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Grandpa Tom's Austin, Texas
Ohio★ ★Austin

All PurposeSeasoning

"Good food brings people together."

A WWII veteran's kitchen, in a jar. Tom V. Dowding carried a love of good food from a small town in Ohio to a table in Austin, Texas. This is what he put on everything.

Get a jar Meet Tom
Small batch in Austin
Real ingredients
Great on everything
Grandpa Tom's All Purpose Seasoning, 5.5 oz jar
Great on everything
Beef◆Chicken◆Pork◆ Seafood◆Veggies◆Tacos
Sliced smoked brisket with a dark peppery bark on a wooden board
Beef
Bone-in chicken thighs with crisp browned skin in a cast iron skillet
Chicken
Two thick bone-in pork chops searing in a cast iron skillet
Pork
Seasoned shrimp searing in a cast iron skillet with lemon and parsley
Seafood
Roasted broccoli, carrots, potatoes and red onion on a sheet pan
Veggies
Three beef tacos on a plate with charred tortillas, onion and cilantro
Tacos
Refunded, no argumentDo not like it? Tell us and we refund the jar, opened or not. Cheaper than arguing about ten dollars.
Blended by handWeighed, mixed, filled, capped and labeled one small batch at a time in Austin. Never a co-packer, not yet.
Nothing to hideTen ingredients, all of them printed on the jar and listed on this page before you pay.
Delivered by MarkInside Austin he brings it to your door himself. You get a text when he is on the way.
The pantry

One jar. It goes on nearly everything.

Blended, filled and labeled by hand in Austin. Delivered by hand, or picked up at the market.

Extreme close-up of the blend: coarse salt flakes, cracked black pepper, red paprika, dried garlic and chilli flakes, every grain distinct
Coarse ground, not
powdered into dust Salt, garlic, black pepper, paprika, onion, chili pepper, herbs, spices, natural flavor, citric acid. Ten things, every one of them still visible.
Label information for every product

Texas requires this on the page before you pay, and it is the same information printed on the jar.

A kitchen scale with a bowl of seasoning, a row of empty glass jars, a funnel, a wooden scoop and a stack of blank labels on a worn wooden counter
Scale, scoop, funnel, jars, labels. That is the entire factory.
How it is actually made

Weighed in grams.
Filled by hand.

Every batch is weighed on a scale rather than scooped by eye, which is the only way a jar you buy in March tastes like the one you bought in September. It is written down on a batch sheet and the batch code goes on your label.

That code is not decoration. If anything ever went wrong with a batch we could tell you exactly which jars and call every person who has one. Most seasoning companies your size cannot say that.

What you will not find here: anti-caking agents, fillers, bulking salt to make the jar feel heavier, or a co-packer running ten thousand units of somebody else's recipe with our name on it.

"Everyone had a seat at the table."

Farm family at dinner · Fairfield Bench Farms, Montana · 1939
Farm Security Administration · Library of Congress, no known restrictions

Tom V. Dowding in his U.S. Army uniform during World War II
Tom V. Dowding · U.S. Army · World War II
A life of service, a legacy of good food

Good food
has a story.

Tom V. Dowding grew up in the Paulding County, Ohio area and served in the U.S. Army during World War II. After the war he brought his love of good food, family and friends to Austin, Texas.

This seasoning is inspired by his kitchen. A place where simple ingredients made great meals, and everyone had a seat at the table.

Different places. Same great flavor.

Add the one detail here that only the family knows.

Who you are actually buying from. Tom's [grandson], Mark Bonifay, blends every jar by hand in Austin and delivers most of them himself. If you order, he is the one knocking on the door. Questions go straight to him at [email protected].

Mark Bonifay
Tom's grandson · Austin, Texas
Ohio

Paulding County. The cooking was plain, good, and shared with whoever was there.

The war

U.S. Army, World War II. Good food kept people going and brought them together, and he never forgot it.

Austin

Home after the war. Ohio habits met Texas heat, and the seasoning found its shape.

The jar

The family kept the recipe. Now it is in a jar.

Three places to start

If it comes out of a skillet, it wants this on it.

Six places to start. None of them need anything you do not already own.

