How to Make Jerk Pork

METHOD: Direct grilling

ADVANCE PREPARATION: 6 to 12 hours for marinating the meat

Jamaica’s contribution to the world of barbecue is jerk pork roasted over what may be the most incredibly fragrant fuel in the world, smoldering allspice wood. What makes jerk pork “jerk” is the seasoning, a fragrant, fiery paste of Scotch bonnet chiles, allspice berries, escallions (the Caribbean version of chives), fresh thyme, and perhaps a dozen other flavorings. Tradition calls for the meat to be “jooked,” that is poked with a pointed stick, to allow the seasoning to penetrate the meat. Jooking, in fact, may be how jerk got its name.