Jamaican-Style Jerk Chicken

I agree with Anthony Bourdain’s take on Jamaica. It’s as close to paradise as you can get.

The small island nation packs a cultural punch well above its weight. Bob Marley’s music is ubiquitous. Most people recognize a Jamaican accent on the first syllable. Any sports fan, in any part of the globe, knows the fastest man on the planet is from Jamaica. The guy who wrote James Bond – Ian Fleming – did so at his Jamaican home. (It’s now a small luxury resort aptly named GoldenEye). Oh, and they had a famous bobsled team. As much pride as these anecdotes may bring those of Jamaican decent, I’m not sure it does this wonderful island nation the full justice it deserves. It’s a marvelous part of the world, a rich and vibrant heaven on earth.

It would be remiss of me not to note that, sadly, Jamaican’s lovely culture is the ultimate (and thankfully a positive) byproduct of atrocity. Jamaican culture, most succinctly put, is the result of African heritage influenced by European values. Christopher Columbus discovered Jamaica in 1494, and the Spanish colonized the island in 1510. These early European settlers took advantage of Jamaica’s abundance of sugar cane, and grew their labor force via the slave trade. Nearly 600,000 enslaved African people were uprooted and forced into labor in Jamaica between 1533 and 1807, making it one of the largest importers of enslaved people in the world. At its peak, over 300,000 enslaved people inhabited the island colony… in 1823… which represented over 80% of the total population at that time. This is an astonishingly tragic figure. We celebrate Jamaican culture today – often rightfully and appropriately so – but it’s important we respectfully consider the painful circumstances for which this culture was built upon.

Food is a strong part of Jamaican culture. Like the culture as a whole, food culture draws from the country’s deep-rooted history of cultural synthesis. It’s a proverbial melting pot of global flavors. Specifically within Jamaican cuisine, you’ll find methods and influences from across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Sizable immigrant communities across North America and Europe, particularly the U.S. and the U.K., have since exposed Jamaican cuisine to the world.

Exposed isn’t the right word, no. Seduced – the literal definition as “powerfully attracted” – would be a better word. An article in Forbes recently highlighted the recent surge in the popularity of Jamaican food, particularly jerk chicken, in the United States. And for good reason. Jerk chicken is delicious. And it’s spicy. It’s also much more than that. Jerk refers a specific cooking method in which meat is seasoned, smoked, and grilled to maximize its shelf life. It originated in Jamaica and is an enduring legacy of the fusion of African and Taíno heritages, emblematic of the country’s deep and dark history of slavery. Quite frankly, jerk is also emblematic of the magic of the human spirit and human connection. You can read more about jerk’s history in this excellent Smithsonian Magazine article.

There’s a fine line between white-washing an important cultural tradition and paying homage to it. MacDonald’s was recently mired in controversy surrounding their Jerk Chicken Sandwich rollout in the UK. It’s important to understand the basis for such backlash over MacDonald’s decisions, even more so than whatever opinion you may have on the matter. Regardless, once you understand the basis, you’ll realize the issue is pretty black and white.

What’s a simple way to pay respect to a recipe like this? Refer to this recipe as “Jamaican-Style Jerk Chicken”. If I make it, it’s not authentic. I’m not Jamaican. I’m not a descendant of Jamaica. I’ve been to Jamaica, and I love the place, but I can’t claim to make authentic Jamaican Jerk Chicken because of that, no matter how hard I try. Same goes for MacDonald’s. This is the basis for the controversy they found themselves in. It’s also called cultural appropriation. It’s careless considering MacDonald’s strong global and cultural influences.

So, I hope that by providing this information, my perspective, and my Jamaican-Style Jerk Chicken recipe, I pay all due respect to Jamaica’s wonderful culture, cuisine, and people.

My jerk chicken marinade is just like how Anthony Bourdain describes Jamaican hot sauce during his Parts Unknown episode on the island nation… “It’s brown, it’s murky, and it burns, mommy. It burns.” It’s packed full of flavor too; soy, peppers, onion, garlic, bouillon, coconut, fresh herbs like cilantro and bay leaves, and unique spices like anise, cinnamon, and cardamom, just to name a mouthful.

Follow my Jamaican Jerk Recipe below for a respectful journey into Jamaican food culture.

Jamaican Jerk Chicken

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Course: MainsCuisine: JamaicanDifficulty: Medium

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

24

hours 

Cooking time

1

hour 

30

minutes

Total time

25

hours 

30

minutes

A whole chicken soaked in a Jerk Marinade over night and packed with flavors like scotch bonnet chiles, onion, garlic, fresh herbs, and spices including cinnamon, cardamom, and anise

Ingredients

• 3-4 pounds chicken, quartered (skin-on)

• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

• 1/2 cup soy sauce

• 1 small onion, roughly chopped

• 1 small shallot

• 2 medium scallions, chopped

• 4 cloves garlic

• 2 small scotch bonnet chiles (or Habanero pepper)

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 1 tablespoon lime juice

• 1 whole cinnamon stick

• 1 teaspoon anise seed

• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper

• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

• 1 teaspoon fresh cilantro, chopped

• 1 teaspoon fresh parsley, chopped

• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Directions

• Place quartered chicken pieces in a 9″ x 13″ casserole dish.
• To a blender, add the remaining ingredients: extra virgin olive oil, soy sauce, onion, shallot, scallions, garlic, scotch bonnet chiles, lemon juice, lime juice, cinnamon stick, anise seed, ground cardamom, salt, ground black pepper, thyme, cilantro, parsley, white wine vinegar, and brown sugar. Blend for 1-2 minutes or until fully combined. The consistency should be slightly runnier than a thick paste.
• Pour into the casserole dish that contains the chicken. Evenly coat the chicken. Shake gently to evenly distribute the marinade. Cover the casserole dish tightly with plastic wrap and marinade in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours. This can marinade for up to 48 hours.
• Remove the chicken from the refrigerator 1-2 hours prior to cooking, allowing the temperature to rise closer to that of the room.
• Preheat an oven to 350°. Pour out the excess marinade and return the chicken to a casserole dish.
• Roast, uncovered, for 1 hour and 20 minutes. The skin should be golden brown and relatively crispy.

I served my Jamaican Jerk Chicken alongside Caribbean Calypso Rice.