Jerk Chicken

Country Of Origin: Jamaica 🇯🇲

In the past, jerk was used to refer to a pig that was slowly grilled over a fire of pimento wood. Today however, the main ingredient is usually chicken, pork, or beef. Jerk refers to a unique Jamaican cooking method where pork, chicken, beef or seafood, (sometimes even fruits and vegetables) are cooked over a fire pit or grill.

Regardless of the what you're cooking, the key ingredient to real jerk is a unique, spicy seasoning - a blend of onions, green onions, thyme, Jamaican allspice, chilies, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon - perfectly encapsulating Jamaica: spicy, hot, yet sweet.

These heavy seasonings were originally used to keep the meat from spoiling. There are various theories about the name - it could be the Incan word for dried meat, charqui, or maybe the process that involves jerking the meat as it cooks over the fire.

History: Jerk chicken's history is a story of cultural fusion and survival, originating with the Taíno people of Jamaica who developed meat-preserving techniques. When Spanish colonists were replaced by the British, African slaves escaped into the mountains, becoming the Maroons. These Maroons learned from the Taíno, blending their cooking methods with African spices and native ingredients like allspice and Scotch bonnet peppers, creating the pungent, smoky, and spicy dish known as jerk. The "jerk" method, which involved poking holes in meat to allow spices to penetrate and slow-cooking it over fires, was essential for survival.

Our Favorite Recipe: https://www.seriouseats.com/jerk-chicken

Wah gwaan! Check out this amazing Jamaican cookbook: https://amzn.to/3JCykRm

Try this mouth watering jerk rub paste to spice things up a little: https://amzn.to/421bcSH

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