Jerk Chicken Thighs with Avocado Mango Salsa — Cooking Outside My Lane

The magazine interview happened. Wednesday afternoon at the brewery, which I suggested because (a) it's where I work and (b) I look less awkward in a brewhouse than in a studio. The interviewer — a woman named Claire who writes for Milwaukee Magazine — was sharp and friendly and asked questions I wasn't expecting. Not "how do you make pierogi" questions. Real questions. Like: "What does it feel like to cook someone else's recipes after they're gone?" and "Do you think your grandmother knew she was training you?" and "What's the relationship between brewing beer and making food?" I tried to answer honestly, which meant I talked too much and probably said something embarrassing that will haunt me when the article comes out. The photographer took shots of me at the brewery, at the taproom, and making pierogi in the brewery kitchen (they let us use the employee kitchen for the shoot). I felt ridiculous posing — I'm not a model, I'm a guy with flour on his shirt — but the photographer said, "Just do what you normally do and pretend I'm not here," and I made pierogi and forgot the camera was there, which is apparently the whole trick. The article will run in August. Claire said the piece is about "the new generation of Milwaukee food" and features four people: me, a Vietnamese-American chef on the north side, a Black woman who runs a soul food truck in Riverwest, and a Mexican-American pastry chef in Walker's Point. Milwaukee's food scene isn't just fish fries and brats anymore. It's all of us. Summerfest starts this week. I'm going three times, minimum. It's the law. Made a Cuban-inspired meal this week because the heat made me crave something bright and punchy: mojo pork (slow-roasted with garlic, orange, and lime), black beans with cumin and cilantro, yellow rice with saffron, and fried plantains. Not Polish. Not remotely. But the flavors were incredible — the citrus-garlic pork with the earthy beans and the sweet-salty plantains. I'm learning that my palate doesn't have to stay in one lane. Babcia cooked what she knew. I'm cooking what I'm discovering. Both are valid. Both are necessary.

The Cuban meal I described above kicked something loose in me — this idea that bright, citrusy, unapologetically bold food is exactly what I want to be making right now, especially with Summerfest heat rolling in and a magazine article reminding me that Milwaukee’s food scene is bigger and more layered than I ever gave it credit for. So I went back to that same headspace a few days later and landed on these jerk chicken thighs with avocado mango salsa: punchy allspice and scotch bonnet heat, cooled down by creamy avocado and sweet mango, all of it singing in a way that feels miles from my grandmother’s kitchen and completely at home in mine. Claire asked me if I thought Babcia knew she was training me — I think she was teaching me to love the act of cooking, not just the recipes, and that’s exactly what lets me make something like this and mean it.

Jerk Chicken Thighs with Avocado Mango Salsa

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 55 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• Jerk Chicken
• 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2 lbs total)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or 1 scotch bonnet, minced, for more heat)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons lime juice (about 1 lime)
• Avocado Mango Salsa
• 1 ripe mango, peeled and diced small
• 1 ripe avocado, diced
• 1/4 red onion, finely diced
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. Make the jerk marinade. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, garlic, thyme, brown sugar, allspice, smoked paprika, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, salt, soy sauce, and lime juice until combined.
2. Marinate the chicken. Pat chicken thighs dry and place in a zip-lock bag or shallow dish. Pour marinade over chicken and turn to coat thoroughly. Marinate at least 30 minutes at room temperature, or up to 8 hours in the refrigerator.
3. Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 425°F (or preheat a grill to medium-high). If baking, place a wire rack over a foil-lined baking sheet.
4. Cook the chicken. Arrange thighs skin-side up on the rack (or place on grill). Bake for 32–38 minutes, until the skin is deeply caramelized and the internal temperature reads 165°F. If grilling, cook 6–8 minutes per side over medium-high heat, finishing over indirect heat if needed.
5. Make the salsa. While the chicken cooks, combine mango, avocado, red onion, jalapeño, cilantro, lime juice, and salt in a medium bowl. Gently toss and taste for seasoning. Set aside — do not refrigerate or the avocado will brown.
6. Rest and serve. Let chicken rest 5 minutes off the heat. Spoon avocado mango salsa generously over each thigh and serve immediately, with rice or plantains alongside if desired.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 420 | Protein: 31g | Fat: 26g | Carbs: 18g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 680mg