When I smell this spice blend it makes me think of the first time I had perfectly blackened mahi mahi at the Highland House in Mequon, Wisconsin. You just can’t beat that spicy crust and juicy center that develops when you correctly blacken a piece of meat or fish.
I know it is very difficult for us home cooks to blacken something properly (cooking a piece of meat in a screaming hot cast iron pan) in our own kitchens without having the whole house fill with smoke. We don’t have the same ventilation system as a commercial kitchen. So, I recently experimented with putting a heavy, slightly oiled cast iron skillet on my outdoor grill at home and taking the temperature to 500-600 degrees. Then I put a chicken breast heavily covered with my Cajun Spice Blend and drizzled with oil on the skillet. I cooked it about 4 1/2 minutes per side. It tasted as good to me as anything I’ve had in a restaurant.
For an alternative to high heat blackening, I have used this spice blend on grilled meats (chicken, steaks, pork chops and burgers) and loved the results. I rubbed some olive oil and Cajun seasoning all over the meat, then grilled it on a very high temperature. It develops a nice flavorful crust on the meat, but not as good as in a cast iron skillet.
Cajun Seasoning
Print recipeIngredients
- 1/4 Cup Paprika
- 2 Tablespoon Salt
- 2 Teaspoon Onion Powder
- 2 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 2 Teaspoon Sugar
- 2 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 2 Teaspoon Cayenne
- 2 Teaspoon Black Peppercorns (ground)
- 1 Teaspoon Thyme (ground)
- 1 Teaspoon Oregano
- 1 Teaspoon Celery Seed (ground)
- 1 Teaspoon Fennel Seed (ground)
- 2 Bay Leaves (ground)
Directions
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Place Peppercorns, Thyme, Oregano, Celery Seed, Fennel Seed and Bay Leaves in spice grinder and grind to a fine powder. |  |
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Add the remaining ingredients and pulse a couple of times | |
| Store in an airtight container. | |
