Jerk Chicken

By Julia Moskin

Updated July 2, 2024

Total Time: About 1½ hours, plus at least 12 hours’ marinating
Rating: 5(1,186)
Comments: Read comments

Done right, jerk chicken is one of the great barbecue traditions of the world, up there with Texas brisket and Chinese char siu. It is Jamaica to the bone, aromatic and smoky, sweet but insistently hot. All of its traditional ingredients grow in the island’s lush green interior: fresh ginger, thyme and scallions; Scotch bonnet peppers; and the sweet wood of the allspice tree, which burns to a fragrant smoke. “It’s not a sauce, it’s a procedure,” Jerome Williams, a Jamaican-born Brooklyn resident, told The Times in 2008 on a Sunday in Prospect Park, where families arrive as early as 6 a.m. for lakeside grilling spots, a few of which are actually authorized by the parks department. “It has to be hot, but it cannot only be hot, or you get no joy from it.” This recipe delivers that joy.

Featured in: Sweet Heat: For Jamaicans, It’s About Jerk

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Ingredients

Yield:8 servings

23½- to 4-pound chickens, quartered, or 8 whole legs, or 5 to 6 pounds bone-in, skin-on thighs
1large bunch scallions (about 8), white and green parts
2shallots, peeled and halved
4 to 6Scotch bonnet chili peppers, stems removed, or habaneros
12-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
6garlic cloves, peeled
¼cup fresh thyme leaves, or 1 tablespoon dried
2tablespoons ground allspice, more for sprinkling
2tablespoons soy sauce
2tablespoons dark brown sugar
1tablespoon salt, more for sprinkling
1tablespoon black pepper
½cup vegetable oil
1tablespoon white or apple cider vinegar
Freshly squeezed juice of 2 limes

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

Step 1
At least 1 day before cooking, pat chicken dry with paper towels. Combine remaining ingredients in a blender or food processor and grind to a coarse paste. Slather all over chicken, including under skin. Refrigerate 12 to 36 hours. Bring to room temperature before cooking and lightly sprinkle with more salt and ground allspice.
Step 2
Prepare a charcoal grill: Clean and oil grates, and preheat to medium heat using one chimney of charcoal. The temperature can start as high as 300 degrees and go as low as 250. For best results, coals should be at least 12 inches away from chicken. If necessary, push coals to one side of grill to create indirect heat. Add two large handfuls of soaked pimento (allspice) wood sticks and chips (see note) or other aromatic wood chips to coals, then close grill. When thick white smoke billows from grill, place chicken on grate, skin side up, and cover. Let cook undisturbed for 30 to 35 minutes.
Step 3
Uncover grill. Chicken will be golden and mahogany in places. Chicken thighs may already be cooked through. For other cuts, turn chicken over and add more wood chips, and charcoal if needed. Cover and continue cooking, checking and turning every 10 minutes. Jerk chicken is done when skin is burnished brown and chicken juices are completely clear, with no pink near the bone. For large pieces, this can take up to an hour. Serve hot or warm, with rice and beans.

Tip

Pimento wood sticks and chips are available at www.pimentowood.com.

Ratings

5 out of 5

1,186 user ratings

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Comments

Kay7 years ago

Skipped wood sticks and chips and baked thighs at 300 in the oven then finished off on the grill. This resulted in crispy skin, perfect texture, flavor and delighted dinner guests

Anne C.7 years ago

Made today. Instead of the bonnet chili peppers, I used Serrano peppers, so we would not burst into flames . I had only 3 hours for the marinating, then roasted the chicken in my oven, 350 for 45 minutes. Served with sweet potatoes and quinoa. Delicious!

Cindy7 years ago

TIP: You can get cheaper prices for pimento wood sticks and chips at www.pimentowoodproducts.com . I find their products to better as well. This marinade was alright. i suggest adding more brown sugar and it is missing some of the main ingredients in jerk such as nutmeg, cinnamon ect. there are a lot better recipes out there online than this

Jeff B21 hours ago

We make this recipe often; it is my standard jerk chicken marinade. I follow the recipe, roughly on the proportions...marinate the chicken legs for a few hours, then smoke on the Big Green Egg with a mix of hickory and apple wood chunks, because that's what I have, until the chicken temp hits 180F. Then I finish on the Weber gas grill at 450F until the surface has a nice crisp and a little char, and the meat internal temp is at 190F. We service with coconut rice and 'peas' (red beans). Big hit.

BookCat2 weeks ago

Pimento wood smoke makes it real jerk. Otherwise it is just marinated meat.

jimmy boy2 weeks ago

How about a reality check...althought I love it, who has time to make jerk seasoning? What's the best store bought, premade variety sauce?

Jeff B21 hours ago

I made this marinade today in about 10 minutes, threw everything in the blender while I was listening to a work meeting. I've tried Walkerswood pre-made jerk marinade in a jar, it's pretty good. But nothing close to how delicious this homemade jerk marinade is. Most people who come to this site enjoy cooking and making things from scratch.

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