Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Jamaican-Spiced Chicken

I'd like to be able to say "Wow, this was fantastic!!" BUT, unfortunately, I cannot.  All I can say was the chicken was grilled perfectly and it tasted good.  Was it good from the grilling or good from the marinating?  I'm gonna go with the first one.  Ok, ok... so had I marinated the chicken longer, I think it would have helped and the flavors that were so lacking on this would have SHINED!!  Funny thing is, though, the original recipe didn't call for any marinating at all!  I figured an hour or so would be good for it....I was wrong...I needed more time.  Don't make the same mistake I made....plan ahead:  If you plan on trying this, plan on allowing at least 8 hours of marinating time......believe me, it can't hurt!

Though it lacked in flavor and spice, it was still good...just not what I was expecting or even hoping for.

Jamaican-Spiced Chicken
Adapted from Cooking Light
Printable Recipe 
Ingredients:
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 jalapeno, chopped (I left the seeds in, you can take them out of if you want to cut the heat)
1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, except the chicken.  Stir to combine.  Place the chicken in a resealable bag and pour the marinade over it.  Let marinate for at least 8 hours, but over night would be preferred.

Preheat your gill to 400 degrees.  Remove chicken from the bag and discard the marinade.  Place the chicken on oiled grill grates and allow to cook for 8-10 minutes on each side or until chicken is cooked through (165 degrees F).  Remove from grill and allow to sit for 3 minutes.  Enjoy!


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13 comments:

  1. egbkidFebruary 1, 2011 at 4:44 AM

    It looks great, but looks are not everything, i guess. I am always looking for new chicken recipes, i might give this a try; but i will definately take your suggestion of the extra long marinating time. Thanks for sharing!!

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  2. UnknownFebruary 1, 2011 at 6:37 AM

    Thank you for the suggestion. It looks great though I must say. :)

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  3. Andrea the Kitchen WitchFebruary 1, 2011 at 6:47 AM

    The color is fab on this. I wonder, if it was cut into hunks & skewered if it would be better, more surface area + smaller pieces = more flavor in and on the meat? I dunno but it sounds like an experiment that I need to try! Thanks for the marination time warning, too!

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  4. Cranberry MorningFebruary 1, 2011 at 8:45 AM

    I think you're right about marinating. AND the grilling. It certainly makes everything taste better to have grilled it - with the possible exception of Rice Chex.

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  5. Angie's RecipesFebruary 1, 2011 at 8:58 AM

    Jenn, you are great in preparing chicken and fish...with all the recipes here, I wouldn't have to worry about where to get my next chicken recipe!

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  6. PamFebruary 1, 2011 at 9:03 AM

    Love the flavors of this chicken!!

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  7. Mary BergfeldFebruary 1, 2011 at 9:06 AM

    It looks delicious. What a shame it disappointed you. I appreciate the tips you shared. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  8. RoxanFebruary 1, 2011 at 9:38 AM

    Jenn, I think the chicken looks great. It does have some wonderful ingredients in there, so you're probably right - a little marinating never hurts!

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  9. UnknownFebruary 1, 2011 at 4:40 PM

    Hmmm...still looks and sounds delicious! I think marinating longer would do the trick with those flavors! BECAUSE WE LOVE FLAVOR right!? :)

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  10. Rivki LockerFebruary 1, 2011 at 5:35 PM

    I'm always looking for new chicken recipes, and this looks unusual and delicious.

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  11. CheeseboyFebruary 1, 2011 at 7:39 PM

    You win some, you lose some. Actually, you seem to win most of them. You have a very high winning percentage.

    You should do a special post on your Super Bowl recipes.

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  12. carmenpivaFebruary 2, 2011 at 1:15 AM

    If you hadn't commented anything about the lack of taste, nobody would have guessed... It looks simply delicios!!
    xxxx :)

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  13. ChrisFebruary 5, 2011 at 8:27 AM

    I'm with you - any jerk style dish requires marinating at least 8 hours regardless of what the recipe (or bottle) says. You can't just brush on flavor like that. Looks pretty though!

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