Peri Peri Chicken: Fiery South African Flame-Grilled Recipe

⏱ Marinate: 4 hrs, overnight 🔥Cook: 45–55 min 👤Serves: 4 🌶Heat: Adjustable

Peri peri chicken recipe is the South African dish that made a fast food chain worth billions because no one who has eaten it once has ever stopped wanting it. Chicken marinated overnight in a sauce of bird’s eye chili, roasted red pepper, lemon, garlic, smoked paprika, oregano and red wine vinegar, then grilled or roasted until the skin chars and the marinade caramelizes into something fiery, smoky and deeply complex. Better than Nando’s. Ready in under an hour of active work.

Ingredients

For the peri peri sauce and marinade

• 4–8 bird’s eye chilies, fresh or dried. 4 chilies for medium, 8 for hot. Bird’s eye chilies are available at Asian grocery stores and some supermarkets. Substitute: red Thai chilies in equal amounts, or 2–3 fresh Fresno chilies for a milder version. Do not use regular red chili flakes, the flavor profile is completely different.
• 1 red bell pepper roasted. Halve and deseed, roast at 425°F for 20 minutes until charred and soft, then peel. Roasting adds a sweet, smoky depth that raw bell pepper cannot provide.
• 6 cloves garlic
• Zest and juice of 1 large lemon
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, adds the tangy acidity that balances the heat and preserves the sauce
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika smoked, not sweet. The smoke is part of the peri peri character.
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar, helps the marinade caramelize on the grill or under the broiler
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• Small handful fresh cilantro, optional but traditional in many South African versions

For the chicken

• 1 whole chicken, 3½–4 lbs (1.5–1.8kg), spatchcocked (backbone removed, flattened). Spatchcocking produces the most even cooking and maximum surface area for the marinade to caramelize. Ask your butcher to do it, or follow the method in step 1.
• Or: 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken leg quarters, the most forgiving cut for this recipe and what most South African home cooks use.

Step by step

1. Roast the red pepper. Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Halve and deseed the bell pepper. Place cut side down on a foil-lined tray. Roast 20–25 minutes until the skin is blackened and the flesh is completely soft. Remove, cover with foil for 10 minutes, then peel off the charred skin. Set aside to cool.Do not skip the roasting step. Raw bell pepper produces a grassy, thin sauce. Roasted bell pepper adds sweetness and body that is essential to the peri peri character.
2. Make the peri peri sauce. Add bird’s eye chilies, roasted red pepper, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil, smoked paprika, sweet paprika, oregano, coriander, brown sugar, salt, black pepper and cilantro to a blender or food processor. Blend until completely smooth. Taste, it should be fiery, tangy, smoky and deeply savory. Adjust heat with more chilies, brightness with more lemon.Wear gloves when handling bird’s eye chilies. The capsaicin transfers to fingers and stays there, touching your eyes hours later is still painful.
3. Spatchcock the chicken. Place the chicken breast side down. Using sharp kitchen shears, cut along both sides of the backbone and remove it. Flip the chicken over and press firmly on the breastbone until it flattens. Or use leg quarters directly, no spatchcocking required.
4. Marinate. Divide the peri peri sauce into two portions, two-thirds for marinating, one-third reserved for basting and serving. Rub the marinade all over the chicken including under the skin on the breasts and thighs. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours, overnight produces significantly more depth of flavor.Getting marinade under the skin is the step most home cooks skip and the step that produces the most flavor difference. Use your fingers to gently separate the skin from the breast and thigh meat, then push the marinade directly onto the flesh.
5. Cook, oven method. Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Place chicken on a roasting rack over a foil-lined tray. Roast 45–55 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 165°F (74°C) at the thickest part of the thigh. Baste with the reserved sauce every 15 minutes. For the final 5 minutes, broil on high to char the skin. Rest 10 minutes before serving.
6. Cook, grill method. Preheat grill to medium-high. Cook spatchcocked chicken skin side up over indirect heat for 30 minutes. Move to direct heat, skin side down, for 10–15 minutes to char and caramelize. Baste with reserved sauce throughout. Internal temperature at the thigh must reach 165°F.The grill method produces the most authentic result, the smoke and direct flame create the char that defines peri peri chicken. If using a gas grill, finish over the highest flame for 3–4 minutes per side to achieve the characteristic dark spots.

