Spicing Up the Nutrition World: How is Dan-O’s Seasoning Changing the Flavor Game?

With no shortage of puns or fun—they were the only booth at Expo West 2024 singing sea shanties on a karaoke machine and slanging mini tacos and beer on draft—Dan-O’s is a trusted brand at The Nutrition Insider for good reason (and, no, it’s not just because of the free beer).

While you might think that everything has already been done in the world of seasonings and spice blends, you’d be wrong—Dan-O’s continually produces delicious, low-sodium, high-quality seasonings that, of course, are also generously sprinkled with puns.

Although we first met the Louisville, Kentucky-based Dan-O’s team at Expo East 2022, we had another chance to dive deeper into the brand, its backstory, and the newest Dan-tastic seasonings last month at Expo West 2024. 

From Dive Bars to Dan-tastic Seasoning Blends

TNI Video Producer Amanda Marvin interviewed Dan-O’s VP of Sales, Tyler Watson, who told us all about how Dan-O’s came to be—which has a lot to do with why their Expo booth was set up like a dive bar.

According to Tyler, founder Dan Oliver was a bartender before he became a seasoning guru. 

After carrying around his much-loved seasoning blends in little baggies in his pocket (and probably getting some interesting looks when he pulled them out) and getting burnt out from tending bar, Dan had a lightbulb moment, and Dan-O’s was born.

Today, Dan-O’s is more than just a bottle of low-sodium spices—it’s a community. As Tyler puts it, “People are looking to connect with the front of a bottle.”

What’s New in the Dan-O’s World?

Over the past couple of years, we’ve become well-acquainted with their original seasonings, but we also got to sample and learn about their newest innovations at Expo West.

Here’s what the current line-up looks like:

• Original: Dan-O’s OG blend (yep, the one he carried around sketchily in baggies in his pocket) that works on just about everything. This all-purpose seasoning is low in sodium but high in flavor, with garlic, onion, mustard seed, and their elusive “spices” (okay, we didn’t get to learn all of their secrets). 
• Spicy: This one has the Original Seasoning base plus just the right amount of kick from cayenne pepper. 
• Chipotle: A smoky, sweet-heat seasoning perfect for Southwest-inspired meals, with a little spice from chipotle peppers.
• Crunchy: An “everything but the bagel” inspired blend (aka “everything but the bland”) with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, onion, and garlic. 
• Preem-O: One of Dan-O’s newest blends, Preem-O, has arrived to elevate your grilling game with a mix of black sea salt, black garlic, black cumin seeds, rosemary, poppy seeds, and more.
• SEAsoning: You know that sea shanty we referenced? (Watch the video if you want to see the original masterpiece!) Well, it all has to do with this SEAsoning, the perfect blend of 18 herbs and spices for any seafood meal. (By the way, the Seinfeld reference is noticed and appreciated!) 
• Cheesoning: Also known as Tyler’s Favorite, Cheesoning is over 70% Parmesan cheese, plus garlic, onion, and other spices. It’s perfect for topping pasta or pizza, sprinkling on popcorn, or maybe just eating straight out of your hand?
• Tac-O: Last but not least—and the one we got to try in person at Expo West—Tac-O is your classic taco seasoning with a little extra oomph. It combines the spice of chili pepper and cayenne with the earthiness of cumin and garlic but keeps the sodium low, as always.

The Lowdown on Low-sodium

In addition to being simply delicious spice blends with an option for every dish, Dan-O’s is also one of the few low-sodium seasonings out there that actually taste good.

With less than 50 milligrams of sodium per serving, you might expect that Dan-O’s would be low in flavor—but that’s certainly not the case. 

According to Tyler, their not-so-secret secret is the addition of lemon peel and orange peel. The citrusy zest accentuates the small amount of salt in the blend, bringing out the salty flavor without overpowering your taste buds or your blood vessels.

Excessive sodium intake is a leading contributor to high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease, so lowering overall salt consumption is beneficial for most people.

As Tyler states about their potential impact on our country’s health, “When you start to look at where heart disease lives in the U.S., and you overlay where the most seasonings are sold in the U.S., it’s in the Southeast. We wanted to, in a small way, make an impact on these folks.” 

And impact the nation they will—with their fun, better-for-you, and delicious seasonings, you’ll never miss the extra salt.