Jerk Chicken


 
D

Dave W

TVWBB Member
I hope this is the correct forum for this topic.

I'm thinking of trying some jerk chicken on the WSM this weekend, looking for tips from those of you BBQ masters who have had success with this.

Whole chicken or halves/quarters? Best jerk paste recipe?

Should I cook slow at 250* or a higher temp and shorter time?

Any suggestions for good sides with Jerk chicken?

Thanks!
 
Beans and rice are a good side, as are fried plantains. I always make a pineapple, mango, or pineapple-mango salsa with a little mint and lime which, since I make the jerk paste quite hot, I only 'heat up' a wee bit with peppers and serve chilled as a refresher.

I do jerk chicken low and slow for most of the cook, finish the skin direct at the end. make sure you get the marinade under the skin and marinate at least all day, 24 hours is better.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Dave W:
Whole chicken or halves/quarters? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I really like half chickens for jerk. Quarters work well too... I don't think it really makes a difference, but that is my preference.

As for the recipe... the linke Paul gave has lots of them... just remember, don't skimp on the scotch bonnets or allspice berries.

- Adam
 
If you've ever heard of Rick's Blue Heaven in Key West, I think they have the finest jerk recipe around. Very spicy, very authentic, and I don't think you can buy it (at least not at the restaurant). I've got a copy of it if you would like....it's about 20 ingredients long however.
 
the link above gives great Jerk recipes. Igenerally merge a couple of those recipes togetther on the fly until it tastes good. I tend to like a little more salt in my jerk than some of those recipes provide, so I add soy.

Normally with chicken I'm a fan of cooking with higher heat rather than slow smoking. I use my kettle for chicken, not my WSM. But with jerk I like to let it smoke a little longer. I still use my kettle, but I smoke it indirectly longer than I do my typical BBQ chicken. I find the jerk marinade and the smoke work together real nice. then I just brown and crisp it up over direct heat at the end.

Oh yeah, as for those scotch bonnets and habaneros...I usually split the marinade in half to make one batch real hot for me and one batch mild for my wife and son. But you gotta have SOME heat in there!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Reply </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Here's my recipe. It's modified from several sources over the last few years. It's a fair amount of work, but it's worth it.

6-12 Scotch bonnet or habanero chile, stemmed
1 medium onion
1 bunch scallions
1 bunch chives
6 cloves garlic
1 cup cilantro
2 Tbsp ginger
2 Tbsp coarse salt
1 Tbsp fresh thyme
2 tsp ground allspice (from whole berries)
1 T freshly ground white pepper
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 cup lime juice
1/8 cup dark rum
¼ cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp soy sauce
vegetable oil

Roughly chop first 7 ingredients. Place all ingredients in food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Run processor and drizzle in olive oil until a thick paste forms.
 
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