How to Make and Display Jamaican Jerked Spice Seasoning.

You can create a beautiful kitchen decoration and at the same time make the spice that accents the popular Jamaican cooking. The spicy yet sweet favoring that jerked meat has is distinctive. Storing layered ingredients as a decorative mixture is more typically early American than Jamaican and was done for efficiency by the harried overworked early American homemaker. You can make this Jamaican jerked spice for display or as a gift.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• 2 tbsp of onion flakes
• 2 tbsp of onion powder
• 2 tbsp of granulated garlic
• 4 tsp of salt
• 4 tsp of ground thyme
• 2 tsp of ground allspice
• 1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp of nutmeg
• 2 tsp of cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp of ground black pepper
• 4 tsp of sugar
• 4 tsp of dried parsley
• 4 tsp of dried chives or green onions
• 2 or more tsp of dried Scotch bonnet peppers (optional)

1. Mix the salt, garlic, powder, onion flakes, onion powder and sugar in a small bowl and set aside. Keeping the like colored ingredients together allows the seasoning be layered and create a beautiful display for the Jamaican jerked spice.
2. Combine the allspice, ground cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, and black paper in a separate bowl. Even though the black pepper is not the same color it blends easily with the red.
3. Stir the dried chives or green onions with the dried parsley in a third bowl. Mixing the ingredients allow the flavors to blend.
4. Use decorative clear jar such as a mason jar with a wired lid to store the ingredients. Pour in the bowls of ingredients to display the individual colors as layers for your decorative Jamaican jerked spice seasoning.
5. Mix the ingredients well when you are ready to use the seasoning. This is used as a rub for all types of meat including fish. Simply sprinkle on the ingredients and rub in to make certain the entire piece is covered. Allow the meat to sit in the refrigerator for at least two hours to absorb the flavor.
6. Barbecue or use an authentic smoker made of an oil barrel cut lengthwise. If you are using a charcoal grill, soak some wood chips and add to the fire. Jamaican cooking is always done slowly, so keep the temperature low.
7. Decorate a jarful with a ribbon and bow to give as a gift. Include the directions for use.

Tips & Warnings

• You can add 2 or more tsp of dried Scotch bonnet peppers to make the mixture more authentic. Many of our palates cannot handle the heat from the peppers so it was omitted from the recipe.
• Allow the rubbed meat to sit in the refrigerator overnight to enhance the flavor.
• Rub the meat lightly with vegetable oil if there is limited fat.
• You can mix the Jamaican jerked spice seasoning with yogurt or sour cream for a delicious vegetable dip.

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