Montego Bay chef Kaylia Jarrett shares chicken ballotine with jerk sausage

Montego Bay chef Kaylia Jarrett of Spice N' Rhythm has spotlighted her chicken ballotine — a rolled chicken breast filled with jerk sausage — as a healthier baked option she serves with brown rice and sautéed broccoli.

Jarrett said the dish starts with a flattened, seasoned breast that is stuffed, rolled and secured with butcher’s twine, then pan-seared before finishing in the oven. The filling, she explained, mixes finely diced starches and sweet pepper bound with egg and breadcrumbs, with seasoning worked into the stuffing as well as the meat.

She called the ballotine a strong choice for people watching what they eat, including those who train at the gym, because it is baked rather than fried. Brown rice and a side of vegetables, she said, round out the plate, and she chose brown rice to vary the usual pairing.

Jarrett described the ballotine as the meal she cooks when she wants to impress. Cooking was not her first plan: she expected a path in nursing and the sciences until her sister urged her to follow what she loved. Time in the kitchen confirmed that passion, and she went on to study culinary arts at the University of Technology, Jamaica, saying she thrives when the kitchen is busy and challenges pile up.

Spice N' Rhythm belongs to her father, an executive chef whose work ethic inspired her career. Her cooking draws heavily on Jamaican and wider Caribbean spices while she also experiments with other cuisines.

The restaurant is at 33 Barnett Street in Montego Bay, across from Shifty gas station. Jarrett, who is from Montego Bay, said the business is focused for now on delivery and takeaway rather than full dine-in service.