Jerk is one of the most popular styles of Jamaican cooking. It is used for cooking meat, traditionally pork or goat, but nowadays chicken and fish as well. All jerk dishes are spicy, even fiery, but they can be very tasty and are appreciated by many spice lovers.
The main secret behind the flavor of jerk is in the preparation of the meat. This is done by marinading the meat in a mixture of spices known as "Jamaican jerk spice". Ideally, you should marinade the meat over night in the 'fridge and then cook the following day. Rather than just letting the marinade soak into the meat, I would suggest making some light cuts in the surface of the meat, and rubbing the marinade into these as well as the meat generally.
As already mentioned, Jamaican jerk spice is a actually a mixture of several spices. It gets most of its flavor from two particular ingredients, namely Jamaican allspice (also known as "pimento" or "pimenta") and Scotch bell peppers. Jerk spice also usually contains several other spices such as garlic, cloves, cinnamon and thyme, and is usually mixed with chopped onions and/or scallions before being applied to the meat.
The best way to cook jerk chicken is over a charcoal barbecue grill. Ideally, you should place some pimento wood or berries on the grill - but if this is not possible you can put some hickory or apple on the coals instead. Of course, barbecuing meat is not always possible, for example during the Winter or if you live in a city - in that case, you can instead roast the meat in a normal kitchen oven, and still get good results.
The main secret behind the flavor of jerk is in the preparation of the meat. This is done by marinading the meat in a mixture of spices known as "Jamaican jerk spice". Ideally, you should marinade the meat over night in the 'fridge and then cook the following day. Rather than just letting the marinade soak into the meat, I would suggest making some light cuts in the surface of the meat, and rubbing the marinade into these as well as the meat generally.
As already mentioned, Jamaican jerk spice is a actually a mixture of several spices. It gets most of its flavor from two particular ingredients, namely Jamaican allspice (also known as "pimento" or "pimenta") and Scotch bell peppers. Jerk spice also usually contains several other spices such as garlic, cloves, cinnamon and thyme, and is usually mixed with chopped onions and/or scallions before being applied to the meat.
The best way to cook jerk chicken is over a charcoal barbecue grill. Ideally, you should place some pimento wood or berries on the grill - but if this is not possible you can put some hickory or apple on the coals instead. Of course, barbecuing meat is not always possible, for example during the Winter or if you live in a city - in that case, you can instead roast the meat in a normal kitchen oven, and still get good results.
Ingredients
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
4 limes, juice of 1 cup water 2 teaspoons ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons dried thyme 1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil 2 onions, chopped
1 1/2 cups chopped green onions 6 garlic cloves, chopped
2 scotch bonnet peppers, chopped
Directions
1Cut the chicken breasts into chunks.
2Place chicken in a medium bowl. Cover with lime juice and water. Set aside.
3In a blender or food processor, place allspice, nutmeg, salt, brown sugar, thyme, ginger, black pepper and vegetable oil. Blend well, then mix in onions, green onions, garlic and habanero peppers until almost smooth.
4Pour the blended marinade mixture into bowl with chicken. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator at least 2 hours.
5Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat and lightly oil grate.
6Cook chicken slowly on the preheated grill. Turn frequently, basting often with remaining marinade mixture. Cook to desired doneness.
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