Jerked Chicken, Coconut Rice and Avocado & Pineapple Salsa
In the cold winter months in Europe, many days my body not only craves bright-sunny skies, but also the sun on a plate those delicious Caribbean flavours I grew up eating. I combined my own jerked spices because I didn't want to be too hot in spice. The coconut rice I cooked with coconut milk and water, as well fresh grounded coconut toasted in coconut oil, did it have enough coconut flavor? Yes, it did. The salsa is very refreshing, with sweet pineapple, creamy avocado, and fruity tomatoes. I just ate, and I'm just hungry again! This recipe yields 4 portions.
Ingredients:
4 chicken drums
Jerked Spice Mix (1 teaspoon: of red chili flakes, garlic powder, onion powder, dry thyme, red paprika, ground allspice, ground black pepper, ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon, and 1 tablespoon: of sugar, salt)
2 cups of white rice
2 tablespoons of coconut butter
1/2 cup of coconut flakes
1 tablespoon of dark molasses (or honey)
2 cups of coconut milk
2 cups of coconut water
2 avocados (chopped)
1 pineapple (chopped)
1 cup of cherry tomatoes (chopped)
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves (chopped)
2 tablespoon of olive oil
1 lemon (juiced and zest)
Direction:
1. Wash the chicken and pat dry. Place them in a plastic bag and add all the spices (including the salt and sugar) and let it marinate overnight if possible, and 4 hours as minimum. Then the chicken must be cooked in the oven at medium heat for 40 minutes or until fully cooked. The last 10 min broil them, to intensive the spices and give it a bit of BBQ-ish flavor.
2. In a pan saute in the coconut butter the coconut flakes until lightly brown, then add the rice and fry for a bit, molasses follow, and then coconut milk and water, bring it to a simmer and cover until done.
3. In a salad bowl add the avocado, pineapple, mint and lemon. Season with salt and add the olive oil.
Tips: 1. The chicken would be perfect for BBQ's. 2. The rice can also be done with a can of Coca-Cola, but then the coconut milk must be avoided and the molasses.
Enjoy!
