This Smoked Jerk Chicken Recipe is juicy and tender with a delicious and perfectly spiced marinade with a spicy kick! The jerk marinade is made up of fresh ingredients and spices that will quickly become a family favorite! This is a great recipe for your Traeger or other pellet grill.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Jerk Chicken Marinade - The jerk marinade used in this recipe has a delicious slightly sweet and rather spicy flavor made up of traditional Jamaican ingredients.
- Easy weeknight meal - Who doesn’t love an easy and delicious grilled chicken dinner? Marinade the chicken the night before and it’s ready to go for a quick dinner! These Smoked Shrimp Skewers and this Traeger BBQ Chicken are also great options for busy evenings.
- Naturally Sweetened + Paleo - As always, this dish is naturally sweetened (with dates) and paleo compatible making it a delicious and healthy grilled dinner option with no refined sugars!
What Is Jerk Chicken?
Jerk chicken is a native dish to Jamaica. It is made up of chicken in a hot and spicy jerk marinade sauce with delicious spices such as allspice (pimento), nutmeg, and cinnamon and spicy hot scotch bonnet peppers.
Ingredients Needed
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Ingredient Notes
- Jalapeños - Traditionally, jerk chicken (and seasoning or BBQ sauce) is made with Scotch Bonnet Peppers which have a heat rating of 100,000 to 350,000 SHU. For reference, this is about 40 times as hot as jalapeño peppers. I like to use jalapeños to cut down on the spice and make it more of a family friendly (kid) meal, however, you can definitely sub with the traditional habanero or scotch bonnet peppers!
- Bone-In Skin-On Chicken Thighs - Using thighs ensures this chicken will remain moist and delicious. I highly prefer skin-on thighs as the skin crisps up perfectly on the grill and really adds to this dish.
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- Allspice - Also known traditionally, and in the Jamaican culture, as Pimento… same thing!
- Ginger - You can use ground or fresh ginger in this recipe!
- Dates - Using dates keeps this marinade naturally sweetened (and Paleo compatible) as opposed to using granulated or brown sugar.
- Avocado Oil - I always prefer avocado oil in marinades or sauces for it’s mild flavor, but it can be substituted for olive oil as well!
- Coconut Aminos - A great gluten-free and soy-free substitute to soy sauce.
How To Make This Recipe
- Place all marinade ingredients in a food processor (or blender) and process until all ingredients are finely chopped.
- Pat chicken dry and place in a shallow dish (or ziplock bag) and pour marinade over the top, ensuring to coat on all sides. Cover and place in refrigerator overnight.
- Preheat your Traeger or pellet smoker to 180F. Then place chicken directly on the grill grates of the preheated smoker and allow to smoke for 30 minutes.
- Turn temperature up to 325 and continue to cook until chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165F, flipping halfway through.
- Remove from grill and enjoy!
How To Make This Recipe On A Gas Or Charcoal Grill (without smoking)
Place chicken on preheated grill and cook on medium high heat until chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165F, flipping halfway through.
Remove from grill and enjoy!
What To Serve With Jerk Chicken
This recipe is so versatile in what it serves well with. Here are some of my favorite sides to serve with this Jamaican chicken recipe:
Mango Habanero Salsa
Traeger Asparagus
Whole30 Coleslaw
Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potatoes
Recipe FAQ’s
I always recommend using a meat thermometer for any cut of meat you are smoking, grilling, etc. It’s a foolproof way to ensure your meat is cooked to a safe temperature without over cooking it or drying it out. These chicken thighs should be cooked to an internal temperature (IT) of 165F.
We love our wireless meater+ meat thermometer.
True Jamaican jerk chicken is grilled or smoked over pimento sticks or chips, however, pimento wood pellets are fairly difficult to find and rather expensive. Hickory or oat pellets are great to use in this recipe and very easy to find!
Jerk marinade is made up of fresh ingredients and spices but typically includes refined sugars such as granulated sugar or brown sugar. This recipe uses dates to naturally sweeten it, making it a healthy protein pack meal!
More Smoked and Grilled Recipes
Love this recipe? Consider leaving a 5-star 🌟 rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. We LOVE to hear from you!
📖 Recipe
Smoked Jerk Chicken {Whole30, Paleo}
Equipment
- Traeger or Pellet Smoker
Ingredients
- 3 lb Bone-In Skin-On Chicken Thighs
- 6 Jalapeños stems removed, see notes
- 3 Scallions or Green Onions root removed
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- 2 Dates pits removed
- 1 Lime juiced
- ⅓ cup Coconut Aminos
- ⅓ cup Avocado Oil or olive oil
- ¼ cup Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Bayleaf
- ½ Tbsp Allspice ground
- 1 tsp Nutmeg ground
- 1 tsp Cinnamon ground
- ½ tsp Ginger ground
- ½ tsp Thyme ground
- ½ Tbsp Pepper
- 1 tsp Salt
Instructions
- Place all marinade ingredients in a food processor (or blender) and process until all ingredients are finely chopped.
- Pat chicken dry and place in a shallow dish (or ziplock bag) and pour marinade over the top, ensuring to coat on all sides. Cover and place in refrigerator overnight.
- Preheat your Traeger or pellet smoker to 180F. Then place chicken directly on the grill grates of the preheated smoker and allow to smoke for 30 minutes.
- Turn temperature up to 325F and continue to cook until chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165F, flipping halfway through.
- Remove from grill and enjoy!
How To Make This Recipe On A Gas Or Charcoal Grill (without smoking):
- Place chicken on preheated grill and cook until chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165F, flipping halfway through.
- Remove from grill and enjoy!
Notes
- Jalapeños - Traditionally, jerk chicken is made with Scotch Bonnet Peppers which have a heat rating of 100,000 to 350,000 SHU. For reference, this is about 40 times as hot as jalapeño peppers. I like to use jalapeños to cut down on the spice and make it more of a family friendly (kid) meal, however, you can definitely sub with the traditional habanero or scotch bonnet peppers, just adjust the amount as needed for desired spice level.
- Bone-In Skin-On Chicken Thighs - Using thighs ensures this chicken will remain moist and delicious. You can also substitute chicken thighs for chicken wings!
- Dates - Using dates keeps this marinade naturally sweetened (and Paleo compatible) as opposed to using granulated or brown sugar.
- Avocado Oil - I always prefer avocado oil in marinades or sauces for it’s mild flavor, but it can be substituted for olive oil as well!
- I always recommend using a meat thermometer for any cut of meat you are smoking, grilling, etc. It’s a foolproof way to ensure your meat is cooked to a safe temperature without over cooking it or drying it out. These chicken thighs should be cooked to an internal temperature (IT) of 165F.
Nutrition
Love this recipe? Consider leaving a 5-star 🌟 rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. We LOVE to hear from you!
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