Every trip to Nando’s left my son and me craving more of that Peri-Peri Chicken, so as a chef I had to work it out for myself. After growing a few fiery bird’s eye chillies in the garden, I put together a seasoning and sauce that gets us close to the real thing at home.
The rub works for marinating, grilling or baking. It is Portuguese by way of Mozambique rather than South African, whatever Nando’s has taught us all to call it. It is a barbecue recipe first, and it sits in my 10 Best Summer Recipes roundup.
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Pin itWhat Peri Peri Actually Is
Peri peri, or piri piri, takes its name from a Bantu word meaning roughly pepper pepper, which tells you most of what you need to know about it.
The chilli itself is South American. Portuguese traders carried it to their colonies in Mozambique and Angola in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, where it grew well, went wild, and was taken up far more enthusiastically than it ever had been in Portugal. What came back was a fiery marinade for grilled meat, and that is what peri peri still is.
Most people in Britain meet it through Nando’s, and that is where I first fell for it. The chilli that went wild in Mozambique is the same little bird’s eye you can buy today, and mixing the blend yourself is what lets you set the heat where you want it instead of taking somebody else’s.
Growing Your Own Bird’s Eye Chillies
Bird’s eye chillies grow well in a pot and stay under about a metre, so a windowsill or a balcony is enough. One plant gives you far more chillies than you expect. Published heat figures for them vary far more than you would expect, from about 50,000 to 175,000 on the Scoville scale depending on who is measuring, against a jalapeno’s 2,500 to 8,000. Worth knowing that the African bird’s eye grown for peri peri is a different species from the Thai bird’s eye sold in most supermarkets, and hotter. Either way, treat the first harvest with respect and taste before you commit a whole batch. Sow the seeds from January onwards; these are the ones I grow, and here is where I get them.
How to Make Peri Peri Seasoning
The heart of this recipe is a proper homemade peri peri seasoning - a dry spice blend you can shake over almost anything. Mine builds its warmth and depth from paprika, dried bird’s-eye chilli, ground coriander and oregano, with a little cardamom and a pinch of mace for that aromatic, Nando’s-style character, plus salt, pepper and a touch of sugar to balance the heat. The exact measurements are in the recipe card below.
There is no single correct blend. Chilli and paprika are the constant, and after that it varies by region, by restaurant and by household. Mine leans on ground coriander far more heavily than most, and that is deliberate: coriander seed is flowery and lemony at the same time, which makes it the spice that bridges the others rather than sitting on top of them. The pinch of mace is there for the same reason. It is the gentler, rounder relative of nutmeg and carries its own citrus and flowery notes, so it lifts the coriander without dragging the whole blend towards Christmas pudding.
Making it could not be simpler: tip everything into a bowl or jar and whisk or shake until evenly blended - no cooking needed. Toasting and grinding whole spices gives even deeper flavour if you have the time, but ready-ground works beautifully. Store it in an airtight jar somewhere cool and dark and it stays good for months (brightest in the first three).
Pin itIt is a proper all-rounder, not just for chicken: rub it over wings, thighs or drumsticks, or sprinkle it on roast potatoes and chips, prawns, roasted veg, grilled corn or steak - even popcorn. To set the heat, the chilli does all the work, so dial the bird’s-eye chilli up for a fiery blend or down for something gentler.
Which Cut of Chicken to Use
The card is written for breast because that is what most people have in the fridge, but peri peri is traditionally a thigh, leg-quarter or whole-bird dish, and it is better on the bone. The seasoning and the sauce never change. Only the timings and the target temperature do.
That last part is the bit worth understanding, because it is the whole reason a whole roast chicken is a compromise. Breast and leg want different temperatures. Breast dries out and goes stringy much above 68C, so you want to pull it as early as is safe. Leg and thigh meat is full of connective tissue and stays chewy below about 73C, so it wants to go further, not less. Cook them to the same number and one of them will be wrong. This is also why spatchcocking a whole bird helps: flattening it lets the thighs sit where the heat is fiercest while the breast rides a little lower.
