My homemade jerk marinade recipe is full of bold spices, heat, and flavor that will have you wondering why you didn’t make this sooner! Your Jamaican jerk chicken is sure to stand out from the rest.
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Full Recipe Ingredients/Instructions are available in the
recipe card at the bottom of the post.
You can find important tips/tricks in the
blog post.
Prepare a double batch of my favorite Caribbean jerk marinade to level up your grilling game this summer! You’ll love the way this absolutely delicious wet marinade tastes and tenderizes whatever meat you add it to.
Enjoy the fresh herbs, warm and bold spices, and sweet punchy scotch bonnets. The combination of these fresh ingredients makes this jerk sauce far superior to the store-bought stuff.
Jamaican cuisine and jerk recipes are one of my all-time favorites, and if you’re here, I suspect yours too! Get some more of that fiery hot Jamaican jerk flavor in my homemade jerk BBQ sauce and Jamaican jerk seasoning recipe.
For other recipes that add the flavor of jerk seasoning, try my Jerk Chicken, jerk whole snapper, baked Jamaican jerk shrimp, Jamaican jerk chicken soup, or this tender jerk pork in the air fryer.
Jamaican Jerk Marinade Recipe Ingredients
- Yellow onion
- Green onions
- Scotch bonnet peppers – If you cannot find scotch bonnet peppers, habanero peppers are a perfect substitute. Choose your favorite type of hot peppers to enhance or decrease the heat level.
- Fresh thyme
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Soy sauce
- Canola oil – A nice neutral oil like olive oil or avocado oil would work as well.
- Lime juice
- White vinegar
- Brown sugar
- Allspice berries
- Ground black pepper & Salt
- Ground cinnamon
- Ground nutmeg
- Browning – Browning is optional. I use it to give a darker color to the jerk marinade. If you don’t have browning, leave it out. The marinade will taste and work the same. Or, make my homemade browning recipe to use in place of store-bought.
Tools needed for this recipe
- Blender
- Food processor, if a blender isn’t available.
How To Make Your Own Jerk Marinade
Place all of the ingredients into a blender or food processor. Blend until you get a smooth paste.
Use jerk marinade over your favorite proteins and most vegetables before cooking.
How To Store Jerk Marinade
Store fresh or leftover marinade (unused) in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Refrigerate for up to 7 days.
Note: Make sure you discard any used marinade, so you’re not cross-contaminating with any raw meat bacteria.
Can I freeze jerk marinade? Yes! Rather than storing in a glass mason jar or like container, I recommend using Souper Cubes. These can store your marinade in measured portions and are easily able to be taken out of the silicone container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Note: This is for unused marinade only.
How To Use Jerk Marinade
- To start, prepare the meat or vegetables you plan on marinating.
- Once your marinade is blended, you can place the meat or vegetables in a shallow dish or resealable bag, then pour the marinade over, covering it completely.
- Cover the dish, or tightly seal the plastic bag and refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Marinate meat overnight for maximum flavor.
- When you’re ready to cook your food, discard any remaining marinade left in the dish or bag.
Benefits of Jerk Marinade
Not only does jerk marinade taste incredible, but lime juice (or another citrus like orange juice or lemon juice) and vinegar (or apple cider vinegar) helps to tenderize the protein or vegetables it marries.
Spice! When you’re craving that spice, or trying to enhance an otherwise bland piece of meat. This marinade recipe has those complex flavors that are spicy and aromatic. Perfect for grilling!
An enhanced appreciation for Jamaican cuisine and culture that you can experience through food.
FAQ’s & Expert Tips
- It’s best to wear gloves when handling spicy peppers like scotch bonnet pepper or habanero pepper. This way, you can discard them without worrying about getting any pepper juices on your skin or your eyes.
- When layering your ingredients in the blender or food processor, it’s best to make sure the ingredients with the highest water content are closest to the blades. In addition to the liquid ingredients, these ingredients will help to add moisture and bring the jerk marinade together more easily.
While both may contain the same ingredients, they have some distinct differences. A jerk marinade contains meat tenderizers like citrus and vinegar, then oil to emulsify all the ingredients together, creating a wet marinade. Jerk seasoning is going to be a dry blend of spices and ingredients that do not contain any liquid.
Jerk marinade is great on most types of protein: Chicken, pork, beef, turkey, and seafood.
Notes
- Use about 3-4 tablespoons of marinade per 1 pound of meat.
- For best results, let your meat marinate for at least 24 hours to allow the flavors to penetrate fully.
- This marinade can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Always discard any unused marinade that has come into contact with raw meat.
Looking for more seasoning recipes? Try these out:
- Adobo Seasoning Recipe
- Homemade Blackened Seasoning
- Homemade Cajun Seasoning
- Homemade Fish Seasoning
If you have tried this recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please rate it and let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Jerk Marinade
Ingredients
- 1 Yellow onion chopped
- 7 Green onions chopped
- 4 Scotch bonnet peppers you can use habanero peppers as a substitute
- 4 stalks Fresh thyme
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 1 inch Ginger peeled
- 3 tablespoons Soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons Canola oil
- 2 tablespoons Lime juice
- 2 tablespoons White vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Allspice berries
- 2 teaspoons Ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon browning optional
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients into a blender. Blend until you get a smooth paste.
- Use jerk marinade over your favorite proteins and vegetables before cooking.
Notes
- Use about 3-4 tablespoons of marinade per 1 pound of meat.
- For best results, let your meat marinate for at least 24 hours to allow the flavors to penetrate fully.
- This marinade can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Always discard any unused marinade that has come into contact with raw meat.