Jerk in Jamaica: what is it, why is it so popular and how to cook it at home

Jerk chicken is a staple dish if you’re a fan of African or Caribbean cuisine. A food group in its own right, almost, the meal has practically developed a cult following. Try as you might, there’s nothing quite like that smoked spice hitting your taste buds.

Chargrilled meats always win, in my opinion. An elite taste and texture. If you don’t come away reeking of the smoke, there wasn’t enough. Whether it’s grilled Brazilian steakhouse or Persian kebabs, it beats fried food any day of the week.

This is exactly how jerk chicken (or pork etc) is cooked, delivering that sweet smokiness while keeping the meat juicy and succulent. My own experience with the food has been at the annual Notting Hill carnival – where I spend the day salivating and devouring delicious jerk all day long (in between drinking and dancing, of course) – and at friends’ houses, where they combine their cooking skills and roots to put on quite the spread for us all. There’s never a single piece left in the pot and some have been known to lick it clean. I’m not known for my punctuality but I’m getting there on time if I know jerk is on the menu.

Anike Wildman, of Jamaican heritage, can count the number of times she has jerk chicken in the UK a year on one hand “because it’s not even something that is so readily available… most places (even if they’re Jamaican fronted) aren’t doing traditional jerk because it’s not in the man; the wood’s not right