It took a little bit of time to get the recipe right for my peri peri (piri piri) sauce, but I’ve got to admit, I did kind of pat myself on the back in the end. It’s so amazingly delicious. It’s also pretty darn hot! But that’s the way I like it. You can always reduce the chillies to make it less spicy. I’m going to admit something else too. You know I started with the recipe for this sauce?I totally looked at the ingredients on the back of a bottle of Nando’s Peri Peri sauce. I mean, that’s Peri Peri gold standard isn’t it? My next step was to cut out all of the weird stuff - you know, the stabilisers and antioxidants. And to swap out the stuff that you can’t buy in the shops like lemon puree (for lemon zest and juice) and rosemary extract (for dried rosemary). Finally, I wanted to bulk out the recipe (hence the red peppers) and give it a little more depth of flavour (hence the roasting of the peppers, onions, garlic and chillies, and the addition of smoked paprika). And the result is tongue-tinglingly damn tasty. This recipe ensures you have enough to marinade the chicken, with plenty leftover for dipping. My recipe below shows lots of photos and info to make this recipe (plus there’s the full recipe card at the bottom of the post), but if you want to really see how it’s done, check out the video here:
📺 Watch how to make it
Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.
📋 What do we need to make Peri Peri sauce?
So how do we get from this ⬆️ to this ⬇️ ?
How to make the Peri Peri Sauce
We start by roasting the peppers and red onion with oil, paprika, smoked paprika, cayenne and salt. Then add the garlic and chillies and roast for a further 10 minutes.We then transfer this smoky-roasted goodness to a blender, along with dried Bird’s eye chillies, white pepper, lemon zest and juice and dried rosemary and blend it all up to form a thick paste.Then add oil and some red wine vinegar and blend again to a lovely thick, spoon-able consistency. If you want it thinner, simply thin it out with more oil, or you can stir in some cold water.
How to spatchcock a chicken
Now we need to spatchcock the chicken. Spatch-cocking basically means removing the backbone, opening up the carcass, and flattening it out. Doing this means it cooks so much quicker in the oven.
Place the chicken breast-side down on a sturdy chopping board, with the legs towards you.Using heavy-duty scissors or poultry shears, cut along both sides of the backbone. It’s a little fiddly, as you have to cut through each of the rib bones as you go. So it’s better to go slowly, rather than trying to cut through multiple ribs at once.Once you’ve cut through both sides of the backbone, discard the bone (or save it to make stock). Turn the chicken over and press down with both hands on the breast bone to flatten the chicken.
Now place the chicken on a baking tray and smother with a few tablespoons of Peri Peri sauce. Bake for 45 minutes, then baste the chicken and spoon on a little more sauce. Finish off the chicken in the oven for another 10-15 minutes. It will come out of the oven a deep dark red. Leave it to rest for 10 minutes to ensure it’s extra juicy. Then serve with the rest of the Peri Peri sauce.
What to serve with peri peri chicken
Special Fried RiceHomemade Oven ChipsSweet Potato FriesPerfect Baked PotatoesA simple Green SaladCreamy Homemade Coleslaw
Piri-piri or peri-peri - which one is it?
I don’t think there’s a definitive answer on this, but both terms, along with the term pili-pili are used to describe the African Bird’s eye chilli. So technically, if you’re using African Bird’s eye chillies, I guess any of these terms are correct. However:
Piri-piri is the correct spelling in Portuguese.Nando’s calls their sauce Peri Peri.Piri Piri (at the time of writing this) is searched for about 4 times more often than peri peri in google.
I’ve used the term peri peri in my recipe because that’s what I’m more used to hearing in the UK.
More Of My Spicy Chicken Recipes
More Copycat and Street-Food Recipes:
Copycat Firecracker Chicken (Wagamama)Orange Chicken (Panda Express)Pad ThaiGua Bao (Pork belly Bao buns)Pork GyrosSpicy Pork Ramen
This recipe was first published in July 2019. Updated May 2022 with video and a bit of housekeeping. Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links – which means if you buy the product I get a small commission (at no extra cost to you). If you do buy, then thank you! That’s what helps us to keep Kitchen Sanctuary running. The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors. For more information please see our Terms & Conditions.
