Jerk Chicken Dinner

I asked what y'all wanted for week J in my ABC series and so many of y'all said jerk chicken. So okay, okay!! I made one

I've made this a few times before, so I had an idea of what seasonings I wanted to use. I just popped on Pinterest and found a similar one. Most recipes call for bone-in chicken, but I had boneless skinless chicken thighs and I thought it was perfect!

Most "jerk" recipes are called Jamaican Jerk chicken and if y'all didn't know, we spent our honeymoon (over 3 years ago) in Jamaica and it was AMAZING 🤩

We had our own pool and we turned into 11 year olds and did various jumps in the pool all week long 🧜🏻‍♀️ what a dream. But, we are no longer on an island with our own pool and butler. We are home with a baby and no chef. But I'm ok with that. It's a different kind of paradise 🥰

To complete the meal, I added yellow rice and black beans because when in doubt, add rice and beans.

This whole meal is easy to make and is anything but a plain chicken breast! Let's get started

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Jerk Chicken Dinner

For the jerk chicken:

• 1 ½ pounds chicken thighs (boneless and skinless)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• ½ tablespoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

For the yellow rice

• click for the recipe

For the black beans

• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon salt

Prepare the chicken

1. Add chicken to a tuber-ware or medium sized bowl
2. Mix together rest of chicken ingredients (olive oil to black pepper) to make a rub
3. Coat chicken in spice rub and cover. Let marinade in fridge for at least one hour and up to 24 hours.
4. Heat a grill pan on med-high heat until very hot and lightly spray with nonstick spray
5. Add chicken and grill on one side for 5-6 minutes without disturbing.
6. Flip and grill for another 3-4
7. Lower heat to medium and continue to cook for another 5 minutes (or until chicken is no longer pink)
8. Let rest on plate for 5 minutes before serving

Prepare rice

Prepare the beans

1. Drain and rinse beans, add to small saucepan, turn fire to medium-low heat
2. Add in rest of ingredients and stir, bring to a simmer
3. Lower heat and let simmer for 20 minutes (the amount of time that the chicken is cooking)