The spice is right

In South Louisiana, we defend our hometown teams, our hometown festivals and even our hometown seasonings. The famous Tony Chachere’s calls Opelousas home, Slap Ya Mama hails from Ville Platte and Zatarain’s (originally from New Orleans) is made across the river in Gretna.

Here in Baton Rouge, we have brands like Louisiana Fish Fry Products and newcomer Jeanpierre’s. With so many on the market, 225‘s staff decided to hold an informal taste test.

Four staffers spent an afternoon trying out a dozen south Louisiana seasonings, quietly pondering the subtle and complex flavors and emptying the company water cooler in the process.

We rated each on the salt content, spices, flavor and heat. Slap Ya Mama’s Hot blend took the crown for spiciest, though that heat didn’t save room for many other flavors. After multiple tastings, we took a liking to those with added flavorful ingredients, like Cajun Injector’s Lemon Pepper.

The staff’s overall favorite was Jeanpierre’s, with its label boasting, “Try to find the salt hidden in the flavor.” We agreed. The low salt content allowed for just the right combination of intriguing spices and gave us pause during our long, spicy ordeal.

We rated each seasoning blend using a scale of 1 to 5 in each of four categories: Salt content, Spiciness, Flavor and Heat. Four members of 225e’s staff participated in the judging. Totals from each category were added together to determine the highest score.

1. Jeanpierre’s: 15.25
2. Cajun Injector’s Lemon Pepper: 14
3. Konriko’s Jalapeńo: 11.25?

1 Jeanpierre: 15.25
2 Louisiana Fish Fry Products: 11
3 Tony Chachere’s: 10.5