All the oven timings below are at 200C with the chicken marinated and at room temperature for twenty minutes first. A probe thermometer earns its place on this dish more than most, because peri peri goes dark on the outside long before it is done in the middle.
- Breast, whole (what the card uses) The quickest and the least forgiving. About 20 to 25 minutes in the oven, or 6 to 7 minutes a side on a griddle. Pull it at 72C and rest it five minutes. The overnight marinade matters more here than on any other cut, because there is no fat and no skin to protect it.
- Breast, butterflied Split it almost through and open it out flat, which is what Nando’s serve. Better than a whole breast in every way for this: it cooks in 5 to 6 minutes a side, it cooks evenly rather than being done at the thin end and raw in the middle, and the extra surface takes far more char and marinade. If you only take one thing from this section, take this one.
- Thighs, boneless and skinless The easiest good result on the list. 25 to 30 minutes in the oven, or 6 to 7 minutes a side on a griddle, and take them to 75C or a little beyond rather than stopping at 72. They will not dry out the way breast does, so the extra few degrees costs you nothing and buys you tenderness.
- Thighs and drumsticks, bone in and skin on What I would actually cook for people. 35 to 40 minutes at 200C, skin side up, then two or three minutes under a hot grill at the end for the char. The bone slows the heat and the skin crisps into the marinade. Aim for 75C and up, taken at the thickest part without touching bone.
- Leg quarter, or half a chicken The Nando’s order, and the best value. 40 to 45 minutes at 200C, basting once with the sauce about two thirds of the way through. On a half bird, if the breast is racing ahead of the leg, lay a piece of foil over the breast for the last fifteen minutes and let the leg catch up.
- A whole bird, spatchcocked The most impressive and the most authentic. Cut the backbone out with scissors, press it flat, marinate overnight, then 45 to 55 minutes at 200C, basting twice. Flattening it is not for show: it is what stops the breast drying before the thighs are done. Rest it a full ten minutes.
- Wings The best vehicle for the sauce there is, because there is so much surface for so little meat. Toss them in the dry seasoning, roast 35 to 40 minutes until properly crisp, then toss them in the sauce once they come out rather than before, or the sugar in it will burn.
How to Make Peri Peri Chicken, Step by Step
The card below carries the quantities. This is the same method with the reasoning attached, in three parts: the dry seasoning, the sauce, and the chicken itself.
- The seasoning first. Tip all the dry ingredients into a jar or a spice blender and shake or blitz until the colour is even. There is no cooking to it. If you have whole spices and five spare minutes, toast the coriander and cardamom in a dry pan until they smell nutty and grind them fresh, which is a noticeably bigger difference than it sounds. Keep it in an airtight jar somewhere dark. It will not spoil, but it fades, so make a small batch you will actually get through.
- Now the sauce, starting with the chillies, which is where the whole thing is decided. Bird’s eye chillies are somewhere between five and forty times hotter than a jalapeno, and published figures for them disagree wildly, so this is the step to take slowly. Almost all the heat is made in the white pith the seeds are attached to, not in the seeds themselves and not in the flesh. The seeds are only hot because the pith leaks onto them, which is why the pith is the real dial and scraping it out matters more than tipping the seeds into the bin. Leave the lot in for a proper Nando’s-hot sauce, strip the pith out of half of them for something around medium, and take all of it out for a warm, aromatic sauce that still tastes of chilli. If you are using dried chillies rather than fresh, cover them in just-boiled water and leave them twenty minutes until they are soft and pliable, then use them along with a little of the soaking water. Wear gloves, or at least keep your hands away from your eyes for the rest of the evening. Taste a small piece raw before you commit: chillies from the same plant vary enormously, and this is the only chance you get to find out before it is a whole batch of sauce. Set the heat here rather than at the end, because once it is a smooth sauce the only way back down is more red pepper, more lemon and a bigger batch than you meant to make.
