<h1>Jerk</h1>

Jamaica is hailed as being the birthplace of Jerk; a method of slow cooking your food using special spices and herbs allowing for a unique flavor, aroma and taste. This worldwide phenomenon was first recorded among the Maroons, who were thought to have perfected the method from techniques taken with them from Africa and also from the natives of the Island at the time, the Amerindians. This was an excellent way to prepare food as it added a longer shelf life to their meats due to the 'curing' that occurred during preparation.

To obtain this unique flavor and the true jerk experience, a long process has to be followed. First the meat is seasoned with Pimento (allspice), garlic, onions, pepper (scotch bonnet), thyme, escallion and other spices and is allowed to marinate for at least overnight. The pimento is a crucial ingredient and must be present during the preparation. The marinated meat is then placed on pimento wood laid over charcoal and allowed to slow cook (at least an hour) until the meat is well done. Using this process all the spices are allowed to soak through the meat and this is where the aroma and flavor comes from.

In recent days some of these steps have been circumvented or replaced with more modern and faster techniques. In the early 1960’s entrepreneurs who wanted to capitalize on the jerking process devised a unique way of jerking that cut the time in half and made it available to the masses. Oil drums were cut in half and holes were made to allow the smoke to come out. The meat was then placed on a grill and allowed to cook over charcoal for a while. This commercialized the process and was an instant hit in the country. Tourists would come to the island and try this delicacy and wonder how they could make this in the comfort of their own home.

Modern jerk food can be prepared now at home with the advent of commercialized jerk seasoning. Companies such as Island Spice, Walkerswood and Eatons have bottled the same spices used for hundreds of years to jerk food and changed up some of the preparation method to maximize on the jerk flavor. Using your own barbecue grill, oven or stovetop and mix in some of these spices and you’ve got your own homemade jerk food.

In more recent years people have been experimenting with the types of foods that can be jerked and have been having some great and interesting results. To add to the traditional jerked products of pork, chicken and fish, people have been jerking soy products, beef, vegetables and goat, each capturing the unique jerk flavor. In addition to new jerk products, jerk vendors would normally sprinkle some Red Stripe Beer over the jerking food in the final jerking stages; this would add a nice tangy flavor. Each day more and more foods are being added to the jerk menu, many of these being discovered at the annual Boston jerk festival in Portland Jamaica. Thought to be the birthplace of jerking, Boston’s patrons have mastered the art of jerking with each vendor having his secret jerk spice mix. When you go there you are greeted with the smell of jerk pork cooking on pimento wood…an unforgettable aroma. You are then approached with a sample of some of the best jerk foods in the world, jerk pork, jerk chicken, jerked fish and for those vegetarians jerked vegetables. These jerked foods are generally served with fried Jamaican dumplings, bammy or festival…each indigenous to Jamaica and having their own unique and exquisite flavor that compliments your jerk food. And finally, wash down that sumptuous meal with a drink of some cool refreshing D&G Ginger Beer or Ting, which are native Jamaican beverages.

From its humble beginnings as a way of preserving food, Jerk is now a worldwide phenomenon, with its demand increasing in countries such as Canada, USA and Great Britain. Being hailed as one of the Top 20 food to eat before you die, Take a bite and lose yourself in a wonderland that we as Jamaicans have been lost in for so long. With Fast food companies such as Island Grill, Jerk is now a once stop away, competing with KFC and Burger King, the only difference is Jerk being healthy and nutritional.

Here is a video of a Jamaican man jerking some chicken using the drum pan method.