DESCRIPTION
If you’ve never made Jerk Chicken, you’re in for a surprise—it’s really easy and reeeeeally good!
Ingredients
Scale
- 6 scallions
- 1 onion, cut into chunks
- 2 Scotch bonnet or habanero chilies, halved, stemmed, and seeded
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 (1-in.) piece of ginger, peeled and cut into 4 or 5 pieces
- 3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
- 3 Tbsp. cooking oil
- 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 3 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
- 4 tsp. ground allspice
- 1 Tbsp. fresh thyme leaves
- 1 and 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. pepper
- 3/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1 (5 1/2– to 6-lb.) chicken, cut into pieces (breasts cut into 2 pieces)
Instructions
- Cut 4 scallions into rough 1-inch pieces and put them in a blender or food processor. Thinly slice the remaining 2 scallions and set aside.
- Add the onion, chiles, garlic, ginger, lime juice, oil, soy sauce, sugar, allspice, thyme, salt, pepper, and nutmeg to the blender or food processor and puree.
- Set aside 3/4 cup of the sauce. Pour the rest of the sauce in a resealable bag and add the chicken. Refrigerate for at least an hour and as long as overnight.
- One hour before you’re ready to cook, remove the chicken from the fridge and set it aside at room temperature.
- Prepare a grill to medium heat, with areas for direct and indirect cooking, and lightly oil the grate. Cook the chicken over direct heat, skin side down, until it has nice grill marks, about 5 minutes.
- Move the chicken to indirect heat and close the lid on the grill. Cook to an internal temperature of 165°F, 35 to 40 minutes. (The thinner and smaller pieces might be done sooner.) While you’re cooking, check the grill every 10 minutes or so and adjust the heat as needed to maintain an “oven” temperature of about 350°F.
- Serve the chicken sprinkled with the sliced scallions, with the reserved sauce on the side.