauce!

How To Use Taco Sauce

Just like homemade pesto or compound butter, this sugar-free taco sauce is one of my go-to ingredients to make fuss-free keto dinners in just a few minutes.

All you need to make a complete meal is protein such as meat, fish, eggs or halloumi, followed by one or more non-starchy veggies like cauliflower, broccoli, zucchini, spinach or bell peppers, and finished with a drizzle of heart-healthy fats from olive oil or sliced avocado.

Because it's super easy and perfect for quick throw-together meals and meal prep, I used it to make a couple of recipes while working on my latest Keto Simple Cookbook. I loved working on this book because it perfectly reflects my own diet. Keeping keto simple and focusing on nutrient-dense whole foods is the main reason I've been able to follow this approach for so many years. This cookbook is full of my favourite quick and easy recipes that are scalable and ideal for batch cooking.

My Keto Simple Book is available at major book stores such as Amazon US, Amazon UK, Amazon Canada and many more bookstores worldwide.

Got my Simple Keto book? Don't forget to claim your free gift! Everyone who orders any of my cookbooks can claim my two 4-week keto diet plans! You can find out how to claim your free bonus gift here.

One of my absolute favourite recipes from my Keto Simple Cookbook are these Keto Mini Meat Pies. The taco sauce takes no more than 15 minutes to make — and then you are only four ingredients and 30 minutes away from amazing keto meat pies for a packable lunch or keto dinner option.

Another recipe featuring my homemade taco sauce is a Mexican-style Ground Beef Taco Bowl, the perfect example of how you can combine various proteins such as ground beef, chicken or pork cooked in taco sauce and served with a simple tomato salsa and sliced avocado. Keto dinner served in just 20 minutes! In fact, you can prepare each of the components ahead of time so you’ll only need a few minutes to reheat the meat and assemble the bowls!

Step-by-step

Place all of the ingredients in a saucepan.
Bring to a boil and cook on medium-low for 7 to 10 minutes until reduced and thickened slightly. If too thick, add a dash of water.
Store in the fridge in a sealed jar for up to a week.
For longer storage, spoon in an ice tray and freeze. Pop the cubes out of the ice tray and store in a freezer bag for up to 6 months. Add to meals while cooking (no need to defrost).

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