- Blend the base. Chillies, garlic, onion, red pepper, lemon juice and vinegar into the processor, and run it until everything is finely chopped rather than perfectly smooth. The red pepper is doing two jobs here: it carries body and sweetness, and it dilutes the heat without watering down the flavour, which is why it is the first thing to increase if you have overdone the chilli.
- Add the dry spices. Paprika, oregano, sugar and salt, then blend again to combine. The sugar is not there to sweeten it, it is there to round off the vinegar and the raw chilli edge, and you will notice if you leave it out.
- Emulsify in the oil. With the motor running, pour the oil in slowly in a thin stream. Going slowly is what makes it come together into something glossy and stable rather than a layer of oil sitting on top of a puree. If it does split, keep blending and add a splash of cold water.
- Simmer it. Into a saucepan, up to a gentle simmer, and give it 10 to 15 minutes. This is the step that separates a homemade sauce from a raw blitzed one: it takes the harsh edge off the vinegar and the garlic, and pulls everything into one flavour instead of several competing ones. Stir now and then, and keep it gentle so it does not catch.
- Cool and store. Let it come down to room temperature before it goes anywhere near a jar, then into a sterilised bottle and the fridge, where it keeps about a month. The vinegar and the salt are doing the preserving. It is worth making the full quantity even for one meal, because the sauce is the part that takes the time and it is just as good in week three.
- Marinate the chicken. Score the meat so the marinade reaches past the surface, then coat it in the seasoning with a little oil, or with a ladle of the finished sauce instead of the oil, which is richer. Half an hour does something; overnight in the fridge does a great deal more, and this is the single biggest difference between peri peri chicken that tastes of peri peri all the way through and peri peri chicken that tastes of it only on the outside.
- Cook it. Grill, griddle or frying pan on a medium-high heat, and resist turning it constantly, because those dark blistered patches are most of the point. Turn it once, not five times. Leave the skin on while it cooks as well: it is about half water and two fifths fat, so it takes the brunt of the heat and renders while the meat underneath cooks more gently, and it is where the marinade catches and chars. It can always come off at the table. Chicken breast is done at an internal 72C with a five-minute rest afterwards, which is a recognised time-and-temperature combination rather than an undercooked shortcut; if you would rather work to the simpler official single reading, the Food Standards Agency figure is 75C. A probe thermometer is worth more here than any amount of judgement by eye, because peri peri chicken is dark on the outside long before it is cooked in the middle.
- Rest, then serve. Give it five minutes off the heat before it is cut, or the juices end up on the board rather than in the meat, and on a lean breast you notice it immediately. Slice it, spoon over more of the sauce, and put the rest of the jar on the table, because people always want more than you think. There are serving suggestions further down, and the leftovers make an extremely good sandwich the next day.
Pin itRecipe Card for Peri Peri Chicken
Peri Peri Chicken: Seasoning & Sauce Recipe
A peri peri seasoning blend and the sauce made from it, built on bird's eye chilli, paprika and red wine vinegar for grilled chicken.
Equipment I Use
Ingredients
Instructions
Tip the dry ingredients into a jar or a spice blender and shake or blitz until the colour is even. Nothing needs cooking. Toasting and grinding whole coriander and cardamom is better still if you have five minutes. Store it somewhere cool and dark, in an airtight jar or a vacuum-sealed bag; it fades rather than spoils, so make what you will get through.
Fresh chillies: the heat is made in the white pith the seeds are attached to, not in the seeds themselves and not in the flesh. The seeds are only hot because the pith leaks onto them, so scraping the pith out is the real dial. Leave the lot in for a properly hot sauce, strip the pith from half of them for something around medium, or take all of it out for a warm, aromatic sauce that still tastes of chilli. Taste a small piece raw before you commit, because chillies vary enormously even from the same plant.
