Well jerk it is, if you haven't you must....

[jdub]

Here is my ode to Jerk cooking.
I have only been to Jamaica once on business, but I had a great tour guide as one of the guys on my crew was from Kingston. Long story short, till I ate jerk in a restaurant outside Kingston (restaurant used in the loosest definition you can fathom), I thought "jerk" was some generic island flavor-kind of like something called "cajun spiced". But no. To me there is not a more delightful, earthy, explosive flavoring you can put on a piece of meat grilled over fire. Not a one.
I decided tonight to stop trying to top jerk. it can't be done. One of my favorite cookbooks on grilling/Q is Barbecue Bible. The author Raichlen traveled the world and asked lots of different cultures what do you like to cook over open fire?. The result is a book of SO many different ideas, tastes, styles. Great read. And yes there is two or three pages on Jerk.
For a while now I have been trying everything in there that looked like it was unique or super flavorful-something to rival Jerk.
I took the hottest looking marinade/baste I could find in there and made it last night. Shallots garlic (lots), thai bird chiles, soy, molasses, 5 spice that I toasted and ground fresh, and the whole paste is fried in oil till it browns! Went on chicken wings to marinate and baste.
Not even close. Very nice, I'll make it again, but no dice.

There are only a couple tricks to great jerk. First make it fresh, but let it sit in the fridge a day. Here is my recipe:

* 1/2 cup ground allspice berries
* 1/2 cup brown sugar
* 8 garlic cloves
* 6 Scotch bonnet peppers
* 1 tablespoon ground thyme or 2 tablespoons thyme leaves
* 2 bunches scallions
* 1 teaspoon cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
* Salt and pepper to taste
* 2 tablespoons soy sauce to moisten

(Btw, this is only enough for one or slightly more than one chicken. 5 or 6 chops, you may want to double it).

OK, toast and fresh grind the allspice-period. That in itself is the entire difference between good and great jerk. Cinnamon too if you can. If you seed out the peppers, the paste will be very hot flavored without so much "lingering burn" on the throat. Use all the green and white of the onions and don't skimp. Last, a little squeeze of fresh orange juice is also nice. Just put it in the whirlygig, but don't grind it to soup, leave it a little chunky. And its best to let it sit a day.

Cooking.
Chicken or pork chunks, definitely marinade, but use sparingly as you want lots to baste with-real key. I think jerk on a steak is better slapped on just before the meat leaves the fire. Then comes the whole essence of jerk cooking. Cook over a fairly hot, direct fire. Keep cooking down the marinade till it is drying out on the meat, and as soon as it does, slap some more jerk on there-baste the heck out of that meat. Instead of the urge to move the meat to the cool side of the fire, use that jerk paste as a fire retardant. One more layer right before the meat comes off.

I might do some pork chops on Saturday, I will post dome photos if so.
Try Jerk, there is nothing like it! Glad I could share, and if any of you guys tell anyone I was doing this while on a long West Coast conference call, I'll sneak a bug in your barbecue sauce.

Cheers.

 

[Philly-QueMaster]

Thanks for this post. I never liked any jerk chicken I tried in the past, but I may give it another chance after this post.

 

[NeoTrout]

Thanks. Great post. We have been to Jamaica a couple times ane love the jerk. Never been able to recreate at home. I'm gonna try your recipe next time.

 

[jemezspring]

Found some great 'jerk chicken' recipes using the search feature at bottom of page.

The only thing you are missing is the proper wood used in jerk cooking. The wood is a big part of the taste.

 

[Phrasty]

Jdub... When done right, Jerk is an amazing flavor profile. Unfortunately many dont know what its REALLY supposed to taste like. There are many bottled jerk sauces out there that personally I dont think have it even close. Your recipe looks pretty good just remember that the seasoning itself is to be on the salty side, and you want to season your meat overnight AT LEAST... you almost want the seasoning to cure the meat slightly. The only thing I think your recipe could do with is a touch of white cane vinegar. (also, a TB or so of good red rum.. Appleton Jamaican rum if you can find it... and can spare it goes very well with the jerk seasoning.)

I posted a recipe for authentic jerk a couple years ago. You can take a look. Its a great base.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=36577

With jerk as with as most recipes is very customizable.. make it your own, I make my jerk seasoning/marinade in 2 gallon batches and keep them in the fridge... the longer they sit... the "rounder" the flavor is and the better it gets. I think one of the biggest mistakes people make when doing Jerk is that they make it too hot!!! The jerk marinade itself doesn't need all that much pepper. It need the scotch bonnet flavor, but not that much heat! It's more salty than hot IMHO. You always serve jerk with a scotch bonnet pepper sauce on the side. THAT'S where your heat comes from. Also when I do jerk chicken or pork, I sear it over direct heat quickly then move it to indirect with some pimento wood added to the fire for smoke. Cant beat it!! :thumb: I hope this gives you a little "added" insight... cuz it seems you are definatly on the right track there!

Here are a couple shots of some jerk pork (shoulder steaks & Country ribs) I did for Fathers day dinner. You can see my pepper sauce off to the side in that last pic.

Cheers...

 

[Phrasty]

BTW... I find it great that there are people like you out there that are really trying discover what jerk really is and not just seeing it as a "gimmick" way of cooking. It has such depth when done correctly. Cheers bro. I'll stop hijacking your thread now.. lol.

Post up some pics when you do your cook. I'd love to know how it came out.

Cheers

 

[SmokinAussie]

Yessir... will be popping back here for more info.

Please brethren.. Nail this one!

Cheers!

Bil