Zaire's Family Recipe For Kickin' Jerk Chicken

Photo: Aisha Foodista

Ingredients

For the Spice Blend

1 tablespoon ground allspice

1 tablespoon ground thyme

1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons ground sage

3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon minced ginger

2 tablespoons fresh garlic (crushed)

1 tablespoon brown sugar or molasses

1/4 cup Soy sauce

1/4 cup dark rum (optional, but encouraged)

3/4 cup white vinegar

1/2 cup orange juice

1 Juice of lime

2 Scotch bonnet peppers

3 green onions, diced

1 cup white onion, diced

2 pounds of chicken pieces (I always encourage people to use legs and thighs, but breasts will work as well)

Lime for garnish

Preparation

Place chicken in a large freezer bag and pour in spice blend. Place in a bowl to make sure there isn't any leakage and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, but up to a day is preferable.

Put all of the Spice Blend ingredients in a blender and whiz until smooth.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees or grill.

If using an oven, place chicken skin side up on a roasting pan and roast until cooked through (about 45 minutes) flipping once halfway through the process.

If using a grill, place chicken skin-side down and grill until skin becomes crisp. Flip and finishing cooking thoroughly. Don't be afraid to blacken the chicken with this recipe.

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About

So what does Jerk mean anyways? Well there are a few different theories on that.
One is the word “jerk” comes from the Peruvian word “charqui” meaning “dried meat.” Another states it evolved from a noun, “jerk”, to a verb, “jerking”, and referred to the cooking method where holes are poked into the meat so the spices can be absorbed. But author, Helen Willinsky believes the name comes from the way cooks would jerk pieces of meat off of a roast on the barbeque.
But it is commonly agreed that Jerk is a Jamaican style of seasoning and cooking. The “Jerk” style uses a marinade or paste, usually pimento, a.k.a. allspice, and scotch bonnets, also known as habenero peppers. The meat is marinated and slow smoked over pimento wood.