The Best Oven Baked Jerk BBQ Chicken

Before I had jerk chicken, bbq chicken was my favorite. Then I had jerk chicken and it replaced bbq chicken. I’ve eaten enough jerk chicken to know EVERYBODY makes it different. For this recipe I used an oven instead of a grill and little browning to help the skin caramelize. Chopped the chicken up with my meat cleaver because that’s how they do it at my favorite jerk spot. Slathered it with my homemade bbq that was so good I wanted to put it on everything. For me, this recipe replaces the bbq chicken at the cookout.

I am of the belief that the marinating part of making jerk chicken is the most important. I season with my favorite seasonings, use jerk paste, browning, onions, scallion, garlic, thyme, pimento, and scotch bonnet pepper. Marinate for a minimum of 1 hour but overnight is best. The next day, I remove all the veggies and herbs and allow the chicken to come to room temperature before roasting.

I roast the chicken on 400 degrees for about 45 minutes to an hour, flipping halfway through. Roasting on high heat and the use of browning and jerk paste give the chicken the perfect dark color and crisp as if it were on the grill. While warm, I baste the chicken with my homemade, sticky, sweet-heat bbq sauce and chop with a meat cleaver.

The homemade jerk-bbq sauce was the better than any store-bought version I’ve tried. It was sticky, sweet, with the perfect amount of heat to compliment the spices in the chicken.

Make this for your next cookout and let me know how it comes out in the comments!

Juicy Oven Baked Bbq- Jerk Chicken

Juicy bbq-jerk chicken

Prep Time 1 day d

Cook Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Total Time 1 day d 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Ingredients

For the Chicken

• 2 lbs chicken leg quarters
• 1/2 white onion sliced
• 2 garlic cloves chopped
• 1/4 scotch bonnet chopped
• 2 scallions cut in half
• 2 tbsp spicy jerk paste I use Walkerswood (you can use mild)
• 1 tsp browning
• 1 tbsp chicken bouillon powder
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 5 pimento seeds

For the Sauce

• 1 cup ketchup
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp cornsyrup
• 2 tsp worcestshire sauce
• 1 tbsp mustard
• 1 tbsp mild jerk paste
• 1/2 cup water

Instructions

For the chicken

• Slice onions, scallions & chop scotch bonnet pepper & garlic, set aside
• To cleaned chicken, make a two 1/2 inch slices along the top of the chicken through the skin and meat. Careful not to cut all the way through the meat
• Add spices, seasonings, and olive oil to the chicken
• Add jerk paste, browning to chicken and give a quick mix to incorporate all the seasoning in the chicken
• Add chopped veggies & mix to combine
• Marinate chicken in the refrigerator for a mininum of 2 hours or overnight
• When ready to cook, preheat oven to 400 degrees (if you have a grill, grill it!)
• Remove the veggies & herbs from the chicken, and place on a wire rack or baking sheet with parchment paper, and allow chicken to come to room temperature
• Roast chicken for 45 minutes to an hour, flipping halfway through, until the skin is caramalized and the chicken is cooked through
• Baste warm jerk chicken with bbq sauce and chop into pieces or enjoy whole!

For the Sauce

• Combine ingredients in a pot, mix to combine
• Bring to a simmer, add water and simmer until sauce coats the back of a spoon
• Store in a mason jar or bottle in the fridge for up to 2 weeks

Keyword: bbq, chicken, cookout, jerk