jamaican food

“Like Jamaica itself, this is a mash-up of cultures and flavors and ideas—all together in one delicious savory pie,” says chef Tiffany-Anne Parkes.

Jerk Turkey Shepherd’s Pie

onion,

garlic

thyme

bay leaves

cinnamon sticks

jerk marinade (about 10 oz.; such as Walkerswood)

turkey,

all-purpose flour

¾ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt

Tbsp. vegetable shortening,

unsalted butter,

Kosher salt

half-and-half

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

tsp. finely chopped thyme

lime zest

black pepper

Scotch bonnet chiles, pierced a few times with a paring knife

cloves

jerk seasoning (about 10 oz.; such as Walkerswood)

unsalted butter

chicken broth

All-purpose flour (for surface)

½ tsp. smoked paprika

Half-and-half (for brushing)

Hibiscus Cranberry Sauce (for serving)

“There’s no Thanksgiving spread like a Jamaican Thanksgiving spread,” says Pienanny chef-owner Tiffany-Anne Parkes. “When I was growing up, we’d have one table laden with traditional savory dishes like curry goat, rice and peas, and jerk chicken, and another full of pies for dessert. Things are different this year, so I’m making one dish that incorporates an entire feast. Hibiscus cranberry sauce, inspired by my mom’s holiday sorrel drink, tames the heat of the jerk turkey; pie crust stands in for the island's doughy fried festivals; lime-zested mashed potatoes go on top. Like Jamaica itself, this is a mash-up of cultures and flavors and ideas—all together in one delicious savory pie.” Because the pimento wood that is used as a cooking surface during the traditional Jamaican smoking and jerking process is scarce, it is almost impossible to produce true jerk in the United States. Here, we use smoked paprika as well as cloves to help create the smokiness that is essential to the jerk tradition.

Bon Appétit

Bring salt and 4 cups water to a boil in a 16-qt. pot, stirring until salt is dissolved. Remove from heat and add onion, garlic, thyme, bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, and marinade to pot. Chill, uncovered, until cold, about 1 hour.

Add 6 quarts cold water to pot and carefully lower in turkey. Place a heavy plate on top of turkey to keep it submerged. Cover and chill at least 12 hours and up to 1 day. (The turkey will be more moist and flavorful if you let it brine the full time.)

Mix flour and salt in a large bowl with a fork to combine. Add shortening and butter and toss to evenly coat. Working quickly and aggressively and using a pastry blender or 2 forks, press into dry ingredients until pieces of butter and shortening are about the size of a dime (the idea is to smash the butter into the flour, creating some pieces that are flat and thin and some that are large and chunky). Drizzle 1 Tbsp. ice water over mixture and stir in with a fork. Knead dough gently in bowl until it comes together (it will still look a little dry).

Turn dough out onto a work surface and knead 1 or 2 more times, pressing to incorporate shaggy edges. Press into a disk about 1" thick and wrap in plastic. Chill at least 1 hour.

Do ahead: Dough can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled, or freeze up to 1 month.

Place potatoes in a large saucepan and pour in water to cover by at least 2"; season generously with salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until a paring knife easily slides through flesh, 25–35 minutes. Drain potatoes and let cool slightly.

Meanwhile, bring half-and-half and butter to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Cut potatoes in half lengthwise. Pass potatoes through a ricer or food mill into a large bowl. (If you don’t have either, gently mash in bowl with a potato masher.) Pour in half-and-half mixture and mix well. Stir in thyme and lime zest; season with pepper. Set aside.

Do ahead: Potatoes (without thyme, zest, and pepper) can be made 1 day ahead. Let cool; cover and chill.

Line a large rimmed baking sheet with 3 layers of foil; set a wire rack inside. Remove turkey from brine and transfer to a plastic cutting board; discard brine. Pat turkey dry inside and out. Place, breast side up, on rack and tuck wings underneath. Let sit at room temperature 1 hour.

