To make the marinade, blend everything in the blender. Don’t neglect the spices, they really add the depth and intrigue needed to balance out the flavors. Allspice is especially important.
I could not find scotch bonnet peppers so I subbed 1 habenero and 1 jalapeño. Chicken was 2 stars in spiciness. The next time I used 2 habeneros, and it bumped it up to 3 stars, perfect for us. To mellow out the heat a bit- use 2 jalapeños.
I recommend boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe. They are more tender and juicy than breasts which tend to dry out. Cut thin into ¾ to 1 inch chunks, pour the marinade over, and let sit at least 30 min, but preferably longer, 1 hour or up to 3 hours.
Slice the peaches into wedges, about ¾ an inch thick.
Using gloves ( the marinade is spicy) thread chicken and peaches on to soaked skewers.
Serve on a platter and enjoy outside!!!
Grilled Jerk Chicken and Peach Skewers
Grilled Jamaican Jerk Chicken and Peach Skewers, a delicious summertime meal that is full of flavor!
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Yield: 12 skewers- serves 4
- Category: Main
- Cuisine: Caribbean
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken (boneless, skinless breast or thigh)
- 3 peaches, sliced into wedges
- 1 red onion, sliced into wedges
- handful of cilantro for garnish
Marinade Ingredients:
- 1/8 cup olive oil ( or vegetable)
- 1/8 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup lime juice, more for squeezing
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 T fresh chopped ginger
- 1- 2 Scotch bonnet peppers, habaneros, or jalapeños , chopped in half
- 3 scallions or 1 shallot, chopped
- 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves ( or 1/2 T dry)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Soak the skewers. Cut the chicken into 1 inch chunks and place in a bowl.
- Place all the marinade ingredients in the blender, and blend until relatively smooth. Pour the marinade over the chicken. Let sit 30 minutes or up to 1 hour. ( The longer your marinate, the spicier they will become.)
- Pre heat the grill to medium high.
- Slice the peaches, and onions into ¾ inch thick wedges.
- Using gloves, skewer the chicken, peaches and onion. The marinade will naturally get on the peaches which is a good thing.
- Grill until all sides are nicely seared with grill marks. Turn heat down to LOW, place on a piece of heavy duty foil, folding up the edges to catch the drippings, and close the lid, letting chicken cook all the way through, until done.
- Place on a platter, squeeze with lime, and garnish with lime or orange slices and sprinkle with cilantro. Enjoy with a big salad.
Notes
You may need a pair of kitchen gloves ( marinade is spicy) for sensitive hands
12 pre-soaked wood skewers
Keywords: jerk chicken skewers, chicken and peach skewers, jerk chicken recipe, the best jerk chicken, jamaican jerk chicken marinade,
What a perfect combination of summer flavors. I love jerk chicken!
Thanks Matt, I do as well!
Wow, these look really, really good! The first thing I thought was how great those peaches will go with it. And those spices really take it up a notch. Love it!
Yes,I agree…. the peaches make the dish 🙂
Geez what’s not to like abut grilled fruit. It makes such a wonderful complement to the meat. This is the perfect example.
Those skewers are just gorgeous! The combination of spicy jerk seasoning and those sweet peaches sounds just to die for, too. Will definitely have to give this a go this summer!
Could you add shrimp to this too or does that not work well with the jerk flavor?
Yes…I think that would taste great!!!
Any ideas for sides to serve alongside this?
This Cabbage Mango Slaw or this Jicama mango Slaw would be good, and maybe some rice.