Jerk chicken

Jerk is a distinctive cooking style native to Jamaica, where meat is marinated with a flavourful wet or dry spice blend. It is believed that jerk cooking originated with the Taíno, an indigenous community of the Caribbean, who shared the techniques with African slaves who escaped into the Jamaican countryside in the mid-1600s, who together, developed the method for cooking jerk-style. This version comes from Andy Hearnden, who first tried jerk chicken while living and working in London.

Credit: Jiwon Kim

• serves

  4

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 kg chicken drumsticks
• 1 lime, cut into wedges, to serve

For the jerk marinade 

• 1 tsp whole allspice berries
• 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 2 tbsp honey
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 scotch bonnet chillies (or habaneros)
• 5 garlic cloves
• 3 cm x 3 cm piece ginger, peeled and sliced
• 2 spring onions
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp salt

Marinating time: 3 – 24 hours

Instructions

1. Combine the ingredients for the jerk marinade in a blender, then blitz until it forms a smooth paste.

2. In a large bowl, pour the jerk marinade over the chicken and rub in well. Marinate, refrigerated, for at least 3 hours, or up to 24 hours.

3. Heat a barbecue, chargrill pan or grill in the oven over medium-high heat. Grill the chicken for 20-25 minutes, turning often, or until the chicken is cooked through.

4. Serve the jerk chicken with lime wedges.

Photography by Jiwon Kim.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.