Six bone-in chicken thighs, skin crisp and browned, in a cast iron skillet
Start here

Skillet chicken thighs

  1. Pat six bone-in thighs dry. This matters more than anything else here.
  2. Coat both sides heavily. Heavier than feels right.
  3. Skin down in a cold cast iron skillet, then turn the heat to medium.
  4. Leave it alone 12 to 14 minutes, until the skin releases on its own.
  5. Flip, then into a 400F oven for 15 minutes. Rest five.
Three beef tacos on a plate with charred tortillas, raw onion, cilantro and a lime wedge
Weeknight

Tacos, the Tuesday test

  1. Hot cast iron. Ground beef pressed flat and left alone until it crusts.
  2. Break it up, drain most of the fat, hit it with two tablespoons.
  3. A splash of water, scrape the pan, let it tighten back up.
  4. Char the tortillas right on the burner, ten seconds a side.
  5. Lime and raw onion at the end. Both, not one.
A seasoned beef steak lifted off a charcoal grill with tongs, smoke rising, a Texas flag and live oaks in the late afternoon light behind
Sunday

Anything on the grill

  1. Season an hour ahead and leave it uncovered in the fridge.
  2. A tablespoon per pound as a rub, a light shake for vegetables.
  3. Two zones on the grill. Sear on one side, finish on the other.
  4. Pull it five degrees early and let it rest.
  5. One more shake before it hits the plate. Always.
Crispy skillet potatoes and two fried eggs in a cast iron pan
Breakfast

Potatoes and eggs

  1. Dice three potatoes small. Parboil six minutes and drain them very dry.
  2. Hot oil, single layer, and do not stir for four minutes.
  3. Toss, season, repeat twice more until the edges are properly crisp.
  4. Push them aside and crack the eggs into the same pan.
  5. One more shake over the top before it hits the plate.
A pot of beef chili simmering on the stove with a wooden spoon
Cold weather

A pot of chili

  1. Brown the beef hard, in batches. Crowding the pot is how chili turns grey.
  2. Onion into the fat, then four tablespoons. Bloom it a full minute.
  3. Stock to cover, a spoon of tomato paste, lid on, two hours at a bare simmer.
  4. Uncover for the last thirty minutes and taste for salt.
  5. It is better the next day. Every time, without exception.
Four seasoned beef burger patties searing on a charcoal grill
Cookout

Burgers

  1. 80/20 chuck, handled as little as you can stand. Four loose balls, not pucks.
  2. Season the outside only, right before they go on. Never mix it into the meat.
  3. Smash or press once on a screaming hot grate, then leave them alone.
  4. One flip. A slice of cheese on the flip, lid down for thirty seconds.
  5. Rest them two minutes while you toast the buns in the fat.
★
New to cooking? Start here

The six things worth knowing
before you open the jar.

Nobody explains this on a spice label, so here it is.

The one everybody asks

Use it instead of salt

Salt is the first ingredient, so this replaces the salt in a dish rather than going on top of it. Season the way you normally would, taste it, then decide if it needs more. Adding this and your usual salt is how food ends up too salty.

Timing

Before the heat, not after

Put it on while the food is still raw. An hour ahead in the fridge if you have the time, right before the pan if you do not. A final light shake at the end is a bonus, not the main event.

How much

A tablespoon per pound

That is about three good shakes for two chicken breasts, or a rounded palmful for a pound of ground beef. On vegetables and eggs, treat it like salt: a light even shake, not a coating.

Heat

It will not burn

There is no sugar in the blend, which is what scorches and turns bitter on a hot grill. This holds up to a screaming skillet, a grill, and a long stretch in the oven.

Equipment

Any pan you own

Cast iron is what Tom used and it browns the best, but stainless works, and nonstick works. You do not need to buy anything to cook the recipes on this site.

Keeping it

Not above the stove

The cupboard over the range is the worst spot in the kitchen for a spice, because heat and steam flatten it. A closed cupboard away from the heat keeps it punchy for about a year from the batch date on the jar.

Heat level
MildSavory first. Kids eat it. Add your own heat if you want it.
A jar lasts
~30 uses5.5 oz. A few weeks of cooking most nights.
Dietary
ConfirmGluten, vegan and MSG status to be confirmed
Sodium
Panel neededSalt is the first ingredient, so it is a salty blend by design.
Ordering, plainly

Three steps, and a person
at the end of them.

No warehouse, no tracking number, no chatbot. Here is exactly what happens.

1
You order

Pick your jars and check out. Card details go straight to Stripe, so we never see them. You get an email receipt immediately.

2
Mark texts you

Usually the same day, to agree a time that works. Deliveries run in one batch each week, so it is normally two to four days.

3
He hands it over

At your door, inside 30 miles of Austin. Not home? He leaves it somewhere you tell him to. Spices do not spoil on a porch.

Come taste it first

Where we will be.

The best way to buy a seasoning is to taste it before you do. Come find us, have a cup of whatever is in the pot, and pick up an order with no delivery fee.

  • Sat, [date] [Market or event name] [Address · 9am to 1pm]
  • Sun, [date] [Market or event name] [Address · 10am to 2pm]
  • Sat, [date] [Market or event name] [Address · 9am to 1pm]

Not on the list yet? Ask where we will be next, or tell us about a market we should be at.

For shops and kitchens

Put it on your shelf
or on your menu.

