jerk chicken / spicy smoked food?

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This method of cooking pork and chicken dates back to the Carib-Arawak Indians who inhabited Jamaica. After capturing an animal and thoroughly cleaning and gutting it, the Indians placed it in a deep pit lined with stones and covered with green wood, which, when burned, would smoke heavily and add to the flavor. But first the carcass was "jerked" with a sharp object to make holes, which were stuffed with a variety of spices. The holes also allowed heat to escape without loss of moisture.
The results were superb. The meat was not only wonderfully spices, but moist and tender."

Sound familiar? It's a lot like Q, but spicier. Being 100% American and proud, but of West Indian descent (Mom and Dad) I am actively looking for Jerk Chicken recipes. I've seen a couple online, but nothing that really has gotten my attention yet. I'm looking for anything spicy anyone has tried, so that would help as well. My Mom and Dad are from Trinidad, so they cant really help me that much. Jerk chicken is from Jamaica, close but no cigar. I'm going to get her help for the spices to try... but I still could use some help. Any ideas or favorite spicy smoked foods?
 
woah. looks like this guy substitutes habaneros for scotch bonnets. i've had those scotch bonnets, i had a friend use it in buffalo wings once. we were putting celery on our lips for hours. i remember being miserable but reaching for another wing anyway.

i think habaneros are probably a good sub, but i wonder if i can pick up any of those bonnets. i hear they are just as hot, but the bonnets have a smokier flavor. at that level of tongue burn, it's hard to be sure i could tell! hah.

thanks for the recipe!
 
Carl,

Paul Kirk also uses habaneros (ground) in his jerk seasoning. In fact, he says that habaneros and Scotch Bonnets are the same chile: "The ground habanero pepper--or Scotch Bonnets, as they are called in Jamaica..." That makes sense to me, because if you look at a habanero it does look rather like a bonnet.

Cheers,

Mr S.
 
Hey Carl!

Here are 2 that I have worked with in the past. One is my cooking partner's recipe and one is from another buddy.

Enjoy!!
_____________________________________________

Tim's Jerk Paste

1 large Onion(s), chopped
4 Scallion(s), chopped
4 clove(s) Garlic, chopped
1 - 4 Habanero chiles
3 Bay leaf(s)
1 teaspoon Allspice
1/2 teaspoon Thyme
1/4 teaspoon Cloves
2 tablespoon(s) Olive oil
2 teaspoon(s) Salt
1/4 cup Rum, dark
3 tablespoon(s) Lime juice

PREPARATION:
Heat olive oil and saute everything except salt, rum and lime juice.

Turn heat up and add salt, rum and lime juice.

Simmer until liquid is absorbed.

Rub paste on meat and let sit overnight.
_____________________________________________

Jerk Paste

3 Green onions
2 teaspoon Allspice
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Ginger, fresh
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon Black pepper
2 Garlic clove(s)
4 Bay leaf(s)
2 tablespoon(s) Oil
2 Jalapeno peppers, diced
1 Habanero chiles

PREPARATION:
Put everything except oil in food processor and chop fine.

Add oil slowly until smooth.

Coat both sides of meat and let sit for several hours or overnight.

Grill.
 
Hi Carl.

The best jerk I ever had outside Jamaica my brother-in-law made using a pork tenderloin and a recipe from Stephen Raichlen's "The Barbecue Bible" I don't own this book but my BIL swears by it as the best cookbook he's ever owned. Pehaps someone on the board owns it and can share the recipe with you.
 
Ah, someone told me they were different... (scotch bonnets and habaneros) but by no means am I knowledgeable on the subject.

Thanks for the great recipes!!! If you guys dont see me for a while, it's because I'm in the hospital!! Just kidding.
 
Carl
I'm not sure that they are the very same pepper but on the heat scale they are the same.
I do a chicken/turkey habanero sausage
and one habanero is enough to do 6 pounds of sausage.
Jerk is normally hotter than the sausage I do and habaneros do right fine job.
Jim
 
wow six pounds off one sausage, sounds like i better be REAL careful.
 
