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Guess what?

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/

This morning the power went out at 5:00am and did not come back on till close to 10:00.

Blame the foot plus of snow that came down over night. Yeah, I know.

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/

At first I totally freaked.

I mean no power means no internet. No internet means no connecting with all my bloggy friends, no submitting posts to Foodgawker and Tastespotting and NO promotion of my post (which was this amazing Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Fudge Brownie Ice Cream just incase ya missed it). Luckily I had scheduled my post to go up at 4:00am, so at least I got my post out to you guys!

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/

The early hours of the morning are actually pretty crazy. Normally I am all over the internet trying to promote that day’s post and working on like a gazillion different things at once. Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, reading blogs and working on my own site.

I know this sounds like a whole lot of fun stuff, but some day’s it is trying. Some days I don’t want to scour my computer screen and think of clever things to say about my recipe for the day or spend way too long in the twitter world (twitter = time suck). I mean don’t get me wrong most days I love this, I even crave this, it’s my thing. It makes me smile!

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/

I tried to work from my phone for a little, but honestly that just gave me a headache. I like a nice big screen and keys that I can actually punch down on. So eventually, I just said screw it. I put on my snow pants, my coat, hat and boots and set out for a hike (yes, I am crazy). It was too early to start cooking (no good light yet, plus um no power) and I figured the power would be back on when I got home (it was).

Ya know something?

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/

An internet break, even a small one, does a girl good!

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/

It felt good to just not be connected for once.  Kind of like a super, super quick cleanse. Very refreshing (I know, lame)!

Ok, ok now how about some jerk chicken? With a big old pile of grilled pineapple salsa? It’s jerktastic!

No, seriously it is. I have no idea how this recipe came about. I mean I was set on making greek and some how I ended up with a Jamaican style dish. Really, my brain is so wacked out. The things it tells me to do!

This is SO good. The chicken is covered in the a spicy sweet jerk sauce. It’s pretty much a jerk BBQ sauce and it’s lick the spoon good. I mixed a little bit of the sauce into some fried rice with red and orange peppers. And then there is the pineapple salsa. Oh man, I am in love with this salsa. It’s sweet, crunchy, just a teensy bit spicy and the perfect topper to this dish. It brings the whole thing together. You gotta make the salsa! You may end up eating it with a spoon. Maybe, I don’t know. That may be just me.

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa-8

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Refrigerate 20 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings: 6 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 277 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast cut into tenders or strips
  • 3 tablespoons peanut oil divided
  • 1/4 cup ketchup preferably organic
  • 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon soy sauce divided
  • 2 tablespoons orange juice
  • 1 tablespoon vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon molasses
  • 3 teaspoons curry powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
  • 1 clove garlic minced or grated
  • 3 cups cooked white rice cold
  • 1 orange pepper sliced
  • 1 banana pepper sliced
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce

Grilled Pineapple Salsa

  • 1 pineapple peeled and cut into sticks
  • 1/4 red onion finely chopped
  • 1 pint cherry tomatoes sliced
  • 1 leave jalapeño seeded and diced (if you like a little heat some of the seeds)
  • 1 clove garlic grated
  • 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger.
  • 1/2 lime juice
  • pinch of salt or to taste

Instructions

  • In a glass measuring cup or bowl combine the ketchup, soy sauce, orange juice, vinegar, molasses, curry powder, cayenne pepper, ginger and garlic. Whisk to combine.
  • Add the chicken to a medium size bowl and toss with about 1/4 cup of the sauce. Place in the fridge for 20-30 minutes while you prep the veggies and make the salsa. Reserve the remaining sauce for later.
  • Heat a large skillet over high heat. When hot add a tablespoon of peanut oil. Carefully add the chicken and its marinade, cook for about 2 minutes per side or until the chicken gets a nice caramalized crust. Remove from the pan.
  • Add a tablespoon of peanut oil and the red pepper, orange pepper and banana pepper. Stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the pan.
  • Add the last tablespoon of peanut oil and the rice. Stir fry until heated through, about 4 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and about 1 tablespoon of the reserved jerk sauce. Stir to combine and the add the peppers back in.
  • To serve place a serving of the pepper fried rice on a plate and top with the chicken. Drizzle the chicken with the remaining jerk sauce, if desired, and then top the chicken with the grilled pineapple salsa.
  • To make the salsa. Grill or broil the pineapple until charred. Allow to cool and chop into chunks. In a medium size bowl toss the grilled pineapple, red onion, tomatoes, jalapeño, garlic, ginger, lime juice and salt. Toss well and taste. Add more salt if need. Serve over the chicken and rice.
View Recipe Comments

Jerk Chicken with Fired Rice and Grilled Pineapple Salsa https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/

Alright so lets stop jerking around so you can go make this. Like now!

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Made this tonight—delicious!
    I tossed the salsa in with the chicken , rice and peppers to heat everything thing up a bit. The sweetness of the pineapple and the spice of everything was perfect. It all turned out great and now we’re fighting over the leftovers.

    1. Hi Debbie,
      Thanks so much for trying this recipe and your comment, love to hear that it turned out well for you! Have a great Monday! xT