Trying to decide what to serve with blackened chicken? This collection of delicious recipes provides the best options for every meal—from dinner on busy nights to fun summer BBQs, we've got you covered!
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❤️ Why we love it
- Smoky, zingy, flavorful Cajun cuisine right from your own kitchen
- Versatile main course goes with all of your favorite sides
- The spice mixture is made from simple ingredients you can get at any grocery store
My family's favorite easy blackened chicken recipe uses a homemade spice blend that's super easy to customize and even more delicious!
Plus, the chicken is done in just thirty minutes, and most sides are even faster than that—better yet, no one complains when it lands on the dinner table!
🥦 Vegetables and Sides
Quick veggies are a great way to meal prep in just minutes, but they don't have to taste boring! These sides have extra flavor, so they hold up great when served with smoky blackened chicken.
- Green beans and potatoes
- Louisiana "dirty" rice
- Black-eyed pea salad
- Potato wedges
- Cucumber salad with sour cream
- Red beans and rice
- Simple salad with fresh garden veggies
- Bacon-wrapped asparagus
- Mom's homemade potato salad
- Southern creamed corn
- Mango salsa
- Cobb salad (top it with the blackened chicken)
- Southern coleslaw (KFC copycat)
- Mixed roasted vegetables
- Polenta
- Frito corn salad
- Fried okra
- Succotash
- Sweet and spicy sweet potatoes
- Collard greens
Breads
Bread is not only a pantry staple, but it's also one of my favorite ways to fill everyone up. Plus, instead of serving it with the blackened chicken, you can stack everything together to make sandwiches—fun and so delish!
- Cornbread casserole
- Garlic breadsticks
- Cheddar and cracked black pepper dinner rolls
- Rustic bread
- Cornbread muffins
- Hush puppies
- Texas toast
- Hatch chile cheese bread
- Freezer dinner rolls
- Cajun-spiced garlic bread
- 30-Minute dinner rolls
- Potato garlic baguettes
- Cajun cornbread
- Cornmeal sandwich rolls
- Sweet potato bread
- Buttermilk biscuits
- Skillet cornbread
Desserts
After all that Cajun seasoning, dessert is bound to feel like a great idea. Serve these easy sweet treats after a blackened chicken meal to cool your palate and finish dinner off in style!
- Caramel pecan pumpkin bread pudding
- Beignets
- Pecan praline coconut pie
- Chantilly cake with fresh strawberries
- King cake
- Sweet potato pie
- Fruit salad with honey lime dressing
- Praline brownies
- Brazillian grilled pineapple
- Ice cream sundaes
- Funnel cake
- Rum-soaked pound cake
- Popsicles from fresh fruit juice
- Pecan pie
- Bananas foster
- Fresh peach muffins
🍷 Wine and cocktails
Serving a fun beverage is the perfect way to make any dinner feel like a party—even if it's just a party-of-one while you're cleaning! These wine and cocktail pairings add a ton of flavor to your delicious meal.
- Bloody Mary
- Hibiscus lemonade
- Rum Runner cocktail
- Pinot Noir
- King cake Jello shots
- Tropical pineapple sangria
- Durango cocktail
- Sazerac cocktail
- Merlot
- Watermelon pitcher margaritas
- Hurricane cocktail
- Pinot Grigio
- Bourbon peach tea
🍇 Garnish
Garnish makes the distinctive flavors of blackened chicken pop and helps your dinner feel like it's restaurant-quality. Consider serving a few different things from this list to give your guests—and family—options!
- Refrigerator-pickled okra
- LTO for sandwiches (lettuce, tomato, and onion!)
- Copycat Red Robin campfire sauce
- Jalapeno pimento cheese
- Hot sauce
- Candied jalapenos (Cowboy Candy)
- Panera copycat pickled onions
- Fresh herbs, such as green onions or chives
💭 Things to know
For the best blackened chicken dinner ever, be sure to follow these tips!
- You can use any cut you prefer to make blackened chicken—large chicken breasts, bite-sized chicken pieces, chicken thighs, and wings.
- Pound out the chicken with a meat mallet so it all cooks more evenly.
- Use a homemade seasoning mix to adjust the spice rub to your preferences. For example, limit the salt, reduce the onion powder if you don't love the flavor, or add cayenne pepper if you want it extra spicy!
- For the most authentic flavor, use a cast-iron skillet (not a nonstick pan.)
- To get a good, strong sear, let the chicken come to room temperature, before slapping it onto a red-hot pan. Once it's down, don't move it!
- Always check for doneness with a meat thermometer. For chicken, pull it off the heat when the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F and let it stand for 5 to 10 minutes to finish coming to a safe temperature of 165F.
- Tent the chicken with aluminum foil and let it rest for a few minutes after cooking. It makes a big difference in keeping the chicken juicy!
- The best side dishes to serve with blackened chicken aren't fussy. Simple sides let the blackening seasoning shine as the star of the show!
- Store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Now that you know what to serve, head over to my copycat Popeye's blackened chicken recipe and get dinner started!
📓 Meal plans in minutes
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