I’m a really big fan of Cajun cuisine. Give me something with big, bold, spicy flavor, and I’m a happy arboreal rodent! There are many Cajun spice mixes available at stores and markets, and some are better than others. (I’m very partial to Chef Paul Prudhomme’s Cajun Magic spice blends, myself.) The trouble with many commercially available spice blends is that they are often very high in sodium. Many Americans, me included, are on low-sodium diets for health reasons. While there are some low-sodium and salt-free blends available (Paul Prudhomme has a salt-free Magic blend, but I’ve not tried it,) they’re often a bit on the pricey side. Making your own seasoning blend is really an easy and cost-effective alternative.
After much research and effort (I Googled “salt-free Cajon seasoning recipes” and found several) I have developed my own low-sodium Cajun seasoning blend.
Our ingredients are:
2 Tablespoons of Paprika
2 Tablespoons of Garlic Powder
2 Tablespoons of Italian Seasoning Blend (or 1 Tablespoon each of dried oregano & dried thyme)
1 Tablespoon of Cayenne pepper
1 Tablespoon of Black pepper
1 Tablespoon of Onion powder
1 Teaspoon of salt (Omit salt entirely if on a strict “no salt” diet)
Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight jar in a cool, dark place. (What? You thought this was hard?) I use a jar that originally contained black pepper. It has a nice shaker top, which works well with the Cajun spices.
The Squirrel’s Low-sodium Cajun Spice Blend is good for “Cajun blackened” recipes and is great on burgers. Go ahead and make up a batch, since we’ll be using it in next week’s culinary adventure!
The Squirrel shall not live by
