There are as many variations on Cajun seasoning as there are stars in the evening sky. Ok, well, it just seems that way. This is my go-to version. I use it on everything Cajun-ish or just anything for that matter. I like my seasoning a bit on the hot side. If you like a little more mellow flavor, cut the amount of cayenne pepper in half.
Most store-bought Cajun seasonings contain way too much sodium. Making your own at home lets you adjust the salt without sacrificing flavor.
Make sure you give your container of seasoning a good shake before using. Especially if it has been sitting for a bit. Ingredients settle. You want to make sure that you get a bit of everything in every tablespoon!
This party-time dip is a take on the classic Louisiana dish, red beans and rice. It’s almost Mexican-ish, with green chiles, chili powder and cumin. The texture of the red beans reminds you of, well, re-fried beans. Topped with spicy sausage crumbles, this Louisiana red bean dip is perfect for any get-together.
Spice It Up A Bit
I like to serve Louisiana red bean dip drizzled with hot sauce. But, if you’re serving for a crowd you might want to skip that step. Or make two batches of dip. One for your friends that like a little kick and one for those that don’t.
I can’t remember when it was that we discovered deep-fried pickles. A few years ago, I think. They’ve quickly become a favorite appetizer for us. We enjoy the crunchiness. And that great pickle pucker. They’re simple and yummy, just like this homemade version of a copycat recipe for Hooters fried pickles. Make sure you make a double batch because they’ll disappear in no time.
Serve these little delicious bites with your favorite dipping sauce. For us, that’s Ranch salad dressing. A good Ranch. No point in going through the trouble of making the crazy good pickles only to serve them with mediocre dressing.
Season ‘Em Up Your Way
Although I just sprinkled these copycat Hooters fried pickles with sea salt, you can get adventurous and use Cajun seasoning, fresh ground black pepper, or even Italian seasonings. Old Bay is a great seasoning for fried foods too. I love it on my French fries and tater tots… and fried pickles. People aren’t expecting that flavor on their pickles. This recipe makes for fantastic pickles. You can put whatever you want on them, though.
Be Gentle
The batter on the pickles sticks, but it’s delicate. It’s important that you dry the pickles as much as possible before dunking them into the batter. Any kind of moisture on the surface will prevent the batter from sticking well. But, you can only dry them so much. So be careful with them. Don’t go stirring them around like a boat paddle while they’re deep-frying. Just let them get golden brown and delicious on their own.
I get out my big deep fryer when it’s time to fry a large batch of food. It comes to temperature quickly and it maintains that temperature perfectly. It has a built-in oil filter and storage unit so I can re-use the oil several times.
I love fried chicken, especially if it has been marinated in buttermilk. But, silly me, I’d never thought of adding chipotles in adobo to the marinade. These chipotle popcorn chicken bites are soooo good. They’re tender and tasty thanks to the buttermilk and they have a really nice kick to them thanks to the smoked jalapenos. Not too hot, but they definitely pack a little spiciness.
Grab Some Ranch And Get To Eatin’
I served these little yummy chipotle popcorn chicken bites with your standard Ranch dressing for dipping. They’d also be great dunked my copycat Chick-fil-A sauce.
If I’m cooking for a crowd, I’ll break out my big deep fryer. But, if it’s just the two of us, I’ll fire up my Fry Daddy fryer. It’s the perfect size for both of us. It fries everything perfectly. And as an added bonus, it doesn’t use a lot of oil, which saves me money.
I get out my big deep fryer when it’s time to fry a large batch of food. It comes to temperature quickly and it maintains that temperature perfectly. It has a built-in oil filter and storage unit so I can re-use the oil several times.
Add buttermilk and chipotles and mix well. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Heat oil in a Dutch oven or deep fryer to 350 F.
Working in batches, shake off excess marinade and fry chicken 2-3 minutes until done and golden brown. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate and season with salt and pepper.
Serve with Ranch dressing for dipping.
Notes
You can substitute milk for the buttermilk in a pinch.
I’m a huge fan of pulled pork cooked on a smoker. Of course, the Char-Broil Big Easy Oil-Less Fryer is not a smoker, so I was a bit skeptical when I set out to make pulled pork on it. Well, color me un-skeptical now. Cooking a pork butt on the Big Easy was not only easy and quick (compared to a 10-12 hour cook time on my smoker), but the end product came out super moist and tender. The meat shreds very easily, perfect for BBQ sandwiches or my favorite, BBQ pulled pork baked potatoes.
Note: This recipe was developed using the Char-Broil Big Easy Oil-Less Fryer. If you are cooking using the Char-Broil Smoker-Roaster Grill you should cook with the lid open and the temperature set to High. You might also need to adjust the cooking time.
You Want A Bit Of Smokiness
Don’t let the number of steps scare you. Making pulled pork on the Char-Broil Big Easy is actually pretty straight-forward. I started with an 8 pound bone-in pork butt that I trimmed just slightly. I injected the butt with a mix of apple juice, Worcestershire sauce, salt and adobo sauce. Then I let it get happy in the fridge overnight. Why adobo sauce? I was wanting a hint of smoky flavor to the meat, and adobo gives you that. You could substitute a few drops liquid smoke instead but I like the flavor of adobo better.
The next morning I patted the butt dry on the outside and then rubbed it with a simple spice mix that had smoked paprika added in for more smoky flavor. Onto the Big Easy for 4ish hours until the meat hit 195 F, mopping the last 15 degrees of cooking.
Foiled, rested, and shredded. For a little extra smoky flavor, mix the meat with a smoky flavored BBQ sauce. If you end up with any leftovers, use it to make my pulled pork mac-and-cheese.
