Recipe byThe ZestyPlate Kitchen
Chicken marinated in a fiery, fragrant jerk paste, then roasted or barbecued and served with coconut rice and kidney beans.
Jerk chicken with rice and peas is Jamaica on a plate: smoky, fiery marinated chicken next to fragrant coconut rice and beans. The marinade carries the flavour, so a bit of planning the night before pays off enormously. Whether it goes on the barbecue or in the oven, it makes a meal worth gathering people round.
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Prep 30 min
Cook 45 min
Total 75 min
Medium
Scale:
- 12 Chicken Thighs
- 1 tbs chopped Ginger
- 1/2 Onion
- 3 chopped Red Chilli
- Juice of 1 Lime
- 2 tbs Soy Sauce
- 2 tbs Vegetable Oil
- 3 tbs Brown Sugar
- 200g Basmati Rice
- 400g Coconut Milk
- 1 bunch Spring Onions
- 2 sprigs Thyme
- 2 cloves chopped Garlic
- 1 tbs Allspice
- 800g Kidney Beans
Tags:
Chilli Curry
Preparation
- For the jerk marinade, blitz all the marinade ingredients in a food processor with 1 tsp salt to a thick puree. Stop and stir it down if it's slow to come together, but don't add water.
- Taste and adjust: it should be quite salty but balanced. Add more chilli for heat, or more brown sugar if it tastes too salty or too sharp.
- Slash the chicken thighs a few times, pour over the marinade, and work it into all the cuts. Cover and leave in the fridge overnight.
- To barbecue, light the coals an hour or so ahead, add wood chips if you like, and cook the chicken over slow, indirect heat for 30 minutes. To use the oven, heat to 180C/160C fan/gas 4, sit the chicken in a roasting tin with the lime halves, and roast for 45 minutes until tender and cooked through.
- Meanwhile, get on with the rice and peas: rinse the rice in plenty of cold water, then tip into a large saucepan with everything else except the kidney beans. Season with salt, pour in 300ml cold water, and set over high heat. Once it boils, turn down to medium, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.
- Stir in the beans, cover, and leave off the heat for 5 minutes until the liquid is absorbed. Squeeze the roasted lime over the chicken and serve with the rice and peas, plus hot sauce if you like.
Tips from the ZestyPlate Kitchen
- Leave the chicken to marinate overnight so the jerk flavours work right through the meat.
- Keep the marinade thick and intense; resist the urge to loosen it with water.
- Use slow, indirect heat on the barbecue, or a gentle roast, for chicken that stays tender and juicy.
- Rinse the rice well and lay the aromatics on top so the rice and peas cooks up fragrant and fluffy.
Frequently Asked Questions
A blend of scotch bonnet, allspice (pimento), thyme, ginger and spring onion, with the allspice and scotch bonnet doing the heavy lifting.
Traditionally fairly fierce, thanks to the scotch bonnet. Dial the chilli up or down to suit, so it's as mild or hot as you fancy.
Yes. Roast the marinated chicken until tender and cooked through, then a quick blast under the grill adds char if you've no barbecue.
In Jamaica 'peas' means beans, usually kidney beans. The coconut rice and beans is the standard companion to jerk chicken.
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