If you've never had Jerk chicken before and were wondering what all the fuss was about, well, you are in for a treat. The spicy and earthy marinade produces the most delicious tender chicken you will ever have. Served with a cooling and sweet mango salsa, this is one of my ultimate summer dishes.
Ingredients
- 2 Scotch bonnet chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
- Grated zest and juice of 3 limes
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
- 3 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 6 thyme sprigs
- 2 tblsp honey
- 6 tblsp tomato ketchup
- 1 chicken (approx. 1.2kg), cut into portions (breasts, wings and legs)
- For the Mango Salsa
- 2 mangoes, peeled, stones removed and roughly chopped in chunks
- ½ cucumber, centre scooped out and cut into cubes
- 4 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped
- 1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
- Juice of 1 lime
- 2 tblsp olive oil
- Sea salt and ground black pepper
- Good handful of coriander leaves, roughly chopped
Method
- To marinate the chicken, place all the ingredients apart from the chicken in a large resealable bag and mix together. Add the chicken, seal the bag and shake until coated. Leave in the fridge to marinate for at least 2 hours or overnight if you have the time.
- Combine all the ingredients for the salsa (except the coriander) in a mixing bowl and season with sea salt and ground black pepper. Mix through the coriander when you're ready to serve.
- Remove the chicken from the fridge 30 minutes before you are ready to cook. Get the barbecue to a medium-high heat and cook the chicken pieces for 15 minutes, turning only once during the cooking time, until the chicken is cooked through.
- The different pieces will take slightly different cooking times, so a good way to check if they are cooked is to insert a meat thermometer at the thickest part and check that it registers 82°C/180°F for drumsticks and thighs and 76°C/169°F for breasts.
- Serve the chicken with the mango salsa and some lime wedges and coriander sprigs if you like.
