Jamaican Jerk Marinade

Countless people told Jake and I that we'd never have another vacation like our honeymoon. Well, after  spending a week at the all-inclusive Wild Orchid Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, I completely agree. We had a fantastic time here. Every day was filled with sunshine, delicious food, and countless adult beverages. Amazing! I honestly don't think Jake and I will ever have a vacation like this again. I mean, I HOPE we have a vacation like this again, but it's going to be tough to top this one. 

Some of the best food on the island!

One of the MANY highlights of our vacation involved sampling some of the authentic eats Jamaica has to offer. Every day, our noses would tell us it was noon - the Jamaican Jerk Chicken cart would park itself just upwind of where we were sunbathing, and we would scurry off the beach to go find it. Sometimes we'd find it twice a day. I legitimately gained 5 pounds on our honeymoon. I'm not even ashamed, it was worth all of that delicious spicy Jerk Chicken (which was always washed down with a high calorie and equally delicious frozen beverage). 

Delicious Jerk Chicken! Accompanied by
delicious alcoholic beverages

Upon arriving back in Maryland, I took it upon myself to duplicate the delicious marinade these Jamaicans have clearly perfected. While my recipe for Jamaican Jerk Marinade is delicious, it's not exactly reminiscent of what Jake and I gorged ourselves on in Jamaica. I anticipate this will be my of my many attempts at perfecting this marinade!

Ingredients:

• 3 scallions, chopped
• 4 large garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 4-5 habanero peppers, stemmed and seeded*
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 2 Tbs soy sauce
• 3 Tbs olive oil
• 1 Tbs kosher salt
• 1 Tbs packed brown sugar
• 1 Tbs fresh thyme leaves
• 2 tsp ground allspice
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 3/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

How to:

• Blend all ingredients together until smooth.
• Marinade pretty much anything - from chicken, to pork, to veggies. We marinated some chicken breasts overnight before grilling them.
• Grill & enjoy!

*Traditionally, Jamaican Jerk seasoning is made with Scotch Bonnet peppers. My local grocery store didn't have any of these, so I used habaneros as a substitute. The first time I made this, I used 4 habaneros and left some seeds in before adding the peppers to the blender. The marinade was ridiculously hot, but ridiculously good. The 2nd time around, I didn't leave any seeds in, and I felt like the marinade could have used a little more heat. I think I'll search for Scotch Bonnets next time I'm in the mood for some Jamaican Jerk!

Jake and I grilled up some chicken that had been marinated overnight. It tasted great! We made some  Jerk Chicken sandwiches and reminisced about our amazing honeymoon. I'd love to hear your take on this marinade!

Enjoy!

The original recipe can be found here.