Jerk Chicken

Carolina Q

I am addicted to this stuff!! I have no idea what the real Jamaican stuff is supposed to taste like and all I have is Grace or Walkerswood Jerk Seasoning, but that's fine with me. If the real thing is much better than this, it's probably illegal! Slathered some thighs with a couple of teaspoons of Grace hot seasoning, added a bit of evoo and smushed it around in a zip bag. Into the fridge for a couple of hours and then onto the mini at 400°. Made some black beans and rice to go with it. The chicken was the star though!!

BTW, I haven't used my large since before Christmas! 

theyolksonyou

I love jerk. I've been to Jamaica, stayed on resort so I can't vouch for authenticity, but WW is as good as anything I had there. I have a bottle open in the fridge. You've inspired me to break it out this week. 

Jeremiah

Well ****. Just bought some. 

JohnnyTarheel

Looks awesome... Where can you find Walkerwood?

Zmokin

I worked with a Jamaican that was raised in Jamaica, he's the one that first introduced me to jerk chicken when he invited me to his wedding reception.  i swear, I think my wife and I were the only non-family members present.  Anyway, his personal recipe starts with Walkerswood, so if it is good enough for him, it's good enough for me.  I feel it is pretty authentic, but I expect some may like to increase the amount of scotch bonnets in it.

Lmidkiff

Will look for WW tommorrow. Thanks for the post.

SkinnyV

Nice I have some store bought that has been great. I'll post a pic when I get a chance.

Carolina Q

The first jar I bought was the WW Mild (all they had). Kinda bland so for my second attempt, I added a minced habanero. MUCH better! Then I discovered a store that sells the Grace brand, hot version. I like it as well as the WW with added pepper. It also happens to be easier to find... I since found that Walmart carries it.

SkinnyV

Well Looks Like its WW which you already know about. I like it pretty good stuff.

Zmokin

I mail order my WW from MoHotta*MoBetta

Carolina Q

Where I have found Jerk seasoning...

WW Mild, Wegman's in Virginia
WW Hot, Big Y in Connecticut
Grace Hot, Giant Food in VA... also, Walmart

Haven't tried WW hot yet.

Chubbs

Looks great Q and love seeing you rock the mini. She's my workhorse too

SkinnyV

I have a nice little store that sells intl goods. $4.90 a bottle. I am too lazy to prep and marinate overnight, ill cook the wings and 20 min estimate before done temp I toss em in the sauce. Works just fine.

Monaarts

Looks great!  

dstearn

I have used Walkerswood for over 30 years but also like Spur Tree.

THEBuckeye

I like the Spur Tree Scotchbonnet Sauce from pimenowood.com. I've not found scotch bonnets in Atlanta so go w. habanoero instead. I'll "float" the habaneros whole for flavor and add a few dashs of the Scotchbonnet for the delayed heat. 

Remember, if you're not using pimento wood for smoke, it's not true Jerk (so they say)! 

Legume

Looks great, haven't had jerk in a long time, I need to find some of this or make some scratch from @THEBuckeye recipe.

THEBuckeye

@Legume
Just finished a batch. Made chicken and  wings one night  and a pork tenderloin on Saturday night.  Had some wings and sweet mash for leftover lunch and SWHMBO finished off the tenderloin! Love Jerk! 

Back to a boring dizzy spatchcock tonight. 

Legume

THEBuckeye said:

@Legume
Just finished a batch. Made chicken and  wings one night  and a pork tenderloin on Saturday night.  Had some wings and sweet mash for leftover lunch and SWHMBO finished off the tenderloin! Love Jerk! 

Back to a boring dizzy spatchcock tonight. 

Have you tried fish?  Is that a thing with jerk or a bastardization?

THEBuckeye

Have not. I'd do that for SWMBO but not me. I'm sure it would work with grouper or mahi perhaps. I'd guess it's not jerk and the pimento and fish would not marry well. 

Carolina Q

Here are the products I have found so far. The WW "Jonkanoo" Pepper Sauce is spicy, but not overboard. Found it at Wegman's only (so far). Have yet to try the Grace Scotch Bonnet sauce. I forget where I found it. 

Haven't tried the WW hot seasoning yet either. When my jar of Grace is gone...


 

fljoemon

Here in FL, we are lucky to have all the Jerk products in our local grocery stores like Publix & Wal*Mart. Walkerswood makes great stuff, but I really like the flavor of Spur Tree .. lot more thyme in it. I also splurged for the pimento wood chunks ...

