This delicious sauce is quick and easy and will surely spice up your dinner plans!
Jerk Sauce
TOOLS:
Food processor
Cutting board
Knife
Measuring cup
INGREDIENTS:
4 Scotch bonnet peppers*
1 red onion
4 garlic cloves
4 green onions
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 of lime juice
1 tablespoon ginger
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
***this sauce tastes DELICIOUS with the addition of 1 ripe mango- serve with sliced mango as well! What a hit!
*Depending on your tolerance to spice you may want to swap out what pepper you use. Most jerk sauce recipes call for scotch bonnet peppers however I used our homegrown dried chilies. If you want a milder jerk sauce I recommend using a pepper in your comfort zone, like pimento or sweet bells, and working up to a higher spice level and/or adding spice to a completed meal.*
METHOD TO MAKE JERK SAUCE:
Start by roughly chopping your vegetables and placing them into the food processor, this allows the mixture to more easily break down and not cause the machine to jam up. Make sure you avoid touching your face while cutting the peppers and wash your hands after. It can leave a burning sensation that is quite uncomfortable from experience!
Add the rest of the ingredients into the processor and blitz away until there are no chunks left.
Once it is all blitzed up you are ready to marinade your protein of choice. Below I have marinated chicken.
Oven baked jerk chicken
TOOLS:
Cutting Board
Knife
Oven
Sheet pan
INGREDIENTS:
2 Chicken Breasts
Jerk Sauce
METHOD:
Start by marinating the chicken breasts in the jerk sauce from the recipe above. (Make sure to set some aside for garnish and dipping!) Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours- we usually leave it in a sealed container in the fridge overnight).
Preheat your oven to 375’F. Pull the chicken out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature, this can take an hour or so.
Cooking meat straight out of the fridge (or freezer) starting from a cold temperature can result in the meat not cooking evenly, this affects the texture and flavour.
Grease, or line a sheet pan with foil (less eco-friendly), and place the chicken on it and then into the oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour. The chicken is done once its internal temperature reaches 165’F.
I paired the chicken with a Jamaican rice and beans recipe...
Bulked-up rice n' beans
TOOLS:
Saucepan
Cast iron skillet/saute pan
Wooden spoon
Strainer
Bowl
INGREDIENTS:
1 carrot
1 white onion
2 stalks celery
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 scotch bonnet pepper/or pepper of choice
2 cloves garlic
2 cups kidney beans
1 cup white rice
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Parsley, chopped for garnish
METHOD:
Start by rinsing your rice in a bowl, pouring lukewarm water over it and then pouring it off or into a strainer and repeating until the water is clear. This removes the excess starch debris and is easier to digest.
In a saucepan, pour 2 cups of water and add the 1 cup of rice, (2 to 1 ratio water to white rice if you need to make more) adding salt and olive oil in for flavor and to keep the rice from sticking. Bring to a boil, cover, turn off the heat and let cool for 20 minutes.
Now, start cutting your vegetables into a small dice. Grease your skillet with your choice of fat (I used our bacon drippings) and turn to a medium heat. Add your vegetables.
As they are cooking, start rinsing your kidney beans, and add them to the pan of vegetables.
Cook the vegetables until they are translucent, about 8 to 10 minutes, seasoning to taste. Add extra jerk sauce to the mixture to enhance the flavor of the dish.
At this point the rice should be done. You can either combine with the vegetables or keep it separate. Otherwise the dish is complete!
-Brian.