American
Legend.

Whether he was tinkering under the hood of a car or over a pot of chili, Carroll Shelby's bold creativity and passion for performance always left people wanting more. Learn more about the man behind our tried-and-true, authentic taco seasonings.

Start Fast

Carroll Shelby was born in 1923 in Leesburg, Texas, a teeny little town just east of Dallas. In 1940, he graduated from Woodrow Wilson High and enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps, supporting the Allied cause during World War II as a flight instructor and test pilot. After all that high-flying, Shelby also tried his hand at dump-trucking, roughnecking and chicken farming before finally saying, "To hell with this, I'm gonna do what I love." And that was hot-rodding.

Carroll Shelby as child on tractor black and white photo

Carroll Shelby 1942 Army Air corps black and white photo

Motor On

Jumping headlong into the motorsports game, this cool-headed, fast-talking Texan would win four races in borrowed cars before being scooped up by the Aston Martin team to race throughout the U.S. and Europe. Always the showman, Shelby’s spirited candor, denim work overalls and black Stetson cowboy hat soon became his signature. He was twice named Sports Illustrated’s Driver of the Year, and his worldwide victories ranged from Torrey Pines to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with innumerable accolades scattered between.

Muscle In

When Shelby retired from the racing game he quick-shifted from driving to designing and made even more history. By stuffing Ford's big ol' V8 engine into a lightweight English roadster, he began a famous lineage of Shelby muscle cars. After cooking up the Cobra, he was commissioned to tinker with another famed sports car: the Ford Mustang. Still revered and collected today, Shelby's special-edition Mustangs remain as legendary as his taste.

Carroll Shelby leaning against Shelby GT350 black and white photo

CHANGE THE
Chili Game!

Chili bowl illustration with car speeding in landscape background

Back in his home state in 1967, Shelby organized the first-ever chili cook-off in the mining ghost town of Terlingua, transforming it into sacred Texas ground. What began as a non-stop party of fire-breathing chiliheads morphed into an annual, world-famous championship. So Shelby and fellow judge C.V. Wood founded the International Chili Society (ICS).

But while everybody was fussin' and wranglin' over who claimed the best chili recipe, Shelby knew the simple truth: it really only matters to the person who's eating it. Ever the entrepreneur, he began giving away his own chili fixin’s, handing the stuff out in brown paper bags he designed over a friend's kitchen table – and it grew so popular that by the sixth ICS cook-off, "Carroll Shelby's Original Texas Chili Kit" was on the market. Today you'll find Carroll Shelby's Original Texas Brand Chili Kit in a box, still sporting his legendary Texas flair and his original philosophy: "Make it one way one time, another time, a little different. Make it up to suit your mood."

BLAZE THE
Taco Trail!

Shelby approached his cars and his cooking the same way: by starting with a base, tweaking it to his taste, and taking off in whichever direction suited him best. That do-it-your-way spirit inspired us to create Carroll Shelby’s Ancho & Jalapeño Taco Seasoning and Birria Taco Seasoning. So go ahead, fire up your kitchen and put together some real-deal tacos however you like ‘em.
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Carroll Shelby makes it authentic. You make it original.

ENOUGH TALKIN’. LET’S TACO.

Carroll Shelby's Birria Taco Seasoning Package | Ideal for Slow Cooking | Guajillo Pepper Recipe | Spice level Mild

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Carroll Shelby's Taco Seasoning | 15 Minute Recipe | Ancho & Jalapeño Pepper Recipe | Spice level Medium