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Try this recipe for blackened chicken, then check out other Creole-inspired recipes such as our Louisiana crab cakes, beignets, chicken and chorizo jambalaya and Creole pork ragoût.

Ingredients

  • 4 chicken thighs, skin on and bone in
  • 150g buttermilk
  • 180g smoked sausage, 2 small links, sliced into pound coin-width discs (smoked Polish or German sausages work well. Chorizo is also a great option)
  • 1 large onion, finely diced
  • 1 green pepper, deseeded and finely diced
  • celery sticks, finely diced
  • 2 tbsp tomato purée
  • 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 200ml fresh chicken stock
  • 1 tsp hot sauce (Crystal is a New Orleans favourite but Tabasco or Frank’s are both good choices, too)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 x 400g tins kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 2 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley (optional)
  • cooked long grain rice or crusty bread, and lime wedges, to serve

BLACKENING MIX

  • 7 tbsp sweet paprika
  • 2 tbsp garlic powder
  • 2 tbsp cayenne pepper
  • 2 tbsp ground black pepper
  • 2 tbsp onion powder
  • 1½ tbsp dried oregano
  • 1½ tbsp dried thyme
  • 2½ tbsp fine salt

Method

  • STEP 1

    Add the chicken to a baking dish and smother with the buttermilk. Turn to coat, then cover, chill and marinate for 24 hrs.

  • STEP 2

    Cook the sausage in a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat for 5-6 mins until it releases its oils and browns. Remove the sausage from the pan using a slotted spoon and transfer to a bowl. In the same pan, add the onion, pepper and celery. Season and fry for 3-4 mins or until softened but not coloured. Add the tomato purée and garlic, cooking for a further minute, then stir in the sausage, stock, hot sauce and bay leaf. Add the beans to the pan, stirring to combine, then simmer over a low heat, covered, for 20 mins until the beans are tender and the mixture is thick. Add a splash of water if the pan seems dry and season to taste.

  • STEP 3

    Remove the chicken from the buttermilk, scraping off the excess. Mix together the blackening spice mixture. Put the chicken on a plate and add 3-4 tbsp of the mixture until the chicken is coated in the spices. Store the left-over spice mixture for up to six months in a sterilised glass jar in a cool, dark place. Add the butter to a wide frying pan and put over a medium-high heat. Once melted and the pan is hot, add the chicken skin-side down. You should hear a good sizzle. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 5-6 mins or until dark and crusty. The chicken will go black very fast, but don’t worry. Flip it over and cook for a further 6-8 mins. Add a splash of water to the pan then cover with a lid and cook for another 6 mins or until the chicken is cooked through completely.

  • STEP 4

    Once ready, toss the parsley (if using) through the red beans and serve with the chicken, rice and a lime wedge.

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