Easy Blackened Chicken

First off, let’s make things clear: Blackened chicken is NOT the result of burning your chicken, or cooking it too long, or from it sticking to the pan.
No, the blackened part of the chicken is the result of a mix of spices and herbs (paprika, salt, cayenne pepper, cumin, thyme, white pepper and onion powder) that coats the chicken and when put to high heat, gives the chicken an outer char.
Usually the coated chicken is seared on a smoking hot skillet to create the blackened effect and then it finishes cooking in the oven.
But in an effort to simplify the cooking process, I skip the ‘smoking hot skillet’ part and instead cook the chicken under the broiler.
It gets a little less blackened but the taste and texture are there, believe me.

What I really love about blackened chicken is that it requires minimal effort and only includes a handful of ingredients.
The herbs and spices create a seared blackened crust on skinless boneless chicken breast that packs a huge amount of flavor and keeps the chicken succulently moist.
This chicken is anything but short on flavor.
It also isn’t spicy per se, unless you want it that way by increasing the cayenne pepper. Totally your call.

Spicy and bold, blackened chicken is delicious when hot, and just as good cold, in salads, sandwiches or over pasta (it’s fantastic on Linguini Alfredo)
We all know that chicken breast can be boring, but blackened, it’s anything but.

Easy Blackened Chicken                                                                                                                         Print this recipe!

Ingredients
Serves 4

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 1 lb in total)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
¼ teaspoon onion powder

Directions

Set oven to broil and place a rack in the upper third of the oven.
Lightly grease a rimmed baking sheet (or a cast iron skillet).
Coat chicken breasts with olive oil.
In a small bowl mix paprika, salt, cayenne pepper, cumin, thyme, white pepper, and onion powder. Rub evenly over top and bottom of chicken breasts, and place on the prepared baking sheet.
Broil for about 18 to 20 minutes (or until the temperature registers 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.) Cooking time depends on how big the chicken breasts are and how hot is your oven, the most important thing is that the chicken is cooked through.
Once cooked, remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley (or cilantro), slice, and serve!

Nutrition facts

One serving yields 157 calories, 6 grams of fat, 0 grams of carbs, and 26 grams of protein.