How to Make Everything Bagel Seasoning – Have you tried it? This copycat Trader Joe’s seasoning is good on EVERYTHING!
I was a little late to the Everything Bagel Seasoning trend. For the last year or two, I’ve seen this Trader Joe’s seasoning mix popping up all over the place online. I was intrigued, but wasn’t ever really into everything bagels growing up and didn’t know what all the fuss was about. I asked on Instagram a few months ago, and it turns out people SWEAR by everything bagel seasoning! I had people say they put it on everything from eggs to potatoes, chicken to cottage cheese, and everything in between.
I gave into the hype and picked up my first jar during my last trek to Trader Joe’s and was totally converted after some of the best avocado toast of my life. This seasoning blend–made from garlic, onion, salt, sesame seeds, and poppy seeds–really is great on so many things. AND if you don’t live close to a Trader Joe’s, you can still totally make your own.
Here’s the easy-peasy method for DIY Copycat Trader Joe’s Everything Bagel Seasoning and some of my favorite ways to use it.
It really is as simple as combining a few different seasonings and seeds. Once you’ve got your mix, you store it in a jar or airtight container and it’ll keep for several months. As for what to put it on… here are a few favorites:
- Avocado toast
- Poached, scrambled, or fried eggs
- Roasted potatoes
- Turkey sandwiches and lettuce wraps
- Grilled chicken
- Roasted veggies
- On top of hummus or veggie dip
It adds a nice note of flavor (and a little crunch!) to so many different dishes. It’s easy to play around and experiment with it!
Notes on DIY Everything Bagel Seasoning
Open Sesame. Trader Joe’s makes their blend look pretty by using a combination of black sesame seeds and white sesame seeds. Not every store stocks black sesame seeds, so you can totally order from Amazon or just swap in additional white sesame seeds. The taste won’t be noticeably different.
Don’t Try to Substitute Other Ingredients. Really. It just won’t work. You really do need to use the grated/dehydrated garlic flakes and onion flakes rather than granulated/ground. I’ve been able to find onion flakes at many different stores, but garlic was a little trickier to find. I wouldn’t recommend swapping in granulated garlic (garlic powder) or onion powders. They’ll fall straight to the bottom and be far too strong.
Go kosher or coarse. Similarly, you want nice big flakes of salt in this. My favorite is the Maldon brand big flaked sea salt, but I’ve also made it with coarse kosher salt and it was good, too.
Keep it Fresh. My batch makes much less than a full Trader Joe’s size jar. I prefer to keep my batches of seasoning blends on the small side so they’re always fresh. You can certainly double or triple this recipe if you want to make a bigger container full.
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Everything Bagel Seasoning
- Yield: About 3 Tbsp seasoning mix 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeIngredients
- 1 1/2 Tbsp sesame seeds
- 1 1/2 tsp black sesame seeds
- 1 tsp onion flakes
- 1 tsp poppy seeds
- 1/2 tsp garlic flakes
- 1/2 tsp flaked salt (like Maldon brand. Can use kosher salt)
Instructions
- Combine all seasonings in a small bowl or jar. Shake or stir to combine. Store in an airtight container up to 6 months.
- Try it on eggs, avocado, potatoes, veggies, hummus or veggie dip, chicken, and more!
I thInk I could make this! 😉. Thank you!!!
I wish that these recipes would print out BLACK instead of grey. It is really disturbing not to be able to read it clearly.
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Thanks for the feedback! I’ll see what I can do about that 😊
Copy the recipe, put into word, highlight the printing and change font color to black. You can then save or print out recipe. You can also change font size the same way if needed.
Kathy – Thanks for the tip! I’m trying to find ways to make the recipe print smaller. This is a great workaround in the meantime!
Third time I’ve made it and I love It! Thank you.
I’m SO glad you enjoyed it! Yay! (And yes–index cards are a great solution in the meantime!)
Oh, and sometimes instead of printing a short recipe, I write it on an index card for my recipe box, just an idea to save time and grey printer ink.
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Will minced garlic work? Or will it be too chunky and overpowering?
Jutta – Fresh garlic would be pretty chunky and overpowering. You also can’t use fresh garlic unless you plan to use all of the seasoning immediately, as it’s wet and will therefore not be shelf-stable (it will get the other ingredients soggy and will spoil). I’d highly recommend using dried.
Aren’t there also poppy seeds in the TJ’s version?
There are! Going to add to mine for extra crunch in the same ratio as sesame seeds.
Never mind, reading is fundamental. It’s been a long week, and it’s only Tuesday! Thanks for sharing.
No worries! It happens 😉
Thanks for the recipe! I really love my seasoning mix but it has way too much salt for my taste when I pile it onto my avocado sandwiches. Looking forward to making this!
I hope this will be perfect for you!
I wonder if you have the cost of making this yourself?
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Cynthia – I don’t–I’m sorry! I had almost every ingredient on hand anyway (other than black sesame seeds and flaked garlic). I think if I had to buy each ingredient individually, it would cost more than buying the seasoning mix from either Trader Joe’s or from Amazon, but many of the ingredients are pantry staples for a lot of folks, so you’d only need to buy a few ingredients. To save more, you can also look for bulk spices at places like Sprouts or Whole Foods, where you can buy just the amount you need/want without needing to buy a whole bottle. I hope that helps!
I’m thinking some pepper would make a nice addition 😊 I’m gonna make some this weekend when I have a moment! Thanks for the recipe! 😊
Yum! That does sound good!
Would there be a noticeable difference if I omitted the poppy seeds? They’re illegal in my country (go figure) so I can’t get my hands on any without risking jail time! 😳
M – Nope! You should be just fine without them 🙂
I use black sesame seeds instead sometimes.
Little tip: if anybody is struggling to find onion or garlic flakes, or even poppy & sesame seeds, go to your local bagel store! Many of them will fill a container as they would creamcheese and sell them by the pound, if you ask. Always worth a shot!
GENIUS!!! Thank you so much for sharing!
When I make mine, I heat all ingredients except salt in the skillet over med/high heat until fragrant. Allow to cool, add salt. This added step makes this go from good to FANTASTIC.
That’s a great tip Jackie! I’ll have to try that!