Cajun Spice Chicken Wings with Remoulade Sauce

These days, "Cajun spice" is about as far from trendy as you can get. But back when I graduated culinary school, it was pure cutting edge. Chef Paul Prudhomme was rolling around K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen in his motorized scooter throwing this stuff around like some kind of magic dust. His most famous dish was blackened red fish, which involved coating the fish with a thick layer of Cajun spice, after which it was seared on a red-hot skillet until literally black.

People loved it, and started making it at home?after removing the batteries from their smoke detectors. That trend died out fairly quickly, since the technique is much better suited to a restaurant-quality ventilation system, but the Cajun spice trend kept going strong for years, with everyone from Michelin Star chefs to snack bar cooks sprinkling it on all sorts of things.

There was even a famous TV chef who would toss a pinch on a finished plate, and yell, "BAM!" Everyone had a different formula, but they all had one thing in common; you could barely taste the food underneath, and eventually Cajun spice became just another seasoning blend. Anyway, this is my favorite formula, and while it doesn't work on everything, it sure works on crispy chicken wings, especially when served with a cool remoulade sauce dip. So, in loving memory of Chef Paul, I'll finish by saying, I hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!