Purée chiles, cloves, and 1 cup jerk seasoning in a blender. Transfer chile mixture to a small bowl; set aside.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add remaining ¼ cup jerk seasoning and whisk until smooth, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.

Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 450°. Wearing disposable food-grade gloves to protect your hands from chiles, gently separate skin from breast meat starting at neck. Spread chile mixture over breast meat underneath skin, then smear remaining chile mixture all over outside of turkey. Tie legs together with kitchen twine and pour 1 cup broth into baking sheet.

Roast turkey, rotating pan halfway through, until skin is mostly golden brown, about 30 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300° and continue to roast, brushing with jerk butter every 30 minutes and adding ½ cup broth to pan if liquid evaporates, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of breast registers 150°, 65–85 minutes longer. Skin should be deep golden brown and lacquered-looking. Transfer turkey to a cutting board; let rest 2 hours. Pour juices from pan into a heatproof measuring glass.

Let dough sit at room temperature 5 minutes. Roll out on a lightly floured surface to a 10½"–12" round (1½"–2" wider than pan). Place dough in a 9"-diameter pie pan or 10" cast-iron skillet; lift up edges, allowing dough to slump down into skillet. Trim any overhang and crimp edges as desired. Chill until ready to use.

Carve turkey and shred meat. Measure out 5 cups (a mix of light and dark meat is good); save remaining meat for other uses. Arrange meat evenly in dough. Pour just enough pan juices over turkey to moisten (be careful not to oversaturate or your crust may be soggy). Mound potatoes over meat. Using a wet butter knife or spoon, spread to edges, covering meat completely. Using a fork, create decorative ridges in potatoes and sprinkle with paprika. Brush dough with half-and-half. Bake pie until crust is golden brown, 35–45 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes. Serve with cranberry sauce.

Some like it hot. And those that do will absolutely love this jerk chicken recipe, which calls for heaps of Scotch bonnet (or habanero) peppers.

Jerk Chicken

chicken,

red onion, chopped

scallions (white and pale-green parts only), chopped

ginger, sliced

cinnamon

allspice

salt

adobo seasoning

Maggi Liquid Seasoning

Pierce chicken all over with tip of a small knife; transfer to a large bowl. Purée remaining ingredients and 1/4 cup water in a blender until smooth. Reserve 1 cup for dipping sauce, if desired. Pour remaining marinade over chicken; massage into chicken. (To protect your hands from the chiles' heat, wear latex gloves.) Cover; chill for at least 1 day and up to 2 days.

Let chicken sit at room temperature for 1 hour before cooking. Build a medium-low fire in a charcoal grill, or heat a gas grill to medium. Place chicken on grill, skin side up. Cook covered, turning often, until skin is crisp and lightly charred and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest parts of chicken registers 160° (breasts) or 165° (thighs), 30–45 minutes. Transfer to a platter and tent loosely with foil; let stand for 10 minutes. Serve with reserved dipping sauce, if desired.

A homemade Jamaican Beef Patty recipe that'll make you holla! These patties are loaded with a flavorful, well-seasoned beef filling and enveloped by a tender, flaky, and buttery pastry shell. Juicy and moist filling with that quintessential yellow exterior! The perfect Jamaican fast food to enjoy; with recipe how-to video included!

Jamaican Beef Patties

sugar

Jamaican curry powder

turmeric powder

(2 sticks) unsalted butter, grated

water

olive oil

beef (I use grass-fed)

yellow onion, finely chopped

garlic paste garlic

ginger paste ginger

kosher salt & black pepper,

Jamaican allspice

scotch bonnet peppers, deseeded & finely chopped (use gloves)

scallions (green onion), chopped

chicken stock or broth, plus more as needed

breadcrumbs

unsalted butter, cubed

In a large bowl, add the flour, salt, sugar, curry powder, and turmeric powder together. Whisk the dry ingredients well to combine. Then add in (or grate the butter over the bowl) the grated butter. Use your hands (fitted with disposable gloves, if desired) to pinch the butter into the dry mixture until little pea-sized bits form throughout and all the butter is coated with the flour mixture.

