Chicken tenders or breast can sometimes be viewed as a boring food that is only good for grilling, chicken salad or diet food. While it is healthy, it can also be delicious. Change the name to chicken tips and it’s starting to sound tasty. To me Cajun seasoning and chicken breast were made for each other. The only thing that could make it better would be bbq sauce. Which, lets face it, is one of the best condiments known to man.
The key to this cajun rub is smoked paprika. Most recipes only call for regular paprika,while it can come out great, smoked takes it to a new level. Another important item, is that my rub lacks salt and pepper. It’s my opinion that if you put the salt and pepper in the rub you may get over or under powered with both elements. To remedy this, it is put on before the rub.
To get the most mileage from your rub, a cast iron skillet is going to bring the horsepower. Cast iron should be in everyones arsenal. It holds an even heat longer than any other material I’ve used. It can take a few minutes to heat up, but once it gets there, it’s not going anywhere.
Recipe for the Chicken Tips:
1 Pound Chicken Breast or Tenders
1 Jalapeno Pepper (Optional)
¼ Cup Beer, the rest goes to the chef
¼ Cup Ketchup
1 Tablespoon Vinegar
1 Teaspoon Honey
1 Teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
Rub:
3 Parts Smoked Paprika
1 Part Onion Powder
1 Part Garlic Powder
½ Part Cumin
¼ Part Dried Thyme
¼ Part Dried Oregano
⅛ Teaspoon Nutmeg (optional)
½-2 Parts Cayane Pepper depending on the level of heat you want
The only thing to chop is the jalapeno.
If you’re using tenders they are the right shape for tips. However, with chicken breast you want to cut them into the same shape you would see steak tips. Chicken breast tends to work better than tenders because it’s thicker, but I had tenders, so I used them.
Put your cast iron pan on the fire and add a high heat oil like grapeseed or avocado oil. You would not want to use something like olive oil. After you cut the chicken, sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.
Apply the rub to the chicken, making sure that all sides are covered.
Once the pan has gotten quite hot or the oil just has a faint smoke, carefully place the chicken in. If you’re like me and you live in an apartment and or don’t have an exhaust fan, you may want to go easy on the heat, because it’s gonna smoke! Try not to fiddle with the chicken too much or it won’t get the black color you’re looking for.
After 3 or 4 minutes flip the chicken with a spatula.
Cook another two minutes and then add the jalapeno and beer. Once the alcohol is cooked off, add the rest of the wet ingredients and lower the heat. You may even want to turn it off so you don’t burn the sauce. While the sauce is cooking use a stainless steel spoon baste the chicken.
Cook until it is firm to the touch, the juices run clean and the instant read thermometer reads 155. Enjoy!
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