• 3 jalapeno peppers (seeded and chopped)
  • 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
  • 2 green onions (chopped)
  • 1 tablespoon thyme
  • 1 tablespoon allspice
  • 3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon dark rum
  • 1 lime (juice and zest)
  • 1 lb chicken with skin

I had been wanting to try Jamaican cuisine for a while and a jerk spice was the first thing on my to try list. A jerk spice is spicy marinade for meats that primarily consists of allspice and scotch bonnet peppers. I found a bunch of recipes out there, since the spice is a mix of a variety of spices. So I played with a few and came up with this one. Unfortunately I couldn’t find a scotch bonnet pepper so I used jalapeno pepper instead, you could also use a habinero. The result was spicy but I think I will be adding more hot peppers to give it a little more kick.

Of course what better use for the marinade then to make a jerk chicken recipe. I marinated the chicken thighs in the jerk marinade overnight and roasted it in the oven, now that it is Summer time I will be trying this recipe out again on the charcoal grill. The combination of flavors in the jerk spice mix was just a flavor explosion and was not overpowering. It was spicy and not too hot, of course I wanted it a little more hot.

Jerk Spice Marinade (Jerk Spice Mix)

Directions:

  1. Puree everything

Jerk Chicken

jamaicanchicken-610x300

Directions:

  1. Marinate the chicken in the jerk marinade for a day turning a few times.
  2. Bake in a preheated 400F oven for 40-50 minutes turning once in the middle.