Weeknight dinners are among the trickiest meals to prepare. I’ve been trying to come up with more flavorful and creative meals to share, and I think I’ve done it with my latest recipe: Jamaican-Inspired Instant Pot Chicken. I don’t think I’ve ever made anything Jamaican (or Jamaican-ish) in my life, but there’s a first time for everything, and I’m really happy that this was it. Oh, and did I mention that the recipe only has five ingredients? Now things are getting good!
As I scoured Pinterest for new ideas, I came across a number of Caribbean and Jamaican-Inspired recipes that incorporated such tasty and complex flavors: hot peppers, onions, ginger, soy, and a whole host of spices. They all looked so delicious, but also…so complicated. I would have to buy a ton of ingredients, and then puree them all in the food processor, marinate the chicken, etc. I’m sure it would have been doable, but I wanted something easier.
Instead, I headed over to a kitchen store known for selling creative spices, and found a lovely jerk chicken seasoning by Gryffon Ridge, a fairly local-to-me company. The spice was actually described as mild, which is unusual for jerk, but is great for someone who’s preparing chicken for children to eat (like me). After reading through a number of other recipes, I decided to keep things simple (read: decided to eliminate all chopping and subsequent washing of cutting boards and knives), and kept the marinade to just a few liquid ingredients, the spice, and the chicken itself. I further simplified by deciding to cook it in the Instant Pot, cutting down on the cooking time required to give it that “simmered all day” flavor.
This recipe, while delicious on its own, could be doctored up in any number of ways. You could add some habanero peppers to give it more heat. You could add any of the ingredients that go into a traditional jerk seasoning, as well. I used chicken with the skin still on, but next time I might go for skinless to really get the marinade in contact with the meat of the chicken. I marinated my chicken overnight, because it was easier for me to prepare everything ahead of time, but you could marinate it for an hour or two and still achieve a similar flavor.
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- About 2 lb bone-in chicken drumsticks and thighs (skin can be on or off)
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons Jamaican jerk seasoning (without salt)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Place the chicken pieces in a resealable freezer bag large enough to hold them.
- Add all the other ingredients and seal the bag. Gently turn the bag to mix the ingredients and fully coat the chicken.
- Refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours, but overnight is better.
- Place the chicken and marinade in the bowl of the Instant Pot. Add ½ cup water. Close the Instant Pot and the vent on top (refer to your pot's manual if you have questions).
- On manual mode, set the timer for 17 minutes on high pressure.
- Use manual release when the timer goes off.
- Remove the pieces of chicken. Serve with white rice. You can spoon some of the cooking liquid over the chicken and rice, if desired .
My eggplant is finally, FINALLY growing, and I couldn’t be more excited! Sure, my two plants are likely to give me a total of 3 eggplants, but I don’t care–I’m going to enjoy those three as much as I can. Everyone knows about eggplant parmesan, so here are some of the lesser-known ways you can use those eggplants up.
I don’t normally post breakfast recipes, but this one was so tasty (and easy) that I had to share it. I love eating pancakes on the weekends, but hate actually making them myself. There’s something about measuring flour and baking powder that gets very messy, and I frankly don’t want to deal with it. So, I tried to keep things easy by only using bananas and eggs. To help bind it all together (and add a little more fiber), I threw in some homemade granola. So yummy! I added some cocoa powder to half of the batter to make chocolate pancakes, and they were even better. Though they don’t taste exactly like traditional pancakes, my kids and I still loved them.
If you want to make half of the pancakes chocolate, you can make four pancakes, and then add 1 tsp of cocoa powder to the remaining batter, stir well, and make the remainder of the pancakes.
I’ve been waiting to post this recipe for one reason or another, but decided to pull the trigger when I realized that these summer veggies will soon be out of season. With that in mind, you’d better get this recipe on your meal plan in the next few weeks!
Bulgur bowls are my Middle Eastern interpretation of Buddha bowls. They’re filled with bulgur, which is a hearty, Middle Eastern cracked wheat used for pilaf. They have veggies and chickpeas, and the whole thing is dressed in a tahini vinaigrette. They’re vegetarian (vegan, actually), easy to assemble, and basically fool-proof; almost any ingredient can be swapped out depending on what you have available or what you like, and I’m not sure you’d miss it. Rather than sticking strictly with chopped, raw veggies, I also threw in some of my 
It’s officially tomato and cucumber season in New England! I love tomatoes and cucumbers as they are, but a little creativity in the kitchen never hurts. Here are some great recipes to use up the bounties from your gardens.