Jerk (cooking)
Jerk is a style of cooking native to Jamaica, in which meat is dry-rubbed or wet marinated with a hot spice mixture called Jamaican jerk spice.
The art of jerking (or cooking with jerk spice) originated with indigenous peoples in Jamaica from the Arawak and Taíno tribes, and was carried forward by the descendants of 17th century Jamaican Maroons who intermingled with them.[1][2]
The smoky taste of jerked meat is achieved using various cooking methods, including modern wood-burning ovens. The meat is normally chicken or pork, and the main ingredients of the spicy jerk marinade sauce are allspice[a] and Scotch bonnet peppers.[3] Jerk cooking is popular in Caribbean and West Indian diaspora communities throughout North America, Canada and the United Kingdom.
Etymology
The word jerk is said to come from
The term jerk spice (also commonly known as Jamaican jerk spice) refers to a
History
Historians have evidence that jerked meat was first cooked by the indigenous
Jamaican jerk sauce primarily developed from these Maroons, seasoning wild hogs with native allspice and slow cooking them over indigenous pimento wood[b],[3] and adding the also native Scotch bonnet pepper, which is largely responsible for the heat found in Caribbean jerks.[12] Over time the basic recipe has been modified as various cultures added their influence.[13]
Jerk cooking and seasoning has followed the Caribbean
Techniques
The cooking technique of jerking, as well as the results it produces, has evolved over time from using pit fires to grilling over coals in old oil barrel halves.[16] Around the 1960s, Caribbean entrepreneurs seeking an easier, more portable method of jerking cut oil barrels lengthwise, added holes for ventilation and hinged lids to capture the smoke.[16] These barrels are fired with charcoal; other jerking methods include wood-burning ovens.[13]
Street-side "jerk stands" or "jerk centres" are frequently found in Jamaica and the nearby
Ingredients
Jerk seasoning principally consists of
Uses
Jerk seasoning was originally used on
See also
- List of Jamaican dishes
- List of chicken dishes
Notes
- ^ Pimenta dioica. The Jamaican name for allspice is "pimento", due to conflationof the words pimenta and pimento. It is also called myrtle pepper.
- Pimenta dioica, also called myrtle pepper; conflated from "pimenta" , another name also for the berry and spice known as allspice.)
References
- ^ Siva, Michael (2018). After the Treaties: A Social, Economic and Demographic History of Maroon Society in Jamaica, 1739-1842 (PhD). University of Southampton. p. 235.
- ISBN 978-9766100285.
- ^ a b Oliver, Rochelle (July 20, 2018). "Jerk, Authentically Jamaican and Unapologetically Hot". The New York Times. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ a b "The History of Jamaican Jerk". kitchenproject.com. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ a b "Jerk, Charqui and the Wonders of Walkerswood". Jamaica Observer. February 12, 2015. Archived from the original on August 3, 2015.
- ^ Siva 2018, p. 235.
- ^ "THE AFRICANS". National Library of Jamaica. Archived from the original on January 4, 2013.
- ^ "Jerk History | A BRIEF HISTORY OF JERK". Boston Jerk Center. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020.
- ISBN 978-1526644428.
- ^ "Loose Ends". BBC iPlayer. October 1, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Siva 2018, p. 235-6.
- ^ Bray, Matt (April 2, 2022). "Scotch Bonnet Pepper Guide: Heat, Flavor, Uses". PepperScale.com. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ a b Cloake, Felicity (July 11, 2012). "How to cook perfect jerk chicken". The Guardian. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Glennie, Alex; Chappell, Laura (June 16, 2010). "Jamaica: From Diverse Beginning to Diaspora in the Developed World". Migration Policy Institute. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ "Cuisine de la Martinique et Guadeloupe". Jamaica Observer. May 29, 2008. Archived from the original on May 31, 2016.
- ^ a b "Jamaican Jerk Chicken". Sunny Tours Jamaica. October 20, 2014. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ "READY TO EAT". Skies. Cayman Airways. January 1, 2016. Archived from the original on January 3, 2016.
- ^ "Jamaican Festival Recipe". Jamaica No Problem. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ "Recipes | Caribbean Jerk Chicken". Food & Wine. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Smith, Cheryl. "Jerk Chicken". Food Network. Archived from the original on January 27, 2022.
- ^ "Jamaican-Chinese Chef Craig Wong Spices Up Chicken Chow Mein Caribbean Style". Goldthread. Retrieved January 13, 2022 – via YouTube.
- ^ Brooke, Viggiano (August 8, 2016). "Dish of the Week: Jamaican Jerk Chicken". Houston Press. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
Further reading
- Cook, Ian and Harrison, Michelle. "Cross over Food: Re-Materializing Postcolonial Geographies". Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, New Series, Vol. 28, No. 3 (September 2003), pp. 296–317. Blackwell Publishing on behalf of The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers)
- Connelly, Michael Alan (December 18, 2014). "20 Must-Try Street Foods Around the World". Fodor's. Retrieved July 24, 2016.
External links
- Media related to Jerk at Wikimedia Commons