Butcher shops, BBQ supply, feed and hardware stores, gift shops, restaurants and caterers. No broker, no purchase order, no slotting fee.

  • Case pack12 jars per case
  • Case price$66.00 per case, $5.50 a jar. Suggested retail $10.99.
  • Minimum2 cases to open, 1 case on reorders
  • DeliveryMark brings it. No freight charge, no drop minimum.
  • Texas ruleA shop reselling cottage food registers with DSHS as a cottage food vendor first. Short form, no fee, and we walk you through it.

Goes straight to Mark. Usually answered same day.

Questions

The things people ask at the market.

Is it hot?

No. It is savory first: salt, garlic, black pepper and paprika, with enough chili pepper to round it out. Kids eat it. If you want heat, add it yourself, which is the whole point of an all purpose blend.

How do I actually get it?

What is in it?

Salt, garlic, black pepper, paprika, onion, chili pepper, herbs, spices, natural flavor and citric acid. The full deck is printed on every jar and listed above. If you have an allergy, ask and we will tell you exactly what is in the natural flavor.

How much do I use?

More than you think. A tablespoon per pound of meat as a rub, and on vegetables and eggs treat it like salt. A jar that looks like a two month jar is usually a three week jar.

Do you sell wholesale?

Yes. Cases of 12 at $5.50 a jar, two case minimum to open an account, and the form above goes straight to Mark.

Do I still add salt?

No, and this is the mistake most people make. Salt is the first ingredient, so this blend takes the place of the salt in a dish. Season, taste, then adjust. There is more on this above in the basics.

Is it gluten free? Vegan? Any MSG?

We are confirming the exact breakdown of the natural flavor in the blend before we answer this in print. If you need to know now, email us and we will tell you exactly what is in it.

How long does a jar last, and how should I store it?

A 5.5 oz jar is roughly 30 uses, so a few weeks if you cook most nights. Keep it closed, dry, and out of the cupboard above the stove, which is the worst place in the kitchen for a spice. It stays punchy for about a year from the batch date on the label.

Where do you deliver, and what does it cost?

Within [30 miles of your neighborhood] in Austin. Delivery is free with a [$35] minimum, and pickup at any market is free with no minimum. Full details are in our delivery policy.

Ten dollars for salt and pepper. Why?

Fair question. A grocery shaker is cheaper and always will be. What you are paying for is a blend somebody actually tuned, ground in small batches so it has not been sitting in a warehouse for a year, and a person who refunds you if it is not good. If you only ever want the cheapest salt, buy the cheapest salt. We mean that.

How fresh is it, really?

Every jar carries a batch code and a best-by date. We blend to order in small runs rather than making a year of stock, so what you get is usually a few weeks old rather than a few quarters. Ground spice fades. That is the single biggest difference between this and a jar that has been on a shelf since last summer.

What if I am not home when you deliver?

Tell Mark where to leave it and he will. It is a sealed jar of dry seasoning, so a porch, a back step or a neighbour is all fine. Nothing here melts or spoils.

Can I send it as a gift?

Inside Austin, yes, and Mark will deliver it to them instead of you. Outside Austin we cannot mail food yet, but we can mail a sticker and a note while you wait. Leave your email and you will know the day that changes.

What if I do not like it?

Tell Mark and he will refund the jar, opened or not. That is not a marketing line, it is just cheaper than arguing about a ten dollar jar of seasoning.

What people said

Three real sentences beat
anything we could write.

These stay empty until three actual customers have said something worth repeating.

“

Real quote 1 goes here. Ask a customer, paste exactly what they said, and do not tidy it up.

Their name · their town
“

Real quote 2 goes here. Ask a customer, paste exactly what they said, and do not tidy it up.

Their name · their town
“

Real quote 3 goes here. Ask a customer, paste exactly what they said, and do not tidy it up.

Their name · their town
How to fill these At the market, after somebody buys a second jar, ask: "what did you put it on?" Write down their answer word for word and ask if you can use it. That is the whole method. A specific sentence about chicken thighs beats five stars every time, and a tidied-up quote sounds invented even when it is not.
Not in Austin yet?

We cannot mail you
seasoning. Yet.

Texas cottage food rules say a jar made in a home kitchen has to be handed over in person, so right now we only reach people we can drive to. That changes the day we move into a licensed kitchen.

Leave your email and your zip and you will be the first to know. The zip is not marketing, it is how we decide which cities to reach first.

One email a month at the very most. No sharing, no selling, unsubscribe in one click. Privacy.

In the meantime

Stickers are not food, so we can mail you one of those anywhere in the country.

In Austin? Skip all of this and come find us at a market. Free pickup, no minimum, and you get to taste it first.

Running a shop or a kitchen? Wholesale starts here.