Jerk Rooster Pasta (Rasta Pasta) Recipe

Loaded with daring spices, this jerk hen pasta is the right mix of Jamaican-Italian delicacies. Made with plenty of bell peppers and served in a creamy sauce, each chunk of this rasta pasta recipe is bursting with taste.

Flavorful Caribbean Jerk Rooster Pasta

This colourful jerk hen pasta tastes like Italian pasta took a visit to the Caribbean and picked up the island’s most treasured taste: jerk seasoning. Stirred into the veggies for a extra mellow style, each chunk of this dish carries the essence of Jamaica in simply the correct amount.

The tomato and coconut milk sauce is a wonderful fusion of tropical and Mediterranean cuisines you may mess around with. Add extra tomatoes and even some ricotta to make it extra Italian. In the event you’re feeling like an adventurous rasta, why not add a Scotch bonnet pepper? You possibly can even go fully vegetarian and omit the hen. The recipe has a lot taste you received’t even miss the hen.

This dish is tasty however straightforward to make and is a wonderful dinner for busy weeknights. Topped with recent parsley for an extra pop of coloration, our jerk hen pasta shall be your entryway to daring Jamaican-Italian meals and attainable upcoming journeys to each nations for extra weeknight dinner inspiration. 🌎

What Is Rasta Pasta?

Rasta pasta, or jerk hen pasta, is a fusion of Jamaican and Italian cuisines. It’s ready with colourful greens like bell peppers and mushrooms seasoned with jerk seasoning. Tossed in a creamy coconut milk sauce, the perfect of Jamaica’s flavors are offered on a dinner plate.

The Italian aspect of issues comes from the pasta itself, canned roasted tomatoes, and a pleasant serving to of parmesan for cheesiness. As soon as combined, this rasta pasta is a wonderful illustration of each cultures.

What Is Jerk Seasoning?

It’s a preferred Jamaican seasoning impressed by “jerk”— Jamaica’s conventional cooking technique, which consists of marinating or dry-rubbing meat with a spice mix to infuse most taste. To chop down on cooking time however nonetheless get the identical spiced goodness in fast, less-planned dishes, jerk seasoning was invented. It combines the nation’s most used spices like thyme, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, parsley, and many others.

Recipe Elements

I like home made seasonings as a result of you may customise their taste to style. Verify the recipe card on the backside of the submit for the total ingredient quantities for the seasoning and pasta.

For the Home made Jerk Seasoning

• Onion powder
• Garlic powder
• Cayenne pepper
• Paprika
• Allspice
• Salt and black pepper
• Purple chili flakes
• Floor cumin
• Floor nutmeg
• Floor cinnamon
• Darkish brown sugar
• Dried thyme
• Dried parsley

For the Pasta

• Penne pasta – You may as well use fusilli, rigatoni, fettuccine, or any form of pasta.
• Vegetable oil – Olive oil, canola oil, and corn oil all work.
• Yellow onion – White onion is an efficient substitute.
• Garlic cloves – Substitute them with 4 teaspoons of garlic powder if wanted.
• Inexperienced bell pepper
• Purple bell pepper
• Orange bell pepper
• Yellow bell pepper
• Boneless, skinless hen breasts – Be happy to make use of hen thighs.
• Canned roasted tomatoes – You may as well use canned diced tomatoes or recent ones.
• Full-fat unsweetened coconut milk – Heavy cream and half-and-half are good substitutes.
• Low-sodium veggie inventory – Rooster inventory works too.
• Parmesan
• Contemporary parsley

How you can Make Rasta Pasta

With the home made seasoning and correctly cooked hen, this pasta’s daring taste shall be fairly easy.

To Make the Seasoning and Boil the Pasta

• Make the jerk seasoning. Combine all of the substances for the seasoning in a small bowl till nicely mixed. Set it apart. You’ll solely use a few of this seasoning within the recipe; retailer the remaining in an hermetic container for later use.
• Boil the pasta. Fill a big pot with water and add the pasta. Convey it to a boil over excessive warmth. Cook dinner it in accordance with package deal directions. Pressure it and set it apart. In the event you’re cooking in components and returning to the recipe later, toss the penne in olive oil, so it doesn’t stick.

