Yummm! Southern Fried Jerk Chicken

My Mother is the daughter of a Bajan woman and My Dad is a Good Ole Boy from North Carolina... so I grew up eating Curry Goat and Collard Greens, ya know? I won't get started on the influence from the Jewish man who married my Bajan Grandmother..... LOL

I saw this recipe and my heart just started to SIIIIIING.... because this recipe is a great way to honor my Southern and West Indian roots simultaneously.... not to mention get my grub on Yum Yum-style!!! Tee Heeeeee!

Southern Fried Jerk Chicken
Recipe Courtesy of Jamaicans.com

INGREDIENTS:

1-Cup Buttermilk
⅔ cup Red Stripe Beer
8 Drumsticks
1 cup yellow Cornmeal
1 Cup all Purpose Flour
½ cup cornstarch
½ cup Dry Jerk Seasoning
1 Tablespoon Paprika
2 Tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons black pepper
Vegetable or Peanut Oil for frying

METHOD:

Combine the Red Stripe Beer and Cup Buttermilk in a large glass bowl.
Add Chicken to the bowl and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
Combine the flour, cornmeal, jerk seasoning, cornstarch, paprika, salt and pepper in a bowl. Mix to combine.
Drain the chicken and discard the marinade.
Toss the Chicken lightly one at a time to coat them. You can use a zip lock bag with the breading mixture to do this.
Place the breaded chicken on a large baking sheet lined with wax paper. Be sure they do not touch each other. Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Pour oil in 2-3 inch deep skillet. Heat oil to approx 355f (check with frying thermometer).
Add the chicken 2 at a time. Fry each for about 4 minutes on each side or until they are golden brown
Remove each piece of chicken and place on paper towel to drain oil. Transfer to an oven safe platter once oil is drained.
Place in an oven set at 200f to keep warm. Once all the chicken is cooked, it is best to serve immediately.

And I think that a good accompaniment to this is a delish oven-baked sweet potato fries!!


Sweet Potato Oven Baked Fries Recipe
Recipe Courtesy of RecipeTips.com

Ingredients

- 2 pounds sweet potatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon course kosher salt, adjust to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic pepper, adjust to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika


Directions

Preheat oven to 450ºF.
Generously coat baking sheet with vegetable cooking spray or olive oil.
Peel sweet potatoes.
Cut into 1/2-inch thick sticks that are approximately 4 to 5-inches long, or cut into wedges.
Place potatoes into a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil.
Sprinkle potatoes with *seasonings and stir until potatoes are evenly coated.
Place potatoes in a single layer on baking sheet. Potatoes may need to be baked in 2 separate batches.
Bake approximately 10 minutes.
Remove and turn potatoes over, return to oven.
Bake potatoes an additional 20 minutes or until done.
Season to taste and serve hot.

*Any combination of your favorite seasonings can replace those listed in the ingredients.

Yummm! Bajan Oxtail & Coo-Coo

Cornmeal Coo-Coo

4 pints of water
12 fresh okra pods
4 tablespoons of butter
1 pound of yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon of salt (optional)
1/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper

1 Rinse the okra in cold water, cut off the stems
and slice in round shapes. Combine the okra and
the water in a large saucepan and bring it to a
full boil, stir in the butter with the salt and
pepper.

2 Remove okra from the heat, stir in cornmeal
until all the lumps is dissolved and the mixture
is nice and smooth.


3 Return back to the heat, using a wooden spoon
stir till mixture is well blended, slightly stiff
and comes away from the sides of the pan.
Use a spoon to fill in the lightly buttered bowl,
let it sit for at least 30 minutes until it sets.

4 Cover the top of the bowl with a platter, invert
to transfer Coo Coo to the serving platter.

Stewed Oxtail

Ingredients
MARINADE
2 lbs oxtails, jointed
3 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Trinidadian green seasoning
1 1/2 onions, very thinly sliced
1 green pepper, very thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon soya sauce

STEW
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons browning sauce (optional)
2-3 cups water
2 bay leaves
1 scotch bonnet pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons whole cloves
4 stalks fresh marjoram
8 stalks fresh thyme
2 beef bouillon cubes
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 potatoes, diced
2 carrots, diced

Directions

1 Marinade: put the clean oxtail in a large bowl and add all the ingredients to the meat so it is completely coated. Cover bowl, refrigerate and allow to marinate for at least 1 hour or overnight.

2 Stew: Heat vegetable oil and brown sugar on medium in a large pot until the mixture turns a light brown. Add the oxtail and brown them for a few minutes per side. Add browning sauce and stir.

3 Add water so that meat is almost covered. Turn heat up and add bay leaves, scotch bonnet pepper (make sure this doesn't break!), cloves and herbs. Cover pot and bring to the boil then reduce heat to medium and cook for 3 hours, or until meat is extremely tender. Stir every 30 minutes and add hot water whenever necessary: meat should always be mostly covered.

4 Remove scotch bonnet pepper carefully after about 1 1/2 hours of cooking. After 3 hours, or when the meat is done, add beef bouillon, ketchup, potatoes and carrots. Cook for another 30 minutes.

5 Taste and see if you need to add anymore spices or salt. It should be perfect at this point. If the sauce needs thickening just add a teaspoon of cornstarch or flour. Serve with rice and peas coo-coo and a side of coleslaw. Enjoy!