The heat levels

Peri peri is adjustable, the bird’s eye chili quantity is the single variable that controls everything:

Mild, 2 chilies All the flavor, almost no heat. Seeds removed. Good for first-timers and families.

Medium, 4–5 chiliesThe Nando’s “medium” equivalent. Noticeable warmth that builds as you eat.

Hot, 8+ chiliesAuthentic South African heat level. Seeds in. You will feel it immediately and throughout.

Make it ahead

Claire’s note

The peri peri sauce keeps in a sealed jar for 2 weeks in the fridge and 3 months in the freezer, make a large batch and use it as a marinade, a table sauce and a dipping sauce all week. The chicken can be marinated and left in the fridge for up to 24 hours before cooking, the flavor deepens every hour. Leftover peri peri chicken reheats well in a 375°F oven for 15 minutes, covered with foil for the first 10 to prevent drying. It also makes one of the best sandwiches of your life cold from the fridge on white bread with mayonnaise, no reheating required.

Serve with

Peri peri chicken is traditionally served with hand-cut chips (fries), coleslaw and peri peri sauce on the side for dipping. On a full South African table it sits alongside pap (maize porridge), grilled corn and a simple tomato and onion salad. For more from South Africa and across the continent, the South African recipes collection have everything.

Add peri peri chicken to your weekly meal planner, make the sauce Sunday, marinate overnight, roast Monday in under an hour. And for more recipes, follow us on Pinterest.

Peri Peri Chicken

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• Author: Claire Bennett
• Total Time: 60 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

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Description

Delicious and fiery peri peri chicken marinated with bird’s eye chili and roasted red pepper, grilled or roasted to perfection.

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Ingredients

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• 4–8 bird’s eye chilies (fresh or dried)
• 1 red bell pepper, roasted
• 6 cloves garlic
• Zest and juice of 1 large lemon
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• Small handful fresh cilantro (optional)
• 1 whole chicken (3½–4 lbs) or 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken leg quarters

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Instructions

1. Roast the red pepper. Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Halve and deseed the bell pepper. Place cut side down on a foil-lined tray. Roast for 20–25 minutes until charred and soft. Peel and set aside to cool.
2. Make the peri peri sauce. Blend bird’s eye chilies, roasted red pepper, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil, smoked paprika, sweet paprika, oregano, coriander, brown sugar, salt, black pepper, and cilantro until smooth.
3. Spatchcock the chicken by removing the backbone and flattening. Alternatively, use chicken leg quarters directly.
4. Marinate using two-thirds of the sauce for at least 4 hours or overnight, rubbing it under the skin for maximum flavor.
5. Cook – Oven method: Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C), roast the chicken for 45–55 minutes until the internal temperature is 165°F (74°C), basting every 15 minutes.
6. Cook – Grill method: Preheat grill, cook skin side up over indirect heat for 30 minutes, then direct heat for 10–15 minutes, basting with reserved sauce until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.

Notes

Sauce can be made ahead and stored for up to 2 weeks in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer. Best enjoyed with fries and coleslaw.

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 45 minutes
• Category: Main Course
• Method: Grilling or Baking
• Cuisine: South African

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 serving
• Calories: 450
• Sugar: 5g
• Sodium: 600mg
• Fat: 22g
• Saturated Fat: 5g
• Unsaturated Fat: 15g
• Trans Fat: 0g
• Carbohydrates: 6g
• Fiber: 1g
• Protein: 35g
• Cholesterol: 100mg