Jerk Chicken

Cooking Instructions

1. Trim off any lumps of fat from the chicken legs. If using chicken breasts, cut them in half, but leave the rib bones in. (To further reduce the fat, remove the skin.) Wash the chicken with lime juice or vinegar. Using the tip of a paring knife, make 1/4-inch-deep holes in the meat. Place the chicken in a glass or ceramic baking dish.

2. Prepare the jerk seasoning. Finely chop the chilies, scallions, onion, garlic, and ginger in a food processor fitted with a chopping blade. Mix in the remaining ingredients. Correct the seasoning, adding lime juice, brown sugar, or salt. (Jamaicans use a lot of salt. You can certainly be more moderate.) The seasoning should be intensely flavorful and almost unbearably hot.

3. Spread the seasoning over the chicken with a rubber spatula, stuffing it into the holes. Marinate the chicken for 3 to 6 hours, turning several times. (The longer you marinate it, the stronger the jerk flavor will be.) Soak the wood chips in cold water for 1 hour.

4. Preheat the barbecue grill to low. Loosely wrap the wood chips in heavy-duty foil (or place in a foil pie pan) and place on the coals away from where you'll be grilling the chicken. Grill the chicken until cooked, 10 to 15 minutes per side, turning to ensure even cooking. Keep the grill covered to hold in the smoke. Serve the chicken at once, with a cold Jamaican beer such as Dragon Stout or Red Stripe.

Wine Pairing(s)

Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spatlese

J.J. Müller Riesling

Leonard Kreusch 'Twisted River Bin 488' Riesling

Wwe. Dr. H. Thanisch Riesling Mosel-Saar-Ruwer

Surdyks Piesport

Surdyks 'Tj' Riesling

Egon Müller-Scharzhof Scharzhofberger Kabinett

Willi Schaefer 'Graacher Himmelreich' Riesling Auslese

Dr. Zenzen 'Qualitatswein' Piesporter Michelsberg

Hoffmann Simon Riesling Spätlese 'Piesporter Goldtropfchen'