Jerk chicken

No time to make it to the Caribbean? We’ve got you covered. Jerk chicken is a real feel-good carnival food! Filled with warm spices bound to to have you wanting more. Ask a Jamaican to name a traditional Jamaican food and they’ll most likely mention jerk chicken. Ubiquitous throughout Jamaica from roadside shacks to fancy restaurant twists, jerk chicken is, without doubt, a Jamaican institution. I

For those of you not familiar with Jerk, it is a spicy, sweet, tangy and HOT seasoning for grilled meat, pork and chicken particularly. If you're after a taste of the West Indies, then this is the recipe for you. This jerk chicken is a quick recipe with fantastic authentic Jamaican flavors of peppers, onions, allspice and cloves and with no mess to clean up. 

It’s a lot easier to make Jerk Chicken at home than you think. The trick to making Jerk Chicken at home is to marinade it overnight then broil it in the oven for a crispy caramelized skin. This recipe is a great make ahead meal. The night before throw all of the marinade ingredients in a food processor pulse them up and through it in a ziplock bag along with the chicken. When it’s time for dinner take the chicken out of the marinade and bake! 

It is best known to be prepare on the grill. (Jerk Pan)

Ingredients:

1 chopped Scotch bonnet

chopped spring onions

1 Tbsp Pimento seeds

2 Tsp Fresh Thyme

4 Tbsp Jerk seasoning (Paste)

1 Tsp chicken seasoning

2 Tbsp Jerk bbq sauce

1 Tbsp Ketchup or sweet chilli 

Directions:

1. Wash 1 pack of chicken with lemon and water and Slit chicken with knife

2. Chopped 1 Scotch bonnet or 1/2 for milder option Add: Cup of chopped spring onion 1 Tsp Chopped Pimento seeds 2 Tsp Fresh Thyme 4 Tbsp Jerk seasoning (Paste )

3. Mix together

4. 1 Tsp chicken seasoning

5. 1 Tsp Jerk seasoning

6. Mix together

7. Massage seasoning into chicken and slits

8. Marinate chicken in fridge overnight or at least  8 hours

9. Then cook for 45 mins in oven 180 degrees 

SIDE NOTE: If you want you can place some aluminum foil over the dish the first 30 minutes of cooking, but I find that leaving it exposed (open) works great.