Then make a small well in the center of the mixture and pour in the ice-cold water. Use your hands, again, to bring everything together as much as you can. Empty out the bowl and all residual bits onto a clean surface. Use your hands to knead the dough together, squeezing the dough onto itself until the dough forms into one cohesive mass with no dry bits.

Shape the dough into a ball and then cover with plastic wrap. Transfer the dough into the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes.

For the dough:

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and coat the bottom of the skillet with the olive oil. Once the oil is shimmering, add in the ground beef. Use a wooden utensil to cook the beef, stirring often, until completely browned. Then add in the chopped onion, and continue cooking, about 3-4 minutes or until the onions are tender.

Stir in the garlic and ginger and continue cooking. Then add in the thyme, allspice, curry powder, scotch bonnet, and scallions. Stir together and continue cooking mixture for another 2-3 minutes. 

Pour the stock/broth into the skillet and stir to combine for 1 minute. Then stir in the breadcrumbs and mix well until they&#8217;re mostly absorbed by the beef mixture. Add in the cubed pieces of butter and stir well until all butter has melted through. Note: At this point, look for the beef mixture to be juicy and moist. If your mixture is dry, add in a splash more of stock/broth until the mixture is visibly moist (but not watery). Then remove from heat and allow the beef mixture to cool down before assembling beef patties.

For the beef filling mixture:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Position the oven rack into the center of the oven. Then line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, foil, or a silpat liner and then set the baking sheet aside.

Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator and divide the dough into equal pieces for patties. I like to use a kitchen scale to get a uniform size in each piece of dough (I make mine 5 ounces each, which will result in a total of 8 beef patties). You can make yours smaller for more patties as well.

After gathering the pieces of dough, roll them in the palms of your hands into a smooth ball. Then use a rolling pin to flatten the dough into a round shape that is about 3 millimeters.

Fill one side of the pastry with about 4 tablespoons of the beef filling mixture. For smaller patties, use 2 tablespoons. Then fold the empty side of the pastry over the beef filling, forming a crescent shape (half-moon). I like to bring the two pastry edges together and tuck/roll them under for extra measure, see video demonstration.

Then carefully flip the patty over and use a fork to crimp the edges. Place the patty onto the prepared baking sheet and repeat the process until all patties have been assembled and placed onto the baking sheet with a little space in between each one.

Bake the beef patties for 25-30 minutes or until they achieve a light, golden brown color. Allow the patties to cool down for 5 minutes. Then serve immediately. Enjoy!

Beef patty assembly &amp; cooking:

SO GOOD!

There was a Caribbean restaurant near my office that sadly closed down last year. I made your recipe last night, and it is exactly like their beef patties! Brought back great memories.

Soooo, these are bomb! This was like a week long affair for me to make, ha! I live in a small town, so several of the spices weren't readily available to me; thankfully, I found several really close options and had some unique spices from when I lived in more diverse cities.

Once I gathered everything, it took me several hours to get everything done and try them, but I move slowly by nature and get lost in details, so I knew it would take me a while. :)

But, when I tell you it was worth it! Took me right back to my time in rural Jamaica in 2019! All that was missing was the coco bread!

Fam tried it and thought they smelled good and tasted alright too! I was the most enthused, though, and that's probably because I have something to compare it to, share a connection to Jamaica, and invested time in making them! Again, worth every second and the memories it brought back!

Big ups, Quin!

These were really wonderful and so, so tasty. The dough was so easy to work with and the whole meal came together easier than I had imagined. My four-year-old has recently renounced curry (to his Malaysian mother’s dismay) and even he absolutely loved these. We will be making this again and again. Thank you so much Quin!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Vw4u4dyyQM

A homemade Jamaican Beef Patty recipe that'll make you holla! These patties are loaded with a flavorful, well-seasoned beef filling and enveloped by a tender, flaky, and buttery pastry shell. Juicy and moist filling with that quintessential yellow exterior! The perfect Jamaican fast food to enjoy!

