Jerked Chicken

This jerk chicken takes the oven route instead of the grill, but the flavor still runs deep thanks to an overnight marinade of crushed hot chilis, garlic, black pepper, and dark soy sauce. That long soak pushes the heat and seasoning right to the bone.

The two-stage baking is what sets this apart. The chicken bakes for an hour and a half first, getting tender and cooked through. Then each piece gets dipped in a blended sauce of onion, garlic, pimento, thyme, and breadcrumbs before going back in the oven for a final 15 minutes. That dip-and-bake creates a flavorful, clingy crust on the outside.

The remaining sauce gets boiled down separately until thick, so you have a concentrated jerk sauce to spoon over each piece at the table.

Chef Tips

• Marinate the full overnight if possible. The soy sauce and spices need time to penetrate through the bone-in quarters.
• Blend the sauce until completely smooth. Any chunks of onion or garlic won’t stick to the chicken evenly during the final dip.
• Boil the extra sauce at a steady simmer, stirring often. The breadcrumbs thicken it fast, and it can scorch on the bottom if you walk away.

Variations

• Add Scotch bonnet pepper to the sauce blend for authentic Jamaican-level heat.
• Use the sauce on pork chops or ribs instead of chicken for a jerk-spiced alternative.
• Finish the baked chicken under the broiler for the last 2 to 3 minutes for a charred, crispy skin.