blackened chicken

Blackened chicken is a Cajun cooking technique where chicken is coated heavily with spices—typically paprika, cayenne, garlic, and thyme—then seared in a very hot cast-iron skillet until the spice crust chars dark.

The method, popularized by chef Paul Prudhomme in the 1980s, produces meat that's crispy and intensely flavored outside, juicy inside: I'll have the blackened chicken salad.