FULL RECIPE: https://www.butterbeready.com/jamaican-beef-patties/

Thanks for watching!

Q.

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#jamaicanbeefpatty #beefpattyrecipe #beefpatties #howtomakebeefpatty

Jerk Chicken is one of the most popular Jamaican food. It’s incredibly flavorful and super tender and juicy.

Jamaican Jerk Chicken

chicken thighs

onions

habanero peppers ((stem removed, and use extra if you prefer extra spicy flavor))

ginger (sliced)

lime juice

soy sauce

brown sugar

thyme leaves

ground pepper

nutmeg

Place chicken thighs into a large mixing bowl.

Add the rest of the ingredients to a food processor and blend gently.

Pour the seasoning mixture on top of the chicken. Mix well, and cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

Marinate for at least 2 hours, and ideally overnight.

Preheat oven to 375 F degrees.

Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Remove chicken from the marinade, and place them onto the baking sheet.

Bake for about 50 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Serve and enjoy!

This recipe is not authentically Jamaican, but it does use some of my favorite staple spices, and it's a flavorful recipe when you only have a few ingredients to work with. 

Jamaican Jerk Beef Bowls

rice

vegetable stock (or water

avocado oil

97/3 beef

Jamaican Jerk seasoning

habanero pepper (or scotch bonnet), finely chopped, seeds and all

coconut aminos

yellow bell pepper diced

green onions

avocado

lime

Let your rice come to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn it down to low heat, and cover. Cook rice until fluffy and done (brown rice will be more dense). 

Add your oil to the pan and let it heat. 

Then, add garlic, lean ground beef, jerk seasoning, habanero and coconut aminos. Cook, being sure to stir thoroughly.

Add diced bell peppers and green onions toward the end. Cook 4-5 minutes. 

Add rice to your bowl, and top with lime juice, sliced avocado and more green onion. 

I bought coconut aminos for no good reason and when I saw it was listed as an ingredient I felt so much better about myself. The scotch bonnets in this recipe are not to be overlooked, they really added another element of flavor to an already amazing dish.

We had this for dinner last night and wow, there was so much flavor in this dish! I paired it with avocado and it was truly a hit! We'll definitely be making this again!

I love, love, love this recipe.  It's so quick and easy to make and packed with flavor.  It's now part of my regular weeknight rotation.  I replaced the habanero with jalapeno because I don't like too much heat.

I always love everything you post and this was no different! This was fresh! It was filling and it was definitely super delicious!!! I will be trying this out again soon too!

These were amazing! I love the flavors, and the avocado was such a great addition to calm down some of the Heat. Thanks for a fantastic, easy recipe!

Made these for dinner last night and everyone cleaned their plates. We used a jerk blend from our favorite Jamaican restaurant and will be making this recipe on the regular now!

I made this for a quick lunch while working from home. I usually try to avoid rice dishes in the afternoon so as not to feel heavy but the bowl was balanced and light. It was exactly what I needed and very tasty.

I was looking for a way to use up some ground beef I had (I don't eat it often) and I just happened to have the ingredients for this. Let me tell you, it's delicious! I used 4tbsp of the jerk seasoning but next time would do 3. I ended up using 2 limes for the entire recipe, one for the rice after it was cooked, and then 1/4 lime per portion of the recipe once everything was plated. The acidity was really nice on top of everything. Thank you for the recipe!

There's nothing like authentic Jamaican Brown Stew Chicken at all. Incredibly flavorful stewed chicken pieces that are braised to perfection until fall-off-the-bone tender in heaps of aromatics and spices. An insanely scrumptious chicken dinner with a taste of flavor-forward ingredients all over, you'll love this Caribbean favorite!

