Jamaican jerk starts with bold ingredients
Spicy, smoky Jamaican jerk is one of the world’s great barbecue traditions. Meat (traditionally chicken or pork) is rubbed with an intensely flavored liquidy paste made from fiery Scotch bonnet chiles, allspice berries, herbs, and spices, and then it is smoked over pimento wood.
Our jerk marinade has plenty of bold ingredients, including habanero chiles (in place of the Scotch bonnets), scallions, garlic, lime zest, and mustard for zingy brightness, and brown sugar, nutmeg, and ginger for warm sweetness. It’s potent enough to infuse the chicken in just 30 minutes.
We substituted easy-to-find hickory chips for the traditional pimento wood, and we smoked allspice berries, thyme, and rosemary along with the wood chips to give our chicken a great authentic flavor that mimicked pimento’s sweet, herbal smoke.
Jerk Chicken
Servings: 4 Start to finish: 1 hour, 45 minutes 11⁄2 tablespoons coriander seeds 1 tablespoon allspice berries 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1-3 habanero chiles, stemmed, seeded, and quartered
8 scallions, chopped 6 garlic cloves, peeled 3 tablespoons vegetable oil 2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons grated lime zest (3 limes), plus lime wedges for serving
2 tablespoons yellow mustard 1 tablespoon dried thyme 1 tablespoon ground ginger 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar 21⁄4 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons dried basil teaspoon dried rosemary teaspoon ground nutmeg 3 pounds bone-in chicken pieces (split breasts cut in half crosswise, drumsticks, and/or thighs), trimmed
2 tablespoons allspice berries 2 tablespoons dried thyme 2 tablespoons dried rosemary 2 tablespoons water
1 cup wood chips (preferably hickory), soaked in water for 15 minutes and
Grind coriander seeds, allspice berries, and peppercorns in spice grinder or mortar and pestle until coarsely ground. Transfer spices to blender jar. Add remaining ingredients and process to smooth paste, 1 to 3 minutes, scraping down sides of blender jar as necessary. Transfer marinade to 1 gallon zipper-lock bag.
For the chicken: Add chicken pieces to bag with marinade and toss to coat; press out air and seal bag. Let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes while preparing grill, flipping bag after 15 minutes. (Marinated chicken can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.) ❚ ❚ Nutrition information per serving: 430 calories; 214 calories from fat; 24 g fat (4 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 160 mg cholesterol; 1723 mg sodium; 12 g carbohydrate; 3 g fiber; 4 g sugar; 42 g protein.