Many of my friends have been subject to my Grilled Jamaican Jerk Chicken recipe. Some have cried over a bowl of it they loved it so much, as the sweat poured off their faces… (you know who you are.) Others have begged for the recipe and added it to their regular meal rotation.
Challenged with teaching a class on batch cooking, I have taken it a step farther. In the past I have marinated my chicken in this tangy, sweet and spicy sauce, then grilled them, but for my class I used the sauce as a way to bring back life to some leftover chicken thighs and roasted vegetables.
I prefer to double the marinade recipe so I have extra sauce and marinate bone-in chicken thighs or legs for at least an hour, overnight is better. Then grill them using the indirect cooking method for 45 minutes.
Still awesome is this Jerk sauce with roasted vegetables over rice, prepared with coconut milk instead of water.
You can also use this sauce on fish, pork or turkey. Your day after Thanksgiving turkey sandwich will be amazing if you mix a spoonful of this sauce with some mayo and spread it on your sandwich, or drizzle it over whatever leftovers you have. Make a delicious Jerk Chicken pizza, pasta, quesadillas …the options are endless.
To prepare for use as a sauce over cooked chicken and vegetables heat pan over medium heat. Swirl in olive oil and begin to cook the diced onions. Sauté onions for about 5 minutes until they begin to become translucent. Add garlic and other spices and continue to sauté for an additional 2 minutes. Add balance of ingredients and allow to simmer for about 10 minutes to allow all the flavors to marry. Toss with your chicken and vegetables and serve over rice.
To use as a marinade, add all ingredients to a large zip top bag. Mix well. Add chicken and allow to marinate for at least an hour, preferably overnight. Remove meat from marinade and fully cook on the grill or in the oven. While chicken cooks, bring marinade to a boil, then allow to simmer for about 10 minutes. Top chicken with extra sauce and/or serve on the side.
Either way you choose to go with it, enjoy!
Jamaican Jerk Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon ground allspice
- 1 Tablespoon dried thyme
- 3/4 teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground sage
- 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 Tablespoons crushed garlic
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- the juice of 1 lime
- 1 scotch bonnet or habanero pepper seeded
- 3 green onions chopped fine
- 1 cup yellow onion chopped fine
- 3 cups previously cooked chicken
- 3 cups roasted vegetables of choice, I prefer broccoli, carrots, and a mix of red and yellow peppers
- 2 cups rice prepared using coconut milk in place of water
Instructions
- Mix all herbs and spices including garlic in a medium sized mixing bowl. In a small bowl mix the wet ingredients, honey, oil, soy sauce, vinegar, orange juice and lime juice. Slowly add wet ingredients to the herb/spice mixture while whisking together. Finally add scotch bonnet pepper and green and yellow onion. Simmer sauce in a small sauce pan for about 20 minutes to allow all the flavors to develop. Remove from heat.
- Toss about 1/2 of the sauce with chicken and roasted veggies and warm through. Serve over a bed of rice with extra sauce on the side. Enjoy!
- Alternately marinate uncooked chicken in above sauce before simmering. Before cooking chicken remove from marinade and transfer marinade to small sauce pan. Simmer for about 20 minutes while chicken roasts. Top chicken with sauce.
http://classic-recipes.com/page/poultry/jerkchk.htm
Use organic non-gmo ingredients whenever possible.
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