During the busy holiday season, in between the big fancy meals, I like to have casual suppers with friends. I find that my crockpot is my best friend during the holidays!
So much holiday food is heavy and starchy so I like to serve dishes with fresh fruity flavors to lighten up our palates and lots of bubbly of course! For that reason, Caribbean cuisine is one of my favorites this time of year. I decided that Jerk Chicken Tacos with Mango Salsa would be a fun supper. (Jerk seasoning is made with scotch bonnet peppers, thyme, garlic, and nutmeg.) I was pleasantly surprised to find that Prosecco pairs very well with Jerk Chicken. I found out about this pairing in the Enjoy Discovering Wine Blog by Erica Dent. https://enjoydiscoveringwine.com/2016/10/19/wine-pairing-jerk-chicken-kebabs/
Here’s her recommendation: I recommend a ripe-fruit flavoured wine with maybe a touch of sweetness more in the off-dry range. This will hold some of that fruitiness even with all that heat and mango sweetness. We need to ensure we are still keeping the acid high-ish and the alcohol relatively low. So for many people I probably cannot go wrong to recommend Prosecco. Look for DOCG (as opposed to DOC) on the label for something with a bit more character to stand up to the dish.
DOCG on the wine label means that the wine was made following strict regulations including testing by a committee and the geographic authenticity of the wine and its quality. My friends at Mionetto Prosecco sent some Cartizze DOGC Prosecco to me so I popped it in the fridge to chill while I prepared our supper.
The lovely Cartizze Prosecco added a bubbly touch to my casual supper. Notes of apple, pear, citrus and glazed almond paired perfectly with lime and mango flavors in my dishes. It was crisp and elegant. I find Prosecco to be a fabulous bubbly to serve with meals. Bellinis for a sunny brunch on the terrace. Pre-dinner Prosecco cocktails such as Aperol Spritzers and Cranberry Prosecco Fizzes to brigthen up the palate. Always a bottle or two on the dinner table followed by Sgroppino (Italian sorbet cocktail) for dessert. I will post my Raspberry Sgroppino recipe on Bubblybee.net soon!
My favorite wine and food pairing book What to Drink with What you Eat also recommends sparkling wine as an excellent pairing with Jerk Chicken.
Please visit the Mionetto website: https://usa.mionetto.com/us – to find fabulous bubbly cocktail and recipes for entertaining.
Jerk Chicken
5 boneless skinless chicken breasts
3 tablespoons Walkerswood Jamaican Jerk Seasoning (Walkerswood recommends 1 ounce Jerk Seasoning to 2 pounds of meat.)
Chicken Broth
Place chicken breasts in crockpot. Spread the jerk seasoning over the chicken breasts with a knife. Pour just enough chicken broth over the chicken breasts to cover them. Cook the chicken on high for 4 -6 hours or until chicken is completely cooked and shreds with a fork. Remove chicken from crockpot and allow to cool enough so you can shred it. Shred chicken and place in a dish, pour the chicken broth from the crockpot over the chicken, cover and place in refrigerator.
When ready to serve, place chicken and some of the broth in a frying pan. At this point you can add more jerk seasoning, but a word of caution…the heat will sneak up on you! Reheat the chicken to serve on the taco shells/tortillas.
Mango Salsa
2 ripe mangos, peeled, pitted and chopped into small pieces (I always purchase an extra mango because often one of the mangos has turned brown and although edible, would not look pretty in salsa.)
1 red bell pepper, cored and chopped into small pieces
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/2 cup red onion, chopped fine
1 tablespoon jalapeno pepper, minced
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1/4 teaspoon salt
Place all ingredients in a small bowl. Stir to combine all ingredients. Adjust seasonings, adding more lime juice, salt and/or cilantro to your taste.
I served the jerk chicken with corn taco shells, small flour tortillas, mango salsa and sour cream. On the side: Yellow rice with cilantro, black beans (rinse the canned black beans before adding them to the rice) and lime juice. I also served my favorite Kale Salad (baby kale, olive oil, lemon juice, toasted pine nuts, salt and freshly ground pepper) because I am trying to incorporate fresh healthy greens into all of my meals during the winter months. Place a bottle of Kraft Wild Style Jalapeno Lime Twist sauce on the table, to drizzle over the tacos.
Thank you to Mionetto Prosecco for sponsoring this post!
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