Jerk. Perfection, this is the one

[jdub]

I have been looking for the jerk recipe that is just like the stuff I have tasted in Jamaica over the years. Found it, here it is for all:

1/2 cup ground allspice berries
1/2+ cup packed brown sugar
6 to 8 garlic cloves
4 to 6 Scotch bonnet peppers
1 tablespoon ground thyme or 2 tablespoons thyme leaves
2 bunches escallions (green onions)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons soy sauce to moisten

OK here are the tricks to it. Get whole allspice and grind the whole berries fresh, there is a sweet flavor in the husks that is missing in the commercial stuff. Cinnamon and nutmeg as well. It will have an earthy flavor you can't get otherwise.
Pull the seeds and the membranes off the peppers, you want some hot but more pepper flavor. "Real" jerk is not too hot!
Whirl the peppers, onions and garlic first, then add the dry stuff. Add the soy. You are looking for a fairly thick paste, not a sauce. If it is super thick, drizzle in some Orange juice, but not too much
DON'T stick your finger in it and taste it. It will taste like ground twigs and you will want to start fooling with it to get it to taste "right". This stuff tastes downright funny till you cook it.
Smear on chicken and let it rest for 12 hours. Thick as you can.
Grill with all the paste still on, use as much direct heat as you can without burning the chicken, the flavor of the jerk will be transformed by the fire.
Sweet, hot, earthy, it is darn near indescribable.

 

[Rick's Tropical Delight]

that looks great, mon! :biggrin: