Jubilee: Jerk Rub

One morning, I was watching a show on CBS which profiled Toni Tipton-Martin and her cookbook Jubilee: Recipes From Two Centuries of African American Cooking. I love food so I was already drawn in but I found their discussion one of the most inspiring I’ve seen in a while. I immediately purchased the cookbook and have been working my way through the recipes since.

This weekend, I’m going to try the Jamaican Jerk Ribs with Pineapple-Mango Salsa recipe. In past years, I’ve leaned more toward poultry and seafood but I’m learning more about cooking beef and pork and would like to see if I can pull this off. Today I mixed up the rub for the ribs and have to say that it’s wonderful! I was worried a little about the cayenne pepper but it’s just the right amount. You’ll find the recipe on page 226 of the cookbook.

The blend includes allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, sage, garlic powder, sea salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper and smoked paprika.

Since the rub can be used on other proteins, I’m going to make a second batch of it for my daughter. She actually doesn’t eat beef or pork so we’ll try it on chicken as well.

This cookbook has been a true source of inspiration lately. So far I’ve tried recipes for Coffee-Scented Short Ribs Braised in Red Wine, BBQ Shrimp and Sweet Potato-Mango Cake. All have been well worth the effort so I’m really looking forward to these ribs!