Ottolenghi’s jerk chicken

Name: Ottolenghi’s jerk chicken
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 60 min
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients: 1 tsp allspice berries; 2 bay leaves, roughly torn; 1½ tsp hot chilli powder; 1½ tsp paprika; ½ tsp ground cinnamon; ½ tsp ground mixed spice; 25g light soft brown sugar; 1½ tbsp runny honey; 1-2 jalapeño chillies, finely chopped; 1-2 red scotch bonnet chillies, finely chopped; 2 spring onions, finely chopped; 1 small red onion, cut into 1cm pieces; 50ml olive oil; 1 tsp salt; 1kg chicken thighs; 2 tbsp white wine vinegar

Yotam Ottolenghi

Published: 4 Apr 25
Updated: 1 Jul 25

Give chicken thighs the Ottolenghi treatment with this easy jerk recipe from Yotam and his test kitchen team. Here’s why it’s a winner for a spring lunch…

The spices: The recipe for the jerk blend of all-spice, bay, paprika and chilli was passed down to Ottolenghi Test Kitchen’s Helen Goh from Stephanie Kamener, a Jamaican chef. The result is a fragrant blend with sweet hints of cinnamon and mixed spice.
The chicken: Give your chicken a six-hour marinade for maximum flavour before roasting until the skin is perfectly crisp and golden.
The sides: The spicy chicken pairs beautifully with this potato salad and roasted carrots with curry leaf dukkah.

Browse Ottolenghi’s full spring lunch menu.

Serves 4
Prep time 10 min, plus at least 6 hours marinating. Cook time 50 min, plus 10 min resting

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Ingredients

1 tsp allspice berries
2 bay leaves, roughly torn
1½ tsp hot chilli powder
1½ tsp paprika
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground mixed spice
25g light soft brown sugar
1½ tbsp runny honey
1-2 jalapeño chillies, finely chopped
1-2 red scotch bonnet chillies, finely chopped
2 spring onions, finely chopped
1 small red onion, cut into 1cm pieces
50ml olive oil
1 tsp salt
1kg chicken thighs
2 tbsp white wine vinegar

Method

Put the allspice and bay leaves in a dry pan and toast them for 1-2 minutes until the bay leaves have blistered. Using a pestle and mortar, crush to a powder, then tip into a large bowl along with all the remaining ingredients, apart from the chicken and vinegar. Mix well to combine, then add the chicken. Massage well so all the thighs are well coated, then cover and transfer to the fridge to marinate for at least 6 hours (or overnight).
Half an hour before you’re going to cook the chicken, take it out of the fridge, add the vinegar and toss to combine.
Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6. Spread the chicken out on a large lined baking tray, skin-side up. Roast for about 45 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through, until the chicken is crisp and golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe from April 2025 Issue

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 752kcals
Fat: 48g (11g saturated)
Protein: 63g
Carbohydrates: 17g (16g sugars)
Fibre: 1.8g
Salt: 1.5g

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Ottolenghi’s jerk chicken

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