The Best Jamaican Brown Stew Chicken

yellow onion, chopped

large bell pepper, chopped

scallions, chopped

garlic paste

smoked paprika

Jamaican ground allspice

ginger

chicken pieces, I use a mix of legs & boneless/skinless thighs

browning sauce, I use Grace brand

vegetable or canola oil, plus more as needed

carrots,

tomato sauce

scotch bonnet pepper, left whole- do not cut!

chicken stock

Prep &amp; marinate chicken

In a large bowl or gallon-sized ziplock bag, add in the onion, bell pepper, scallions, garlic, brown sugar, paprika, allspice, ginger, and salt/pepper- to taste. Use your hands (fitted with disposable gloves, if desired) or a utensil to stir the ingredients together. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and then add the chicken pieces and browning sauce. Use your hands to massage all the aromatics and spices into the chicken, massaging very well to ensure the chicken pieces are nicely coated.

Cover the bowl with a lid/plastic wrap or seal ziplock bag and transfer to refrigerator to allow flavors to marinate for at least 2 hours or- more preferably, overnight (for the best results!). If marinating overnight, just be sure to go back and stir/massage the chicken at least once. This will ensure even flavor marination throughout.

Brown chicken pieces

Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade mixture, shaking off excess onion/bell pepper/scallion bits- but do not discard the marinade, set aside. Set the chicken aside on a medium baking sheet or large plate/platter.

In a large heavy-bottomed pot, dutch oven/braiser; heat the oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, gently swirl the pot around to evenly coat the bottom. Add a few chicken pieces into the pot, working in batches, careful not to overcrowd. Sear the chicken on all sides until a deep brown crust appears, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Transfer the browned chicken onto a clean, medium baking sheet or large plate/platter and repeat the process until all the chicken pieces are browned- adding a slick more of oil in between batches, only as needed. Then set the browned chicken aside and reduce the heat to medium.

Add the flavor agents &amp; assemble the stew

Add all the reserved marinade mixture into the same pot and use a wooden utensil to sauté until lightly tender, scraping up any caramelized bits on the bottom of the pot, about 2-3 minutes. Then add all browned chicken pieces back into pot, nestling them right on top of the marinade mixture, along with any residual juices that have collected. Add the carrots, tomato sauce, fresh thyme, bay leaves, scotch bonnet pepper, and chicken stock. Gently stir everything together until well combined.

Stew the chicken

Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover the pot with a lid. Allow the chicken to stew for 1 1/2 &#8211; 2 hours, covered- until the chicken pieces are meltingly tender and falling off the bone.

Adjust stew gravy, if needed

Discard the herb stems, bay leaves, and scotch bonnet pepper from the pot. If you&#8217;d like to thicken the stew liquid in the pot, place over medium-high heat. Cook, gently stirring, for a bit until the liquid reaches your desired consistency. Afterwards, taste and adjust with more salt/pepper, as desired.

Serve

this brown stew chicken immediately. I love serving this brown stew chicken in shallow bowls alongside some rice and peas (and plantains, too!) with extra stew gravy poured right over it all. Enjoy!

I made stew chicken for my coworker and now she is asking for a recipe so I came searching for one. Growing up in Jamaica we just know how much of every ingredient to use to make it right so I never needed a recipe, thus my reason for not having one. This recipe is close to what I would do so I am sharing it with her. I will return to update you after she makes it. I am giving a 5 star.

Both stewed chicken and rice were delicious had them for dinner tonight and will make both again!!!

Delicious and easy!  Made it to serve for an outdoor dinner with friends and added a couple extra chicken thighs thinking it would be great leftovers but there were none!!!  I left out the scotch bonnet because I was also feeding kids and, although it was still fantastic, I think it would have been over the top with that little bit of extra heat.

I need you to know that this recipe changed my life. Now my husband wants Jamaican cooking all the time! Thank you for sharing this dish!

I just made this dish tonight and it was delicious. The chicken was soooo tender and the flavor was bomb. I made it with white rice, fried sweet plantains and some salad. It's a great feeling trying a new recipe for the first time and hitting it out of the park. I will definitely be making this again.