Cooking a pork butt on the Big Easy was not only easy and quick (compared to a 10-12 hour cook time on my smoker), but the end product came out super moist and tender. The meat shreds very easily, perfect for BBQ sandwiches or my favorite, BBQ pulled pork baked potatoes.
Truthfully, I was just looking for a way to use up some grilled chicken breast I found in the freezer. I wasn’t thinking I’d found anything too terribly exciting when I ran across this recipe for a chicken nacho dip. Well, I wasn’t just sort of wrong, I was very wrong. This chicken nacho dip is fantastic. Super cheesy, spicy, and creamy. This is a great dip, best served with tortilla chips.
Rotisserie Chicken Is Great Too
If you don’t have grilled (or smoked) chicken on hand, rotisserie chicken will work just fine too. My Weber grills and smoker make for great chicken. And I often have leftover chicken. I just save it and use it in great dishes like this chicken nacho dip.
Oh and don’t forget to warm the tortilla chips. They take just a few minutes in a 350 F degree oven. Warm chips and warm dip were meant for each other.
Place everything except for the beans into a slow cooker and cook on high for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. If the mixture becomes too thick thin with a little milk.
I work from home, and with all the food I end up cooking through the week, I usually heat up some leftovers for lunch. Sometimes, though, no leftovers are to be found. That’s when I like to throw together a quick meal, like a grilled cheese sandwich. No need for it to be just cheese and bread, though. I throw on a little tomato and jalapeno and all is good in the world again. Done in minutes this spicy grilled cheese is nice and different. With a kick.
It’s Not That Spicy
Don’t fear the ‘spicy’ in this ‘spicy grilled cheese’. You’re just adding a little ole jalapeno and that’s for two sandwiches. I mean, you do want it to be spicy, right? At least it should have a little kick. You want to go crazy with it, add a serrano pepper or habanero. Now, that’s spicy!
Lay two slices of bread butter-side down in the skillet. Top each with one slice of cheese. Divide the tomato and jalapeno between the bread slices and top with remaining cheese.
If your skillet is large enough, lay the remaining bread slices butter-side down into the skillet. This prevents you from having to flip the sandwiches to brown them on both sides. Bad things can sometimes happen when you flip a sandwich! But, if you’re a good flipper, put the remaining bread on top of the sandwiches, butter-side out.
Cook until bread is nice and browned. Flip when ready and brown on other side if you aren’t cooking the top slices separately. Otherwise, top the sandwiches with the cooked top slices.
This chipotle turkey salad is one of the most amazing salads I’ve ever made or had. The addition of two simple ingredients, chipotles in adobo and cilantro, to a pretty standard turkey (or chicken) salad recipe really takes it to a new level. This is a fantastic way to use up leftover turkey from Thanksgiving. I wouldn’t just make this salad when I have leftovers around. It’s worth making any time.
No Turkey? Use Chicken Instead
I used roasted turkey from my Char-Broil Big Easy. Any cooked turkey (or chicken) will do just fine in this. You want it chunky, though and not finely chopped. Or at least that’s how I like mine!
If you’re in a rush just grab a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store and shred the meat for the salad.
This chipotle turkey salad is one of the most amazing salads I’ve ever made or had. The addition of two simple ingredients, chipotles in adobo and cilantro, to a pretty standard turkey (or chicken) salad recipe really takes it to a new level.
Goodness, me-oh-my. I think these Crazy Cajun Nachos pretty much sealed the fate of ‘normal’ nachos in this house. These nachos are.. well, crazy good. Andouille on nachos is what nachos have needed since they were invented in the 40s by Ignacio “Nacho” Anaya. And how cool would it be to immortalized by having a food named after you? Anyone up for a big ole plate of Mike’s? Nope, doesn’t have the same ring to it.
More Cheese Sauce, More Better.
The cheese sauce on these crazy Cajun nachos is simple, but really tasty. It’s great on baked potatoes and hot dogs, too. Trust me. And it’s actually good as a dip by itself.
Goodness, me-oh-my. I think these Crazy Cajun Nachos pretty much sealed the fate of ‘normal’ nachos in this house. These nachos are.. well, crazy good.
My wife and I stopped by Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen outside of Cincinnati, Ohio, the other day. The food there is always absolutely amazing. We had their Coconut Shrimp with Cajun slaw and a dipping sauce, and it was beyond fantastic. Ever since then I have been jonesin’ for coconut shrimp. Now, this recipe for coconut fried shrimp with dipping sauce is not meant to be a copycat of the version from Pappadeaux. But, it’s still mighty tasty and comes with a great dipping sauce (don’t be afraid to double the recipe for the dipping sauce).
Don’t Overcook Them!
Be careful to not overcook the shrimp when you’re making these coconut fried shrimp with dipping sauce. They don’t take long to cook at all, just until they are just starting to turn golden brown. You will be rewarded for your efforts.
If I’m cooking for a crowd, I’ll break out my big deep fryer. But, if it’s just the two of us, I’ll fire up my Fry Daddy fryer. It’s the perfect size for both of us. It fries everything perfectly. And as an added bonus, it doesn’t use a lot of oil, which saves me money.
I get out my big deep fryer when it’s time to fry a large batch of food. It comes to temperature quickly and it maintains that temperature perfectly. It has a built-in oil filter and storage unit so I can re-use the oil several times.
This recipe for coconut fried shrimp is mighty tasty and comes with a great dipping sauce (don’t be afraid to double the recipe for the dipping sauce).
