Ghetto Jerk, a growing Jamaican Phenomena

Traditionally when one thinks of jerk, its chicken breast , leg quarter or jerk pork for the most part. Given how expensive chicken has become, with a single 3 lbs chicken costing close to $1000, people have decided  to make a switch in order to survive.

In the ghetto you can now get jerk chicken neck , back and chicken entrails (gizzards) as Jamaicans now have begun to eat every part of the chicken except the feathers, as hard life bites.

Chicken gizzards  and necks used to be discarded, as no one wanted to be seen eating those parts of the chicken. In today’s Jamaica these are sold separately as people struggle to find affordable source of protein, all cause by the gross mismanagement of the country over the last 25yrs.

Another I have notice in the supermarket is the sale of large fish heads. Now I am not sure how many persons know this, but its rare to find an american who eats a whole fish with the head attached, they absolutely hate to see the eyes.

We in Jamaica have now provided a market for the Americans to dump this unwanted part of the fish and our people are buying it up, due to the lower price than the actual fish. When I enquired as to what can one do with fish head, which offers nothing to eat, I was told its used to make fish soup, I was stunned, I simply was not prepared for that.

One other product on the market, which has been around now for some time is turkey neck, now called ghetto oxtail, due to the resemblance to oxtail, but retails for a much lower price. This must have been what that Man err I mean the Monster of Agriculture meant when he urge poor people to eat more oxtail. ( Darn mis-spelling there 🙂 )

This is where our rabid support for politics has bought us after 51 yrs of independence.  Americans we are told have increased their use of chicken back and Jamaicans are about to starve, what a sand tale for a once proud country .

I am waiting for Roger Clarke to urge Jamaicans to grow more chicken back for local consumption.  Hahahahhahaha DWL.

I told a friend of mine that last night and dem nearly choke with laughter, saying ” Jay yow u wicked iyah”.

Courtesy : Jamaica Observer