Jamaican Holiday

The first time I ate or even heard of jerk was in Negril, Jamaica with my sister Madeline in March 1984. We were staying in a tiny bamboo shack on one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. We stumbled across a beach bar called De Bus one evening…named for an old school bus abandoned and sunk in the sand a little ways into the jungle. The cooking all took place on a wood fired grill fashioned out of an old tin drum. Picnic tables in the sand were covered with sticky oilcloth and lit with candles protected from the breeze by inverted plastic coke cups. We waited a long time for our food, our feet in the sand and a cold Red Stripe in hand, the ever present reggae blaring from a ghetto blaster . Then the jerk pork arrived….and explosion of xxx hot chillies, warm spices, cool citrus…charred on the outside and slippery soft in the middle. It was almost too spicy to eat but impossible to stop.

Total sensory overload. Never to be repeated.

There are some good commercial jerks out there, and a lot of bad ones. I like to make my own. A real jerk must contain scotch bonnet peppers, allspice, and fresh thyme. There are many different recipes and versions of the history of jerk and the meaning of it’s name. What is certain is that jerk is unique to the beautiful island and people of Jamaica and has been part of their culture for centuries.

This recipe is loosely adapted from the kitchen at the BamBoo Club, our go to place in Toronto in the 80’s and 90’s for Caribbean and pan Asian food, live music, booze and all round good vibes. You could step off of Queen St, through the narrow gates of this gem and arrive in another world. Bright coloured tiles led you through a ramshackle patio with picnic tables, tiki torches, a fountain, and overgrown greenery. Make your way past the cute, stoned, friendly “security” and walk into a wall of blasting world music, dancing bodies, cigarette and reefer smoke with servers writhing through the crowd carrying trays of cocktails, bowls of hot and sour soup and platters of spring rolls. It was the best party in town. I worked briefly on their rooftop patio, manning the grill and calling out customers on a megaphone. I was much happier as a patron.

Jerk Marinade

Jerk is a very dominate flavour and requires a long marinade and slow cooking. For those reasons I do not use it on fish, but feel free to experiment. I have not tried it on beef.

-3 healthy green onions chopped

-1 medium onion chopped

-4 juicy cloves of garlic diced

-3 or 4 scotch bonnet (or habenero) seeded and fine dice. Definitely add more if you’re into fire breathing. Other peppers cannot be substituted.

-1/2 cup fresh lime, lemon or orange juice

-2 tablespoons soy sauce

-3 tablespoons olive oil

-I 1/2 tablespoon coarse salt

-1 tablespoon brown sugar

-1 tablespoon fresh thyme …or more if you have

-2 teaspoon ground allspice

-2 teaspoon ground black pepper

-1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Put it all in a blender or food processor and blend. I often freeze it which works well,

Pierce chicken (preferably on the bone) or pork all over with a fork.

Coat all pieces generously with jerk. Chicken wings are great jerked.

Plan ahead, jerk should marinate overnight or at least all day.

Grill your jerk chicken or pork low and slow.

I love jerk with a fruit chutney and some crunchy slaw.

Yum!!!!!!!