Theophan

I like Walkers Wood, but I have really loved several recipes from Helen Willinsky's book, Jerk -- Barbecue From Jamaica.  I've used this marinade for jerk chicken and love it.  She recommends marinating the chicken at least 4 hours. She also wants you to turn every 10 minutes, basting, but I think that's for an open fire, not in the Big Green Egg.  I think I basted about every 20 minutes.

Jerk Marinade

Ingredients:
1 onion finely chopped 
1/2 cup scallions finely chopped 
2 teaspoons fresh thyme 
1 teaspoon salt 
2 teaspoons sugar 
1 teaspoon allspice, ground "Jamaican pimento" (allspice) 
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 
1 (or more) Scotch Bonnet or habanero chili finely ground 
1 teaspoon black pepper 
3 tablespoons soy sauce 
1 tablespoon oil 
1 tablespoon cider vinegar 

Her Directions:
Mix together all the ingredients. A food processor fitted with a steel blade is ideal for chopping and combining. This will provide an excellent marinade for chicken beef or pork. Store leftover marinade in the refrigerator in a tightly closed jar for about 1 month.

Her Notes: Some people find marinades more convenient to use than spice pastes. This marinade is more liquid than a paste, but not as liquid as most marinades. The flavor of the marinade may strike you as a little harsh when you first mix it, but I assure you, the flavors will all blend and mellow as the meat cooks. To increase the heat of this rather mild marinade, add hot pepper sauce.  If you want less heat, remove the seeds and membranes containing the seeds from the peppers before grinding them.

Theo

THEBuckeye

I raised  indirect low and slow the Jerk chicken. 2 1/2 to 3 hours at 225. Same with wings but not quite as long. 

Zmokin

THEBuckeye said:

Remember, if you're not using pimento wood for smoke, it's not true Jerk (so they say)! 

OK, I just ordered some pimento wood.  It will be interesting to see if i can taste the difference.  It sure was the most expensive smoke wood I have purchased.

Zmokin

So, for those that have used the WW mild, how mild is it?
Is it like "no heat", or "just a little heat"?

I like it hot, but my son not so much.  He's learning to like some heat, but he can quickly become over-powered, and when that happens, he won't eat another bite.

Carolina Q

Zmokin said:

THEBuckeye said:

Remember, if you're not using pimento wood for smoke, it's not true Jerk (so they say)! 

OK, I just ordered some pimento wood.  It will be interesting to see if i can taste the difference.  It sure was the most expensive smoke wood I have purchased.

Yeah, that why I'm glad I like what I've had so far. I don't even want to know if I can taste the difference. Too bad Home Depot isn't unloading pimento for $5!! LOL

I did try a foil packet of allspice berries a couple of times, but noticed no difference. Probably didn't use enough, but I won't waste any more. The white oak chunks are fine.

I know it's not "true jerk", but then, I'm not "true Jamaican". Mon.  

THEBuckeye

@carolinaQ Ya - I'll have to try a batch with no pimento and see the difference. I know it impacts the color.

 I like the pimento sticks and foil pack as it adds the Jerk eggsperience and process. May I suggest just ordering some chips from pimentowood.com. You need well less of a handful to impart flavor. Try it for just a wings Jerk cook sometime. 

There are days where I'd like to be a true Jamaican, Mon! 

mahenryak

THEBuckeye said:

@Legume
Just finished a batch. Made chicken and  wings one night  and a pork tenderloin on Saturday night.  Had some wings and sweet mash for leftover lunch and SWHMBO finished off the tenderloin! Love Jerk! 

Back to a boring dizzy spatchcock tonight. 

@THEBuckeye joining this thread late but just to be clear I was wondering if you used the jerk seasoning on your pork tenderloin, as well?  Thanks.

mahenryak

P.S. / FWIW I recently ordered some WalkersWood Jamaican Jerk seasoning through Amazon and unfortunately it showed up with the seals popped and slight leakage in both bottles.  I chose to throw it out and contacted Amazon for a refund.  I think it was a cabin pressure issue on the airplane.  (90% of things shipped my way end up on a commercial jet)  I've since ordered some Busha Browne's hoping that maybe I'll luck out with the bottles.  We'll see.

mahenryak

Zmokin said:

THEBuckeye said:

Remember, if you're not using pimento wood for smoke, it's not true Jerk (so they say)! 

OK, I just ordered some pimento wood.  It will be interesting to see if i can taste the difference.  It sure was the most expensive smoke wood I have purchased.

@Zmokin I hope you report back whether you notice a significant difference.  I have been tempted to order some, too, but as you've said it isn't cheap.