The first time I ate Jerk Chicken, was at a pop up Caribbean food stall near Haymarket Station, it was served with some tasty rice with red kidney beans and the most deliciously sweet plantain. Ever since I have been waiting to experiment and make this spicy chicken at home. Please resist the temptation of using a jerk sauce out of a bottle, it’s almost a crime because in the recipe I used from the BBC Good Food guide, it makes preparing the marinade a thing of joy. Not only will you learn how each ingredient lends its individual flavour but you can learn how to adjust the ”heat” in this amazing marinade. An advance warning, if you have sensitive skin PLEASE use gloves to marinate the chicken as Scotch Bonnet peppers are PACKED with heat. Ensure you THOROUGHLY wash your hands after you handle these ”hot babies” too! Humm now for the recipe, it’s essentially what was in the original but of course, I have added my own touches and I think they make quite an impact 🙂 So read on folks.
Jerk Chicken
Ingredients
For Jerk Chicken:
- 12 chicken thighs with bone
- 1 garlic sliced through the middle to go in the oven
- 2 lemons halved to go in the baking tray
- 1 pair of clean gloves if you have sensitive skin – to marinate the chicken
For the Jerk marinade:
- 4 Garlic Cloves de-skinned
- 1 small red onion
- 1 bunch fresh spring onion roughly chopped
- 1 portion ginger size that fits inside your closed fist washed, skinned and roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp thyme – I had none so I used 1 tbsp of Mixed Italian herb powder
- 3 scotch bonnet chillies de-seeded if you cannot handle very spicy
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp oil – I used sunflower
- 4 heaped tbsp brown sugar – I used dark muscovado sugar
- 1 tbsp ground allspice powder
- 1 lime Juiced
Instructions
- Blitz all the ingredients for the marinade in the mixer/food processor/blender and make a thick paste, do not add water as far as possible to ensure a thick puree like grainy paste
- Wash and deskin the chicken thighs and make cuts using a knife
- Then generously apply the marinade paste all over rubbing into the cuts made to ensure the flavour really seeps into the chicken
- Marinate overnight in the fridge. Cover vessel with cling film
- Keep about 2 tbsp marinade aside for adding in the baking tray
- When you are ready to prepare the chicken pre-heat the oven to 180 – 200 degree Celsius, I have a fan oven
- Prepare the baking tray by greasing with some oil, place the marinated chicken pieces and surround them with the lime slices and place the garlic halved
- Cook in the oven for about 45 minutes or until juices run clear
- When the chicken is in the oven start with the rice
Coconut Rice with Peas
Ingredients
- 200 g Basmati Rice
- 400 g Coconut Milk can
- 1 bunch fresh spring onion finely chopped
- 2 large sprigs of fresh thyme
- 2 large cloves of garlic skinned and chopped very fine
- 1 tbsp ground allspice
- 200 g green peas
Instructions
- Wash the Basmati rice under cold running tap water
- In a heavy-bottomed vessel, add the washed rice and coconut milk, chopped spring onions, thyme, garlic chopped and allspice
- Add 300 ml water, mix and add salt to season
- Cook with lid on a medium flame till water begins to boil
- Stir with a wooden spatula and then add the green peas
- Reduce flame and do not cover completely, leave a bit of space for the steam to pass
- Cook until done
Although the recipe I followed, uses red kidney beans since I was already using them in my Caribbean Sweet Mini Pepper Salad, I choose green peas for my Coconut Rice. I made my own homemade replacement for allspice powder too, it’s very easy and I intend to make it fresh each time I need instead of the store-bought one, simply because it is so quick and easy to prepare! Actually allspice is a spice by itself but it tastes similar to a mixture of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and pepper.
Also Known as: Jamaican Pepper or New spice
Home made all-Spice Powder recipe
Home made all-spice seasoning
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Cinnamon powder or cinnamon stick – thumb-sized
- 1 small tbsp pepper powder
- 1 heaped tbsp of cloves
- 1 full nutmeg grated
Instructions
- In a pestle and mortar mix the ingredients and grate the nutmeg into it
- Then smash together to makes a grainy powder
- Some bits of the clove you may not be able to grind fine, I wouldn’t worry about it unless you want a fine powder then the smallest attachment on your mixer. I have an Indian mixer which I use for my coconut chutneys and it has 3 jars I used the one with 3 blades. Or else just use the pestle and mortar it should work.
- Store away the remaining homemade allspice replacement powder in a tiny airtight container
A note about the brown sugar vs. dark muscovado sugar
Dark Muscovado sugar is the unrefined form of brown sugar ,its stickier ,heavier,has a longer shelf life than refined sugars and adds a more intense flavour to marinades and since it is stable at high temperatures is great for baking.If you do not have brown sugar its ok to replace it with dark Muscovado sugar. Although as the water content dark muscovado holds is higher one should accordingly taper the use of water in the recipe.
Brown sugar is white sugar and molasses and hence the colour and soft texture. It has the light and dark brown sugar varieties and the lighter it is the milder the flavour.
