HOME & GARDEN CONSUMER GUIDE

Make Father's Day Ladies Day at the Grill

Guys usually operate the grill, although tending the fire has recently become a girl thing, too. This Father’s Day, why not give Dad a rest by taking over the grilling duties while he watches the game or does something active.

In Jamaica, authentic grilling includes using a wet paste. This marinade is made with pimento, what we call allspice, and escallion, a thinner version of our scallions, with a purple-red tip like an onion and a more pungent flavor. The wet paste also contains Scotch Bonnet peppers. They resemble habañeros, but this locally grown chile is one of the most incendiary hot peppers. When used sparingly, however, it adds aromatic flavor along with comfortably stimulating heat.

Jerk paste also includes thyme and ginger. Both are grown in Jamaica but are more pungent than our American versions. Also, the ginger is hotter, with a dryer flavor than the Asian kind we know. (Think of Jamaican ginger beer, the non-alcoholic drink.)

Although most of the jerk paste is scraped off and the meat patted dry, using this moist marinade still helps retard the formation of HCAs, the carcinogenic compounds that form when meat is cooked at a high heat, and especially when charred. Jerk cooking is also a good form of grilling because it traditionally uses lower heat. The fire is just right when you can hold your hand an inch above it for four to eight seconds. (If the weather is bad, or you prefer working indoors, this jerk chicken cooks nicely in a non-stick skillet.)

Serve jerk chicken on a bed of long-grain brown rice, garnished with chopped scallions, or tucked into warm pita bread, along with shredded lettuce, sliced tomato, and thin onion slices. (Jerk chicken also makes a succulent salad combined with scallions, lime juice and a bit of oil.) Sometimes, instead of grilling, I stew the marinated chicken, using reduced-fat coconut milk (diluted with water) and some of the jerk paste. The aromatically flavored chicken will turn an ordinary grilled meat into a winning Father’s Day entrée.

Jerk Chicken

• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped scallions
• 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1 Scotch Bonnet or habañero chile, seeded and chopped, or 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 Tbsp. dried thyme
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. allspice
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 1 Tbsp. canola oil
• 1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 3/4 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast

Place all ingredients except chicken in a blender or food processor. Mix to a pulpy paste, about 90 seconds. Transfer jerk paste into a glass, plastic, or stainless steel container. (The marinade paste can be used for up to 2 lbs. chicken.)

Cut chicken into 8 long strips. Add to the jerk paste. Using your hands, coat pieces of chicken generously with paste. Cover tightly and refrigerate for 2 hours. Do not marinate longer or chicken will become mushy.

Preheat grill or coat a non-stick skillet with cooking spray and place over medium-high heat. Scrape jerk paste off chicken and discard. Wipe pieces dry with paper towel.

Grill chicken until white in center, about 4 minutes, turning pieces once. If using a pan, sauté until chicken is cooked through, about 6 to 8 minutes, turning pieces once.

Serve chicken on a bed of brown rice or tucked into whole-wheat pita pockets filled with shredded lettuce and sliced tomatoes.

Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 118 calories, 3 g. total fat (less than 1 g. saturated fat), 2 g. carbohydrate, 20 g. protein, less than 1 g. dietary fiber, 348 mg. sodium.

By Dana Jacobi for the American Institute for Cancer Research
“Something Different” is written for the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) by Dana Jacobi, author of The Joy of Soy, and recipe creator for AICR’s Stopping Cancer Before It Starts.