Homestyle jerk chicken

Ingredients

• 6 chicken breasts (without skin or bone) or chicken suprême joints, with the peg bones still attached
• 2 tsp ground allspice
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 4cm/2in piece fresh root ginger, peeled and cut into chunks
• 2 tbsp dark muscovado sugar
• 60ml/2fl oz dark rum
• 60ml/2fl oz lime juice
• 60ml/2fl oz soy sauce
• 125ml/4¼fl oz cider vinegar
• 2 whole fresh red chillies
• 1 onion, peeled and quartered

Preparation method

1. Slash the chicken breasts, 3 slashes per breast, making each slash cut about 2cm/1in deep into the meat on the diagonal. Put the chicken breasts into an oblong dish, slashed-sides down.
   
2. Put all the other ingredients into a food processor and blitz to a dark, earthy paste, then pour and spread over the chicken pieces and leave to marinate, out of the fridge, for 2-4 hours, or in the fridge, covered, overnight.
   
3. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Double-line a shallow roasting tin with aluminium foil. Tip into it the chicken, with its marinade, placing the chicken breasts slashed-side up. Roast for 30 minutes.
   
4. Take the tin out of the oven and pour off any excess watery juices. Use a pastry brush and a spoon to place any paste that has fallen off the chicken back onto the chicken, then return it to the oven and cook for a further 30 minutes, by which time it will be cooked through and tender with a thick, fiery crust. Serve with rice and peas.