Louisiana Hot Cajun Red Chicken Sandwich with Sir Jon Lee
We hung out (virtually) with our friend, young, up and coming Compton, CA hip hop artist, Sir Jon Lee and threw down an amazing Louisiana Hot Cajun Red Chicken Sandwich with our Trinity Sauce! Why does Nashville get to ha walk the fun?
In this recipe, it's all about your "mise en place" which is French for “putting in place” and is used for prepping kitchen equipment and food before serving. It basically means, 'being prepared and prepping for the recipe/service.'
We used our Hook’s Rub Cajun Red rub throughout the recipe to give this a spicy kick! We pan-seared this in the Stargazer Cast Iron Skillet, but you can smoke or grill it on a smoker similar to the Recteq Bullseye!
This is a continual layer of fiery flavor with a cool coleslaw topping that will make you want to go Zydeco sha! Lemme tell you, this sandwich will give Nashville and all of the fast food joints a run for their money! Try this recipe and let us know want you think!
Now if we only had some dirty rice and a praline to wash it down...
INGREDIENTS:
- 4-6 Chicken Breasts or Thighs
- 2 TBS Olive Oil
- Louisiana Hot Sauce or Tabasco
- 4-8 TBS of unsalted butter
- 1 TSP Honey
THE CAJUN TRINITY
- 1/4 cup chopped white onion
- 1/4 cup chopped bell peppers
- 1/4 cup chopped celery
- 1 TBS minced garlic
- 4-6 brioche burger buns
- 2 Cups Ranch Dressing or Mayo
- 14 oz bag Coleslaw Salad Mix
- Sliced Bread and Butter Pickles
- Juice from the pickles
- Water
TOOLS:
- Tongs
- Sharp Knives
- Cutting Boards
- Skillet
- Whisk
- Spoons
- Measuring spoons and cups
- Blender
- Mixing bowls
- Small or medium sized pot
METHOD:
1. Place the chicken in a zip top bag, shake in as much Cajun Red seasoning as you like, pour in at least 1/2 cup of pickle juice. Let this marinate in the fridge for 4-24 hours. The longer the better.
Before we start the stove/grill, we'll prep most of the sauces and toppings.
CAJUN TRINITY SAUCE
2. Finely chop THE CAJUN TRINITY -- onion, bell pepper and celery, then put them in the blender along with the garlic, Cajun Red seasoning to taste, a few dashes of hot sauce and the ranch or mayo.
3. Blend until you get a smooth consistency and set aside.
4. Pour coleslaw mix into mixing bowl and mix in half of the Trinity Sauce from step 2 & 3. Gently mix with a spoon until well-incorporated. Set aside or put into the fridge. This will keep for 2-3 days in the fridge.
5. Butter the inside of the brioche buns and toast in the oven for 5 minutes at 350 degrees OR place them face down on a medium high skillet or griddle pan for 2-3 minutes then set aside for later.
(Alternatively, you can toast the buns in a toaster, then spread butter on each side.)
THE CHICKEN
6. Turn on cook top to medium high, then place your skillet on the stove.
7. Pour olive oil into the skillet at let it get warm. You can tell it's ready if you put a small pinch of flour on the oil or the end of a wooden spoon handle and it starts to bubble.
PRO TIP: If your oil starts to burn and turn brown/black, that's not going to be delicious, carefully remove the skillet from the stove, wipe it clean with a handful of paper towels and start at a slightly lower setting. All stove tops are different and some of the hot eyes are more powerful than others. Be mindful and don't burn the oil!
8. Remove the chicken to a plate and season all sides with the Cajun Red seasoning.
9. Place the chicken in the skillet and cook 5-7 minutes per side. The chicken will be done at 165 degrees OR when the juices run clear.
PRO TIP: If you cut a slit into the chicken to check doneness, that will dry it out as the juices will out run through the cut. You can use a digital thermometer like the Thermoworks DASH to check the temperature without cutting through the meat!
LOUISIANA HOT BUTTER SAUCE
10. While the chicken cooks, put 8 TBS of butter in a small sauce pan over medium heat then mix in 1/4 - 1/2 cup hot sauce, 1 TSP honey and 1-2 TBS Cajun Red. Using a silicon spatula or wooden spoon to stir, slowly melt, mix and combine while the butter simmers.
11. When chicken finishes, place each piece into a mixing bowl, pour in the hot butter sauce mixture and toss with tongs to coat.
BUILD THE SANDWICH
12. Spread some of the Cajun Trinity Sauce on both sides of the bun, then place 4x bread and butter pickles on the bottom bun. Put that on a plate.
13. Next, place a piece of the sauced chicken, a large spoonful of the coleslaw mixture and the top bun.
14. Take a spicy bite and enjoy with
your favorite cool beverage.
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