Dried chillies: cover them in just-boiled water and leave them 20 to 30 minutes until soft and pliable, then deseed if you want it milder. Keep a little of the soaking water to help the blender along.
Substitution: if you cannot find bird’s eye chillies, cayenne or another hot variety works. Adjust the quantity to the heat of what you have rather than matching the number.
Wear gloves, or keep your hands away from your eyes for the rest of the evening.
Chillies, garlic, onion, red bell pepper, the lemon juice and zest and the red wine vinegar into the blender. Run it until everything is finely chopped rather than smooth.
Add the paprika, oregano, sugar and salt, then blend again. The sugar is balancing the vinegar rather than sweetening the sauce.
With the motor running, pour the oil in slowly in a thin stream so the sauce comes together glossy instead of splitting.
Pour the mixture into a saucepan and bring it to a simmer over medium heat. Let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes. This will meld the flavours together and mellow out the vinegar’s sharpness.
Let the sauce cool completely, then transfer it to a sterilised glass jar or bottle. It keeps in the fridge for about a month, so it is worth making the full batch even for one meal.
Score the chicken and thoroughly coat it with oil and Peri Peri seasoning blend. You can add a ladle of sauce to your marination instead of oil. For the best results, marinate the chicken overnight.
Grill, griddle or fry over a medium-high heat, turning once rather than constantly so the outside chars. Chicken breast is done at 72°C (162°F) internal, taken with a probe rather than judged by eye, because peri peri chicken goes dark long before it is cooked through.
Rest the chicken for five minutes before slicing, then spoon over more of the sauce and put the rest of the jar on the table. Serving suggestions are on the post.
Chef’s notes
The chillies set the heat, and the pith and seeds carry it. Leave everything in for a properly hot sauce, deseed half for medium, deseed the lot for warm and aromatic. Taste a raw piece first: chillies vary enormously even from the same plant.
Overnight marinade. Half an hour seasons the surface; overnight gets it into the meat. It is the biggest single improvement you can make to this dish.
Cuts. Written for breast, but better on the bone. Thighs or drumsticks want 30 to 35 minutes in a hot oven; a spatchcocked bird about 45 minutes at 200C.
On 72C. That is with a five-minute rest, which is a recognised time-and-temperature combination. If you prefer the simpler official single reading, the FSA figure is 75C. Use a probe: peri peri chicken goes dark outside long before it is done inside.
The sauce keeps a month in a sterilised jar in the fridge, so make the full batch.
The seasoning is not just for chicken. Chips, roast potatoes, prawns, corn, halloumi, popcorn. Stir it into mayo or soft butter for a quick dip.
Nutrition per serving
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What to Serve With Peri Peri Chicken
🍽 Chips or crispy roast potatoes are the obvious one, and the right one, with a sharp coleslaw to cut the heat and something cooling alongside, either a garlic yoghurt dip or plain soured cream. Grilled corn, charred peppers and a green salad round it out, and a cold beer does more for a fiery plate than any amount of bread. If you have made extra sauce, put the jar on the table.
FAQ for Peri Peri Chicken
What is peri peri?
Peri peri (piri piri) is a spicy sauce and marinade made from bird’s eye chillies, garlic, lemon and herbs, popular in Portuguese and Southern African cooking.
How spicy is peri peri chicken?
It can be as mild or as hot as you like - just adjust the number of chillies in the sauce.
Can I bake it instead of grilling?
Yes. Roast it in a hot oven, then finish under the grill or on a griddle for a few minutes to get those charred edges.
How long should I marinate the chicken?
At least 30 minutes, but a few hours or overnight in the fridge gives the best flavour.
What is peri peri seasoning made of?
It is a dry blend built around paprika and a hot chilli (African bird’s-eye / peri-peri chilli, or cayenne as an easy swap), plus garlic and aromatics. My version leans on paprika, dried bird’s-eye chilli, ground coriander, oregano, a little cardamom and mace, salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar. It is a dry seasoning, quite distinct from the wet peri peri sauce made from fresh chillies, garlic, lemon and oil.
