Spanish & Portuguese · Lunch · Dinner
Piri Piri Chicken
Frango Piri-Piri
Juicy chicken thighs soaked in a fiery, garlicky blend of red chillies, lemon and smoked paprika, then grilled until charred at the edges. A lighter take on the Portuguese-Mozambican favourite, with skinless meat and just a little olive oil.
- Prep
- 45 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 65 min
- Serves
- 4
Calories come from: Carbs 6% · Fat 43% · Protein 51%
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Ingredients
For 4 servings- 8 thighs (about 800 g)boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 4 small8 gred bird's eye chillies, stems removed
- 1 medium120 gred bell pepper, seeded and chopped
- 4 cloves12 ggarlic cloves, peeled
- 3 tbsp45 glemon juice
- 1 tsplemon zest
- 1 tbsp15 gred wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp27 golive oil
- 2 tsp5 gsmoked paprika
- 1 tspdried oregano
- 1 tsp6 gsalt
- 1/2 tspblack pepper
- 2 tbsp8 gfresh parsley, chopped
- 1/2 lemon50 glemon, cut into wedges (optional)
Steps
- 1
Put the chillies, red bell pepper, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, vinegar, olive oil, smoked paprika, oregano, salt and black pepper in a blender.
- 2
Blend until smooth to make the piri piri sauce.
- 3
Pour about a quarter of the sauce into a small bowl, cover and set aside for serving.
- 4
Place the chicken thighs in a bowl, add the remaining sauce and turn to coat well.
- 5
Cover and marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (or up to 12 hours).
- 6
Preheat a grill, griddle pan or barbecue to medium-high heat.
- 7
Lift the chicken from the marinade, letting excess drip off, and discard the used marinade.
- 8
Grill the chicken for 6–7 minutes per side until charred in spots and cooked through to 74 °C / 165 °F in the thickest part.
- 9
Rest the chicken for 5 minutes on a clean plate.
- 10
Brush with the reserved sauce, scatter with parsley and serve with lemon wedges if using.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- Use boneless skinless chicken breasts instead of thighs for a leaner cut, grilling until they reach 74 °C / 165 °F in the thickest part.
- Swap the bird's eye chillies for 1 milder red chilli, or remove the seeds, for a gentler heat.
- Use cider vinegar or extra lemon juice if you don't have red wine vinegar.
- For a vegetarian version, marinate thick slices of firm tofu or halloumi in the sauce and grill until golden and hot through.
Storage
Refrigerate leftover chicken in an airtight container within 2 hours and eat within 3 to 4 days, reheating until steaming hot; keep the reserved sauce covered in the fridge and use within 3 to 4 days. Cooked chicken can be frozen for up to 3 months and thawed in the fridge before reheating.
Make ahead
Blend the piri piri sauce up to 2 days ahead and keep it covered in the fridge, setting aside the serving portion before it touches raw chicken. You can also marinate the chicken in the fridge for up to 12 hours before grilling.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
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Allergens and nutrition
Contains: Sulphites
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (263 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 324 kcal | 123 kcal |
| Protein | 40.3 g | 15.3 g |
| Carbohydrates | 5 g | 1.9 g |
| of which sugars | 1.9 g | 0.7 g |
| Fiber | 1.5 g | 0.6 g |
| Fat | 15.3 g | 5.8 g |
| of which saturated | 3.2 g | 1.2 g |
| Sodium | 777 mg | 295 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
