Slow Cooker Jamaican Jerk Chicken
27 CommentsUpdated Jul 16, 2025
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Add a delicious twist to your chicken tonight with this Slow Cooker Jamaican Jerk Chicken. It’s spicy, flavorful, and super easy to make.
Recipe Highlights
- Slow Cooker Jamaican Jerk Chicken is packed with spicy island heat.
- Forget the grill—my version lets the crock pot handle the magic.
- Fall-off-the-bone chicken thighs get drenched in bold, zesty sauce.
- It’s an easy weeknight dinner that’s anything but boring.
Key Ingredients
Chicken Thighs: Grab a 6-pack of bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for this recipe. Using this cut not only creates tender meat but also juicy and flavorful.
Homemade Jerk Sauce: Green onion, yellow onion, garlic, ginger, lime juice, jalapeno pepper, soy sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, thyme, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice.
Vegetable Oil: Used for searing the chicken.
How to Make Jamaican Jerk Chicken in a Slow Cooker
- Sear the seasoned chicken until the skin is golden and crisp.
- Add the sauce ingredients to a food processor.
- Blend until smooth.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken and let the slow cooker do its magic.
How to Serve
- Serve the Jamaican jerk chicken thighs with rice and a squeeze of fresh lime juice and chopped cilantro. Consider serving with traditional Jamaican sides like plantains, crockpot black beans, and crockpot collard greens.
- Turn this into jerk chicken tacos by easily pulling the meat off the bones and placing it in tortillas.
Sarah’s Tips & Variations
Spice level: Adjust the spiciness of the dish by adding more or less jalapeno pepper, depending on your preference. For even more heat, use a habanero pepper (just one is enough).
Infuse: For a deeper flavor, marinate the chicken thighs in the sauce overnight.
Storing: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat gently in the microwave or oven before serving.
Cut Swap: Although this recipe calls for chicken thighs, you can use chicken breasts or chicken drumsticks.
Slow Cooker Jamaican Jerk Chicken
How to Video
Ingredients
- 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
- 1 green onion, whole
- ½ yellow onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger
- juice of 1 lime
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeds removed
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
- 2 tsp. ground thyme
- ½ tsp. ground cloves
- ½ tsp. ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp. ground allspice
Instructions
- Season both sides of the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
- Heat the vegetable oil in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken on both sides to brown—no need to cook through, the slow cooker will finish the job.
- Transfer the browned chicken thighs to the slow cooker.
- In a food processor, combine the green onion, yellow onion, garlic, ginger, lime juice, jalapeno pepper, soy sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, thyme, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice. Pulse until smooth and well combined.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken thighs in the slow cooker, making sure to coat them evenly.
- Cover the slow cooker and cook on LOW for 8 hours or on HIGH for 4 hours, or until the chicken is cooked through and tender.
- Serve the chicken with the desired sides and garnish with the cilantro if desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
More chicken thigh recipes
Craving something sweet and savory? Try Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken or Root Beer Chicken for a fun twist on classic flavors.
For a fun weeknight dinner, also try my Lemon Pepper Chicken Thighs, or Slow Cooker Crack Chicken, which never disappoints.
Looking for comfort food? Basil Chicken and Rice or Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore are cozy and satisfying picks. Another classic must-try dinner is my Crockpot Chicken Thighs.
It was ok but if the all spice has cinnamon in it why would you add more.
The lagar, is it an ingredient or is it for the cook?
Great recipe. I’m in the UK and I love Jerk Chicken and this recipe was perfect. I think I’m gonna cook it every week now. Lol
Hi. I am Jamaican and like all Jamaicans, I love my food loaded with flavour. Thanks for the compliment on a Jamaican favourite. However, I think you should change the recipe name to state that it is “Jamaican-inspired”, not Jamaican. There are many critical inputs to the recipe that are missing – especially the grill or what we Jamaicans call a jerk pan.
Well said…as a Jamaican also, I whole heartedly agree.
As a Jamaican too, I 100 percent agree this is not Jamaican jerk.
Perfect–and yet so easy. Thank you
Wonderful..
I make this at least 2 times a month .
This recipe was the worst. I followed instructions to the letter. I wasted good chicken
This was the worst recipe I have ever made it used a bottle of lime juice and it was all I could taste!! Absolute waste of a day waiting. I am not sure if your measurements are right when converting to metric but 121g of lime juice is a lot
Bottled lime or lemon juice shouldn’t be used in recipes. It tastes like chemicals.
She specifically put DONT USE BOTTLED USE FRESH. That’s one you trying to short cut because it was great
I tried this recipe as is and I am very disappointed. The sauce was too tangy.
Thanks for sharing. I can’t wait to try this recipe.
made this with chicken breasts over cauliflower rice and tasty
We don’t like thighs can I use breast
How did it turn out?