Is peri peri the same as piri piri?
Yes - peri peri, piri piri and pili pili are all the same thing, just different spellings of a Bantu word meaning roughly “pepper-pepper”, after the African bird’s-eye chilli. “Piri piri” is the Portuguese/Mozambican spelling; “peri peri” came into English via South Africa. The flavour and the seasoning are identical whichever way you spell it.
What can I use peri peri seasoning on besides chicken?
Loads of things - it is a real all-rounder. Try it on roast potatoes and chips, prawns and other seafood, roasted vegetables, grilled corn, steak and burgers, or even popcorn. It is also lovely stirred into mayo, yoghurt or softened butter for a quick dip, sauce or compound butter. Use it as a dry rub before cooking or as a finishing sprinkle.
How long does homemade peri peri seasoning keep, and how should I store it?
Kept in an airtight jar somewhere cool, dark and dry, it stays good for up to a year. For the brightest flavour use it within about three to six months, as ground spices slowly lose their punch. It will not spoil like fresh food, but stale spices taste flat - so make it in small batches you will actually get through.
Is peri peri seasoning gluten-free?
A homemade blend of spices and dried herbs like this is naturally gluten-free, and usually vegan too. The only thing to watch is shop-bought blends, which can hide anti-caking agents or fillers - so check the label if you are strictly avoiding gluten. Making it yourself sidesteps that uncertainty completely.
How do I turn the dry blend into a peri peri sauce or marinade?
Easily - the dry blend is the flavour base. For a marinade or paste, mix a couple of tablespoons of the seasoning with olive oil (and a squeeze of lemon and a little crushed garlic if you like) into a loose paste and rub it into the meat. For a pourable peri peri sauce, blend the seasoning with oil plus lemon juice or a splash of vinegar until smooth. Adjust the liquid to get the thickness you want.
How much peri peri seasoning do I use per portion of chicken?
As a rough guide, about half a tablespoon to a tablespoon per chicken breast, or roughly 4-5 tablespoons for a kilo of chicken. Coat the meat lightly and evenly - mixing it with a little oil first helps it stick and stops it scorching. You can always add a final sprinkle after cooking, so start light and build up to taste.
Should I use smoked or sweet paprika for peri peri seasoning?
I reach for smoked paprika because it gives the blend that gentle, barbecued depth that peri peri is known for. Sweet paprika works too and keeps things milder and fruitier, so if you prefer a softer flavour, use that or split the two half and half. Whichever you choose, add the chilli separately so you can control the heat on its own.
Can I make peri peri seasoning without salt?
Yes, you can leave the salt out completely and the blend still tastes lovely, as the paprika, garlic and chilli carry it. I would just add a little salt to your dish at the table instead, so you can judge it by eye. The same goes for the pinch of sugar - skip it if you are watching either, though the flavour will be a touch sharper.
How do I make the seasoning milder or hotter?
The heat lives almost entirely in the chilli, so treat it as a dial. For a family-friendly, milder mix I cut the cayenne or bird’s-eye chilli right back and lean on the smoked paprika; for a proper kick I simply double it. Start low and taste as you go, because you can always stir in more, but you cannot take it out once it is in.
Serve them with a batch of crispy homemade onion rings for a proper Nando’s-style plate.
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A Few Words from the Chef
The best part for me is mixing my own spices fresh and adjusting the ratios exactly to my liking. Once you have made your own blend, you will never look at the bottled stuff the same way again. Tell me how hot you like yours.
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I hope you enjoy this fantastic recipe for Peri Peri Seasoning & Sauce! Did you tweak it in any way? Did you end up growing you own chillies? What accompanied your delicious dipping sauce? I’d love to hear your insights in the comments. Don’t forget to hit the star button! Happy cooking!