Cajun Seasoning Recipe, Scaled to Your Batch

By , Ready Utilities

America's Test Kitchen's Louisiana Seasoning, which it calls Cajun seasoning, mixes paprika, garlic powder, dried thyme, cayenne, celery salt, salt, and pepper, and makes about 3/4 cup.

Common batch sizes

Tap a batch size to load it into the calculator, and the exact amounts appear below.

Cajun seasoning calculator

Scale by

Weight mode needs a USDA gram weight for every ingredient; dried thyme doesn't have one.

From 0.25 to 20. Use 0.5 for half a batch.

Salt

Grind changes how much salt fits in a spoon. Amounts match by weight.

Heat

Heat changes only the cayenne pepper. It's a taste preference, not part of the recipe.

Your batch

Paprika makes up the biggest share of this blend, and cayenne is a twelfth of it by volume, so it has real heat. Use the heat control if you want it milder. America's Test Kitchen uses 2 tablespoons of this blend in its Pork Grillades and suggests the leftovers on scrambled eggs, boiled potatoes, or roast chicken.

Salt and heat settings are preferences. Taste as you go.

The base recipe

Louisiana Seasoning

Adapted from Louisiana Seasoning, America's Test Kitchen (Cook's Country)

Yield: Makes about 3/4 cup

  • 5 tablespoons paprika
  • 2 tablespoons garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon dried thyme
  • 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 tablespoon celery salt
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon pepper
  1. Stir all the ingredients together in a bowl.

Scale this recipe

On this page

Batch size chart

IngredientHalf batchBase batchDoubleTriple
paprika2 tbsp + 1 1/2 tsp (17 g)1/4 cup + 1 tbsp (35 g)1/2 cup + 2 tbsp (69 g)3/4 cup + 3 tbsp (104 g)
garlic powder1 tbsp (9.3 g)2 tbsp (19 g)1/4 cup (37 g)1/4 cup + 2 tbsp (56 g)
dried thyme1 1/2 tsp1 tbsp2 tbsp3 tbsp
cayenne pepper1 1/2 tsp (2.7 g)1 tbsp (5.4 g)2 tbsp (11 g)3 tbsp (16 g)
celery salt1 1/2 tsp1 tbsp2 tbsp3 tbsp
salt1 1/2 tsp (9.0 g)1 tbsp (18 g)2 tbsp (36 g)3 tbsp (54 g)
pepper1 1/2 tsp (3.5 g)1 tbsp (6.9 g)2 tbsp (14 g)3 tbsp (21 g)
Total volume1/4 cup + 2 tbsp3/4 cup1 1/2 cups2 1/4 cups

Louisiana Seasoning from America's Test Kitchen (Cook's Country), scaled with the site's kitchen rounding. Weights from USDA FoodData Central where USDA lists the exact form. Salt is shown as the recipe lists it.

How the scaling works

Louisiana Seasoning totals 3/4 cup as published, across 7 ingredients. Every one is multiplied by the same number, so paprika stays 42% of the blend whatever size you make. Pick a multiplier directly, or enter the amount you want and the calculator works back to it from that 3/4 cup total.

The salt and heat controls change only those lines. Turning the cayenne pepper down does not make the paprika go up. Amounts under 3 teaspoons round to the nearest 1/8 teaspoon, and larger amounts round to the nearest 1/4 teaspoon in tablespoons.

Worked example: doubling the base recipe

IngredientBasex 2
paprika5 tablespoons1/2 cup + 2 tbsp
garlic powder2 tablespoons1/4 cup
dried thyme1 tablespoon2 tbsp
cayenne pepper1 tablespoon2 tbsp
celery salt1 tablespoon2 tbsp
salt1 tablespoon2 tbsp
pepper1 tablespoon2 tbsp

How this was checked

The base recipe here is America's Test Kitchen's Louisiana Seasoning by Morgan Bolling. Cedrick Reese checked it against America's Test Kitchen's own recipe page for Ready Utilities, and the calculator shows every amount exactly as published before it scales anything. Gram weights come from USDA FoodData Central, and ingredients USDA doesn't list in the recipe's form, like celery salt and dried thyme, show no weight. The recipe doesn't name its salt, so it's treated as table salt and converted to your salt by weight, using each salt's own nutrition label.

Frequently asked questions

What is in Cajun seasoning?

America's Test Kitchen's Louisiana Seasoning uses 5 tablespoons paprika, 2 tablespoons garlic powder, and 1 tablespoon each of dried thyme, cayenne pepper, celery salt, salt, and pepper. It makes about 3/4 cup.

How much should I make?

The base recipe makes about 3/4 cup. America's Test Kitchen uses 2 tablespoons of it in its Pork Grillades, so a half batch is plenty if you only need it for one dish.

What's the secret ingredient in Cajun seasoning?

America's Test Kitchen's recipe doesn't name a secret ingredient. Paprika is the largest share, at about 42% of the blend by volume, and the recipe uses celery salt as well as regular salt.

Is this Cajun or Creole seasoning?

America's Test Kitchen describes store-bought Louisiana seasoning blends as Cajun or Creole and calls this recipe Cajun seasoning in its notes.

Can I use kosher salt in this recipe?

Yes. The recipe doesn't name its salt, so the calculator treats it as table salt and converts it to the salt you pick by weight, which keeps the saltiness the same.