I discovered Cajun and Creole cooking late in life. The spice and flavor of the food was very appealing and sparked a desire to know how to prepare various dishes, something I thoroughly enjoyed. I usually make my own spice blend combining bay leaf, salt, cayenne, oregano, white pepper, black pepper, and thyme leaves. I saw this seasoning blend during a recent shopping trip and thought I would simplify my prep time. How did that turn out?

Appearance

The Cajun seasoning spice blend has an appealing burnt orange color and is speckled with dried garlic and spices. The glass bottle feels sturdy and lends a sense of premium quality to the product. The bottle top has a wide mouth opening without a plastic sifter so it is easy to shake out into a measuring spoon, but you should be careful when shaking it directly into a dish.

Aroma

The spice blend boasts a strong aroma of garlic and paprika with a subtle peppery undertone. Any other scents are overpowered by them. 

Taste

The cayenne pepper in the spice blend provides a pleasant warmth.  The garlic and paprika are very pronounced while the remaining herbs and spices are more subtle. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much added flavor to the jambalaya I made with this blend. 

Application

I used this spice blend in the Jambalaya I made and was hoping this would be my go-to seasoning. While the paprika and garlic were a nice addition to the jambalaya, the other spices seemed to vanish in the dish along with the warmth of the red pepper. In the end I added additional herbs and spices to improve the flavor.

Final Thoughts

This seasoning would be a decent base for beginners. Additional seasonings would be required to give your Cajun dish the flavor you want. If you like some heat in your recipe you will need to add that too. I was hoping for a quick go-to item to add to my pantry. Unfortunately, this blend falls short as a standalone seasoning for authentic Cajun dishes. However, it might be useful for those new to Cajun cooking or as a base to build upon bolder spices.