Jamaican Jerk Chicken is marinated to perfection in a spicy, sweet and savory sauce for an incredibly flavorful main dish! It turns out fall-off-the-bone tender! Serve it with rice and veggies for a complete meal. Recipe includes grilling instructions as well as baking instructions.
Traditional Jamaican Jerk Chicken is a popular Caribbean dish and can be found at many restaurants in the U.S.. Chicken thighs or bone-in chicken pieces are marinated in a sweet, savory, spicy marinade made with scotch bonnet peppers (or spicy chili of choice), soy sauce, nutmeg, cinnamon, garlic, onion, ginger, and brown sugar.
The authentic Jamaican jerk chicken is grilled, but it also turns out lovely when baked in the oven. The word jerk refers to the style of cooking, which is to cook the meat over wood chips, similar to jerky.
The traditional Jamaican version uses soy sauce and brown sugar, but I replace these two ingredients with liquid aminos and pure maple syrup. In this sense, I have deviated from the classic recipe and have put my own little spin on it.
Don’t panic if you aren’t into spicy food. This easy chicken recipe can be customized to fit a mild palate by simply omitting the chilies.
In addition to baking jerk chicken in the oven, I have also made jerk chicken in the electric pressure cooker and it turned out magnificently. Check out my Instant Pot Jamaican Jerk Chicken for the instructions.
Let’s discuss the simple ingredients for jerk chicken as each one has an important function.
Jerk Chicken Ingredients:
Bone-In Skin-On Chicken Thighs: Really any cut of chicken will work in this recipe, but I prefer using bone-in chicken thighs or boneless chicken thighs for the tastiest results.
The dark meat soaks up the marinade beautifully and also turns out incredibly rich and tender. For leaner protein, use boneless skinless chicken breasts. You can also butcher a whole chicken for a budget-friendly approach.
Liquid Aminos (or Soy Sauce): The umami flavor of jerk chicken is attributed to soy sauce. I use liquid aminos, which is a gluten-free version. For soy-free, use coconut aminos.
Lime Juice: Fresh lime juice adds that citrus tang we all love so dearly.
Fresh Garlic: Garlic cloves bring robust flavor to any dish, and the same is true here. Scale the amount up or down according to your taste.
Scotch Bonnet Peppers or Habanero Peppers: Here’s the real kicker. The main ingredient for traditional Jamaican jerk chicken is scotch bonnet peppers. They are incredibly spicy and are considered to be the main flavor of the traditional dish.
I use habanero peppers, which are hot in their own right, though a compromise from scotch bonnets. You can pick your own favorite chilis such as habanero chili peppers or serranos, or leave them out for mild chicken.
Fresh Ginger: A burst of ginger flavor plays well with the spice and the sweet and savory flavors.
Green Onions: Similar to garlic, green onion adds a great deal of fresh, vibrant flavor to the chicken marinade.
Pure Maple Syrup: While brown sugar is traditionally used in jerk chicken marinade, I like using pure maple syrup for a natural sweetener. You can swap it out for brown sugar if you’d like.
All Spice, Ground Cinnamon, Ground Nutmeg: While this combination of spices may sound strange for chicken, you’ll just have to trust in the process! This jerk seasoning adds a unique nuance to the chicken. Don’t skip them unless you have to!
Now that we’ve covered the basic ingredients for this Jamaican jerk chicken recipe, let’s make it!
How to Make Jerk Chicken:
Oven Instructions:
Transfer all of the ingredients for the jerk marinade to a small blender, such as a magic bullet, or a food processor. This includes the liquid aminos (or soy sauce), lime juice, garlic cloves, spicy chilies, ginger, green onions, pure maple syrup, allspice, ground cinnamon, and ground nutmeg.
Blend until all of the ingredients are well-combined. Note: If you don’t have a small blender, mince the garlic, ginger, and green onions, and whisk everything together in a small bowl.
Transfer the raw chicken to a large zip lock bag, and pour in all of the marinade. As an alternative, place chicken in a large bowl with the jerk marinade and cover with plastic wrap to marinate the chicken.
Marinate for at least 1 hour, ideally several hours and up to 24 hours.
