‘The Jerk’ Chicken Tacos With Mango Slaw

These tacos have nothing to do with the movie “The Jerk” starring Steve Martin. But you should watch it while you eat the tacos. Laughs and tacos go great together just like anything and tacos.

Jerk Chicken is the staple of Jamaican food, and you can find it all over the world. In America we have taco shops, in Jamaica they have jerk huts. Jerk flavor is derived from the use of allspice and scotch bonnet peppers. Allspice tastes like a combination of nutmeg, clove, and cinnamon. So if you don’t have any allspice you can try to use them as a substitute. Scotch bonnets are relatives, and look very similar to habanero peppers. Most people use habanero peppers to make jerk because scotch bonnets, their slightly sweeter cousin are harder to find. We use a mango slaw to balance out the heat from the habaneros and strong flavor coming from the allspice.

For the chicken -

• 2 lbs boneless chicken legs

• 1/2 cup canola oil

• 1⁄2 cup lime juice

• 1/3 cup orange juice

• 2 tbsp. dark brown sugar

• 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar

• 2 tbsp. dried thyme

• 2 tbsp. soy sauce

• 2 tsp. ground allspice

• 2 medium cloves garlic

• 2 habanero chiles, stemmed

• 3 scallions, roughly chopped

• 1 shallot, roughly chopped

• 1 (1" piece) ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the slaw

• 2 cups shredded cabbage

• 3/4 cup diced mango

• 1/2 cup diced cilantro

• 1/2 cup diced poblano pepper

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 2 tbsp lime juice

• 1 tbsp sour cream

• pinch of salt and pepper

Take all of the items under “for the chicken” except for the chicken (I suppose I had to say it) and throw them in the blender. Taste. Now that you’re excited pour the marinade over the chicken and put it in a zip lock bag, massaging to make sure the marinade is all over the meat. Let it sit for 24 hours.

Pull the chicken out and throw it on the grill. In the meantime make the slaw. Combine the olive oil, lime, sour cream, and salt and pepper in a bowl. Taste. Make any adjustments and then add to the cabbage, mango, cilantro, and poblanos.

Grill the chicken for a few minutes on each side, until done. Every grill is different so I won’t tell you how to grill your chicken. Heat up some tortillas, build the tacos. Eat. Drink. Poop. No rush on the poop.