Easy barbecue recipe for 6 people, takes only 45 mins; recipe has chicken thigh, lime, sauce, spring onion, ginger, garlic clove, onion, scotch bonnet, thyme, lime, soy sauce, vegetable oil, brown sugar, allspice, basmati rice, coconut milk, spring onion, thyme, garlic clove, allspice and kidney bean.
Jerk chicken with rice & peas
Course: Easy barbecue
Servings
6
servings
Prep time
25 mins
Ingredients
- Kidney Bean: 2 x 410g cans kidney beans, drained
- Vegetable Oil: 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- Garlic Clove: 3 garlic cloves
- Onion: 1/2 a small onion
- Spring Onion: 1 big bunch spring onions, roughly chopped
- Lime: 1 lime, halved
- Soy Sauce: 2 tbsp soy sauce
- Brown Sugar: 3 tbsp brown sugar
- Thyme: 1/2 tsp dried thyme, or 1 tbsp thyme leaves
- Ginger: thumb-sized piece ginger, roughly chopped
- Basmati Rice: 200g basmati rice
- Allspice: 1 tbsp ground allspice
- Coconut Milk: 400g can coconut milk
- Chicken Thigh: 12 chicken thighs, bone in
- Sauce: hot sauce, to serve (optional)
- Scotch Bonnet: 3 scotch bonnet chillies, deseeded if you want less heat
Directions
- To make the jerk marinade, combine the spring onions, ginger, garlic, onion, scotch bonnet chillies, dried thyme, lime juice, soy sauce, vegetable oil, brown sugar and ground allspice in afood processoralong with 1 tsp salt, and blend to a puree. If you're having trouble getting it to blend, just keep turning off the blender, stirring the mixture, and trying again. Eventually it will start to blend up - don't be tempted to add water, as you want a thick paste.
- Taste the jerk mixture for seasoning - it should taste pretty salty, but not unpleasantly, puckering salty. You can now throw in more chillies if it's not spicy enough for you. If it tastes too salty and sour, try adding in a bit more brown sugar until the mixture tastes well balanced.
- Make a fewslashesin 12 chicken thighs and pour the marinade over the meat, rubbing it into all the crevices. Cover and leave to marinate overnight in the fridge.
- If you want tobarbecueyour chicken, get the coals burning 1 hr or so before you're ready to cook. Authentic jerked meats are not exactly grilled as we think of grilling, but sort of smoke-grilled. To get a more authentic jerk experience, add some wood chips to your barbecue, and cook your chicken over slow, indirect heat for 30 mins.
- To cook in the oven, heat to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Put the chicken pieces in aroasting tinwith the halved lime and cook for 45 mins until tender and cooked through.
- While the chicken is cooking, prepare the rice & peas. Rinse the basmati rice in plenty of cold water, then tip it into a largesaucepan. Add the coconut milk, spring onions, thyme sprigs, garlic and ground allspice.
- Season with salt, add 300ml cold water and set over a high heat. Once the rice begins to boil, turn it down to a medium heat, cover and cook for 10 mins. Add the kidney beans to the rice, then cover with a lid. Leave off the heat for 5 mins until all the liquid is absorbed.
- Squeeze the roasted lime over the chicken and serve with the rice & peas, and some hot sauce if you like it really spicy.