When you’re ready to bake the chicken, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Transfer the marinated chicken thighs to a large casserole dish skin side up along with the rest of the marinade.
Bake for 40 minutes on the center rack of the preheated oven. Remove the chicken from the oven and use a spoon to baste the chicken with the juices at the bottom of the baking dish.
Change the oven setting to the high broil setting and broil chicken on the second to the top shelf for 5 minutes, or until the skin is golden brown and reaches your desired level of crisp.
Chicken thighs are best when they reach an internal temperature of 185 to 205 degrees Fahrenheit. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh and wait until the numbers stop moving to get an accurate read on the internal temperature of the chicken.
The total cooking time depends on how large your chicken thighs are as well as their temperature going into the oven.
Grilling Instructions:
Follow the steps above to marinate the chicken.
When you’re ready to cook, preheat the grill. For a gas grill, preheat to 450 degrees F, and for a charcoal grill, ignite the coals 20 minutes ahead of time.
Place the chicken on the grill skin side down over direct heat. Grill until deep grill marks appear, about 5-8 minutes. Use tongs to flip chicken and grill for another 5-8 minutes, or until you have grill marks on both sides.
Move the chicken to indirect heat to finish out the cooking process. Flip every few minutes and continue cooking until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 180 degrees F.
Transfer the chicken to a large plate or baking sheet and let it rest for at least 10 minutes before serving.
Serve jerk chicken with your choice of side dishes, such as steamed rice and roasted vegetables, and enjoy! I like using the jerk sauce at the bottom of the casserole dish to drizzle over the whole meal, because it’s so flavorful!
Store leftover jerk chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Marinate the chicken in the morning, then bake it when you’re home from work for an amazing meal!
Use this easy recipe for meal prep by preparing the whole thing in advance, or whip it up on any busy weeknight.
What do you eat with jerk chicken? I love it with Cilantro Lime Rice or Coconut Rice, Fried Plantains, Mango Salsa and Garlic Herb Roasted Vegetables.
While authentic jerk chicken is customarily prepared over a charcoal grill or a gas grill, I find the texture and the flavor profile of the chicken is so appealing thanks to the marinade.
If you enjoy chicken recipes like this, also try out these reader favorites!
More Chicken Recipes:
- Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry
- Barbecue Crock Pot Chicken Drumsticks
- Instant Pot Shredded Chicken Tacos
- Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup
- Grain-Free Pretzel Crusted Baked Chicken
Enjoy this flavorful juicy chicken!
Jamaican Jerk Chicken
Equipment
- Small Blender or small bowl
Ingredients
- 4 lbs bone-in skin on chicken thighs
- 1/2 cup liquid aminos or low-sodium soy sauce
- ⅓ cup fresh lime juice
- 4 large cloves garlic
- 2 habanero peppers omit for mild chicken
- 1 ½ inch piece ginger peeled
- 4 stalks green onion
- 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup optional
- 1 tsp allspice *
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Transfer all of the ingredients for the jerk marinade to a small blender, such as a magic bullet. Blend until all of the ingredients are well-combined. Note: If you don’t have a small blender, mince the garlic, ginger, and green onions, and whisk everything together in a small bowl.
- Transfer the raw chicken to a large zip lock bag, and pour in all of the marinade. Marinate for at least 1 hour, ideally several hours and up to 24 hours.
- When you’re ready to bake the chicken, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Transfer the marinated chicken thighs to a large casserole dish skin side up along with the rest of the marinade.
- Bake for 40 minutes on the center rack of the preheated oven. Remove the chicken from the oven and use a spoon to baste the chicken with the juices at the bottom of the baking dish. Change the oven setting to the high broil setting and broil chicken on the second to the top shelf for 5 minutes, or until the skin is golden brown and reaches your desired level of crisp.
- Chicken thighs are best when they reach an internal temperature of 185 to 205 degrees Fahrenheit. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh and wait until the numbers stop moving to get an accurate read on the internal temperature of the chicken.
Notes
Nutrition
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What would the cooking instructions be for an oven type air fryer. As l am trying to be as sugar free as possible, how much brown sugar monk fruit would l use.