For the Veggies

• Cook dinner the onion. Add 2-1/2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to a big pan over medium warmth. Add the onion and stir nicely. Let it prepare dinner for five to 7 minutes or till softened and aromatic. Add the garlic and blend nicely. Cook dinner for an additional 2 minutes.
• Add the bell peppers. Toss the bell peppers into the pan. Add 2-1/2 tablespoons of jerk seasoning. You possibly can add extra seasoning to style. Stir nicely and prepare dinner for six minutes or till softened. Switch the combination to a plate and set it apart.

To Cook dinner the Pasta and Sauce

• Cook dinner the hen. Add the remaining oil to the pan over medium-high warmth. Add the hen and prepare dinner it for 2-3 minutes on either side. Don’t overcook it. Switch the veggie combination again into the pan. Season with salt and pepper to style.
• Add the tomatoes. Pour the roasted tomatoes into the pan and stir nicely. Use a spatula to interrupt them up. Let the combination prepare dinner for 7 to 9 minutes or till it begins to scale back. Don’t undercook the tomatoes, or your sauce can have a barely uncooked aftertaste.

• Pour within the coconut milk. Add the veggie inventory and coconut milk. Combine till nicely mixed. Add the parmesan cheese and stir. Switch the pasta again into the pan. Let it prepare dinner for an additional 8 to 9 minutes so the sauce thickens.

• Serve. Season with extra salt and pepper to style. Serve.

Straightforward Variations

These concepts will assist you to rework this jerk hen pasta into a number of “dishes” so that you just by no means get bored with it:

• Skip the tomatoes. Including tomatoes will spotlight the Italian-Jamaican taste mix that rasta pasta is, however you may as well skip them and it’ll nonetheless come out scrumptious.
• Make it extra Italian. Add 1/4 cup of ricotta into the sauce and even improve the quantity of tomatoes within the sauce for a extra Italian rasta pasta.
• Add spinach. Contemporary or frozen spinach provides taste and additional veggies to your meal.
• Make it vegetarian. Take away the hen from the recipe to make it a vegetarian meal.
• Make it spicy. For spicy pasta, chop up a Scotch bonnet pepper and add it to the sauce.

Suggestions for Success

These easy suggestions will assist you to throw collectively this jerk hen pasta a lot sooner. Don’t skip them!

• Use rotisserie hen. Use leftover rotisserie hen to scale back the cooking time for this recipe.
• Purchase jerk seasoning. Utilizing store-bought jerk seasoning will reduce down on prep time and keep away from you having to purchase plenty of completely different spices if you happen to don’t have already got them.
• Prep forward. Make the seasoning, reduce your veggies, and boil the pasta prematurely so you can begin cooking as quickly as you’re house from work.

What to Serve With Jerk Rooster Pasta

Since this jerk hen pasta already has loads of veggies, carbs, and protein, it’s virtually a meal of its personal. The one different factor I typically pair it with is a light-weight salad. These are a few of my favorites:

Nevertheless, you may positively serve the pasta in smaller parts and use it as a aspect for non-creamy important dishes like my Honey Soy Grilled Pork Chops and Oven Grilled Steak.

How you can Retailer & Reheat Leftovers

• In the event you made it with hen, refrigerate any cooled leftovers in an hermetic container for as much as 4 days.
• In the event you made a vegetarian model, you might retailer it for as much as 6 days.
• To reheat it, sprinkle it with a tablespoon of water, coconut milk, or veggie broth. Give it a great stir and microwave it for 30 seconds. Stir it once more and microwave it for an additional 30 seconds or till heat.
• You may as well reheat it in a pan over medium-low warmth for five to six minutes, stirring sometimes.

Extra Straightforward Pasta Recipes

ENJOY!