We’ve made the several times. It’s SO GOOD!! Our favorite meal 😍

5 out of 5 stars! I tried Brown Stew Chicken about a month ago, and immediately had to learn how to make it. This recipe was better than the restaurant version! The spice level was perfect and the chicken was full of flavor and fall-off-the-bone-tender. I am going to make this again and again.

Delicious, reminds me of my Trini mom making this dish as a child.

Best Brown Stew Chicken the flavors make you get every bit of sauce up with.toasted bread.

We used this recipe with quail instead of chicken and it was to die for. Need to try it with rabbit next!

First time trying this and it was delicious! My family loved. I doubled the recipe and I was really scared about the scotch bonnet pepper so I used one instead of two. Loved this recipe!

I came across this site by browsing on Pinterest and I am so glad that I did. I made this tonight and it was delicious! Thank you sooo much for an amazing, easy to follow recipe using ingredients that I already had on hand. This was the first recipe that I tried from this site but it definitely will not be the last! 👍🏽

Made this for dinner tonight and loved it! I had to substitute habanero and took it out of the pot 30 minutes before it was finished because I was afraid of dying! Lol. The final product had the perfect amount of spice for me and was delicious! Thank you for such an easy delicious recipe!

Hi Quin,

It did and it worked out beautifully! We all very much enjoyed the dish!! We will make it again in the future :)

My family loved this dish. Will make it again for sure. I didn’t have browning sauce, so  I used Worcestershire Sauce instead and it came out great!! 

This stewed chicken recipe was really bomb! Made this and the rice and peas for lunch for today and tomorrow and thanks to my husband and kid; I have to make something else cause they ate it all! 😂 this is officially a butter be ready stan account! 

This recipe is definitely a keeper!!! Thank you Soooo much! Made with cabbage &amp; rice.

After trying 3 different recipes, I can truly say this is THE BEST. I made this last week and loved it so much. I can't ever find scotch bonnet peppers so I added cayenne. It worked.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hh_sj2yFJ_o

There's nothing like authentic Jamaican Brown Stew Chicken at all. Incredibly flavorful stewed chicken pieces that are braised to perfection until fall-off-the-bone tender in heaps of aromatics and spices. An insanely scrumptious chicken dinner with a taste of flavor-forward ingredients all over, you'll love this Caribbean favorite!

FULL RECIPE: https://www.butterbeready.com/brown-stew-chicken-recipe/

Thanks for watching!

Q.

--------------
Follow Me:

https://www.butterbeready.com/
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https://www.pinterest.com/butterbeready/

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Our Vegan Jamaican Bowl brings that island flavor! Our bowl is the perfect way to liven up your boring meal-prep routine. Jamaican cuisine is one of our top favorites, so we created this bowl as an ode to the flavors and aromas of that beautiful island nation. The jerk sweet potatoes, rice and peas, Caribbean collard greens, and mango salsa are a culinary dancehall party for your tastebuds. Our bowl has got sweet, heat, spice, and it's loaded with nutrients. The best part is that the components requires little active cooking, so you can set them and forget them! 

Top 10 jamaican food recipes from across the web

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Jerk Turkey Shepherd’s Pie

Jerk Chicken

Jamaican Beef Patties

Jamaican Jerk Chicken

Jamaican Jerk Beef Bowls

The Best Jamaican Brown Stew Chicke...

Vegan Jamaican Bowl

Jamaican Steamed Cabbage

Jamaican Rice and Peas

Authentic Jamaican Oxtail Stew

Top 10 jamaican food recipes from across the web

The most viewed jamaican food recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Jerk Turkey Shepherd’s Pie

Jerk Chicken

Jamaican Beef Patties

Jamaican Jerk Chicken

Jamaican Jerk Beef Bowls

The Best Jamaican Brown Stew Chicke...

Vegan Jamaican Bowl

Jamaican Steamed Cabbage

Jamaican Rice and Peas

Authentic Jamaican Oxtail Stew

The most viewed jamaican food recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine