Jerk Chicken and Vegetables

Do you ever stumble upon something that blows your mind? That recipe that is so good and so easy that you feel like it’s a trick? Like surely something this easy can taste this good?? Well, let me introduce you to Jerk Chicken and Vegetables.

I knew that I wanted to make up some “bowls” of food for lunches this week and I typically do chicken and vegetables of some sort. I picked up broccoli and cauliflower from my local Fareway, along with a boneless skinless chicken breast! I wasn’t sure what was going to end up being with all of this, but I as I wondered down the aisle of condiments, a bottle grabbed my attention, KC Masterpiece Caribbean Jerk 30-Minute Marinade.  Traditional I like jerk chicken, so I grabbed a bottle and headed home (with my  entire cart load of groceries…boys can really eat, remember?!)

I began by cutting my chicken into bite sized pieces and marinading it overnight in the Caribbean Jerk marinade.  The following day, I cut up my broccoli and cauliflower into bite sized pieces as well and roasted it in the oven!  (I roasted it in a mixture of garlic, onion, pepper, and olive oil for 40 minutes at 375).  Meanwhile, in a hot pan, I poured the diced chicken, marinade and all and let it get bubbly and cook.  It cooked and bubbled for probably 20 minutes or so.  Over half of the marinade had cooked away and it was at this point that I stirred in the broccoli and cauliflower!

That’s it!  You’re done!  Well, the eating of course and before I scooped it up into my Tupperware bowls for the freezer, I snagged quite a few bites.  The chicken was tender and full of flower.  The vegetables not only absorbed the jerk flavor, but because I roasted them first, they had a smoky richness to them that really added depth!  Delicious and now I can’t wait to consume it all at lunch time!  Of course, you could add whatever vegetables you’d like as well, but broccoli and cauliflower happen to be my favorite.

After I was done, I sat back and thought…surely something that tasty couldn’t be that easy, right?  Well, why does delicious have to be fancy cooking and 20 steps?  It was one of those food revelations for me.  I guess that’s part of Learning As I Go!