Hey Carl,
I tried the jerk chicken recipies that everyone posted this weekend, albeit on the grill, and it turned out great. I combined the 3 recipes into my own hybrid and it was wonderful. I'll have to try it on the smoker next.
Ony caveat I would add is this. I used 2 habaneros and the chicken wasn't very spicy at all. I was extra careful to remove all the seeds and the inner membranes of the pepper, then I popped them into the food processor with everything else. They gave it a wonderful flavor, but not much heat. Next time I'll just reomve the seeds and leave the membranes in. I understand that all the capsiacin (the suff that makes peppers hot) lives in the membrane. So if you like heat, leave the membranes in.
Henry Joe.
 
trying one of the recipes tomorrow, let you know how it turns out. did ribs today without trimming them, turned out great but im going to trim off the tips next time. (i was lazy)

also prepped the apple candy bar treats for dessert tomorrow. mmmmmm. been away in florida for a week, so im getting back to the WSM cookin. /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif
 
almost forgot, tried a new commercial rub, was pretty hot... not tongue burning but definately more than average zing.

gatesbbq.com is the website of the place. picked it up while i was waiting in kansas city at the airport. they had quite a few rubs for sale right there for a reasonable price.
 
After three trips to rural Jamaica I am still learning about the Jerk process. The keys to getting it authentic are the smoking wood,the scotch bonnet, and the pimento berry.

First, the scotch bonnet. With all due respect to the KC Baron of BBQ Paul Kirk, Habenaros and Scotch Bonnetts are not the same even though they look simular and have simular heat. The major difference is Scotch Bonnet has much more aroma, thus more flavor. I'm not going to try to discuss the difference in flavors, but once you compare the two you'll understand. Scotch bonnets can get very hot, but like habenaros, their heat varies from pepper to pepper, and I personally feel habenaros are typically hotter. Sauce with seeds in is much hotter than suace with no seeds.
Good luck finding Scotch Bonnets, I only know f two african-carribean stores, located in Oakland, that carry them fresh (flown in from Jamaica). I have searched dozens and dozens of food co-ops, specialty stores, ethnic markets, etc, and most people don't even know what a Scotch Bonnet is.

Jerk is smoked with Allspice wood (known as pimento wood) on the island. Adding these wood chips to your coals should be sufficient. Problem is allspice wood isn't something you get at your bbq supply store. I had to bring a bag of it home when I last traveled to Jamaica. I was honest with the customs officials and they let me through. Another nice touch is the charcoal used in Jamaica, which is made from a combination of Guava, Mango, Allspice, and other tropical trees. Again, this requires a trip to Jamaica. I should note that you can purchase a small box of Jamaican coal and pimento chips online from a place called rastafire.com. If you don't plan to go to the Caribean then this is probably your only option.

The pimento berry is the allspice berry. most recipes call for only a little allspice, I prefer to use a lot. Basic ingredients for Jerk sauce- Scallions, Scotch Bonnets, pimento, cinamon, nutmeg, salt, and vinegar. Jamaican Rum (meyers), garlic, and thyme are also good ingedients. search online for recipes. remove the chicken skin, poke the chicken with a fork, marinate overnight, and slow cook. experiment, experiment, experiment
 
Being a big fan of chile peppers I grow my own bonnets, habanero, jalapeno, seranno, cayenne and others, depending on the year. I also do a bunch of sweet peppers.
Habanero and bonnets are very similar and are of the same pepper family but the bonnets have a more spicy flavor while the hab's have a more fruity flavor (the outside of the pepper).
I started growing them to make chili because finding them was hard. These days I can find most of them local at certain times of the year here on Long Island.
I never cook with the seeds and normally leave about half of the vein in. I cut them in half the long way and remove the seeds. Then with a small knife or razor I slice about half way through the vein leaving a small amount attached to the pepper. This enables me to use more pepper for flavor without making the food too spicy.
There are a few places I found that sell the seeds and dried and fresh peppers or seeds. I can think of a couple off the top of my head. Here is the links:
http://www.tough-love.com/
http://www.tierravegetables.com
I bought a bunch of seed from tough-love.
I have gotten chipotle peppers (chiles smoked for a week) from the second link via mail order. I love the Jalapeno and Santa Fe chipotles for my chili. They will ship fresh peppers in season and I believe are now offering bonnets and habs.
 
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