Grilled Peri Peri Chicken - Ultimate Guide!

Grilled Peri Peri Chicken – Ultimate Guide!

Peri Peri Chicken has been popular for years and there is a reason for that! Simply put, it’s delicious. Today we are going to learn all the steps to prepare the most amazing peri-peri chicken on the BBQ at home. The dish itself originated in Portugal but has become popular throughout the world.

The dish is very versatile, you can make it in your oven, grill it on your stove top or outside on the BBQ. As a barbeque fan I always go with the third option and today we are going to follow all the steps together to make this.

You are going to need the following to get started. Some oil, salt, lemon juice, garlic and thyme. The dish is called Peri Peri Chicken so you are going to need Peri Peri peppers as well. Before we do anything else we are going to make the chicken marinade.

The Flavor Profile is Exceptional
The Flavor Profile is Exceptional

Peri Peri Marinade

This marinade is going to go onto the chicken itself and really soak in.

Put the following into a blender

  • 150ml Vegetable Oil
  • 3 tsp Salt
  • 5 Garlic Cloves
  • Juice of 2 Lemons
  • 3 tsp Thyme
  • As many Peri Peri Peppers as you can handle. I use 12 myself.

Give it all a blend together. It will come out with quite a thick texture. This will really help it to stick to the chicken.

With the marinade done its time to focus on the chicken.

Spatchcock the Chicken

If you are using a whole chicken then you are going to want to spatchcock it. If you are using chicken pieces such as the drums or thighs then everything is much simpler.

I am going to briefly tell you about the way I spatchcock a chicken. But, there are a ton of other guides on the internet if you prefer a different way. You just want to get the legs all out you want to get everything nice and open. Start with the breast side of the chicken facing up. make a long cut just to the left and to the right of the chickens spine. You need to apply a bit of pressure as you will be cutting through bone. When you have removed the spine completely you will see that the chicken naturally falls flat.

The final step. is to remove the cartilage and the bone just below it from inside the chicken. It is in the center of the inside of the chicken. Just cut on each side of the cartilage and push through the bone with the knife to remove it.

The point of spatchcocked chicken is that it is going to quick more evenly. This applies whether you cook it in the oven or your barbecue. With the meat flat and even your cook is going to always be far superior.

You Can Decorate with Onions and Herbs
You Can Decorate with Onions and Herbs

Marinade the Peri Peri Chicken

If you wish you can put the marinade on the meat now or you can poke a few holes into the meat so that it is absorbed more. I have heard all the arguments for both ways so I will leave you to choose which you want to do.

Turn the chicken over and pour some of the marinade onto the open flesh side of the chicken. It is nice and thick and will easily stick to the chicken. Just a little warning. If you do have really sensitive skin the chili may give you a slight burning feeling so if you think that will be you maybe wear some gloves.

Turn the chicken over and continue to apply the marinade all over the chicken.

You are ready for the grill. You want your grill to be somewhere up around the 180 degree Celsius mark. These chickens should take about 50 minutes to be ready. A little longer if your chicken is one of the really large ones.

Start the cook with the skin side up and leave it for about 25 minutes before you give it a check. At this time it should be good to turn the chicken over. You don’t want to be cooking with the skin side down for too long. The skin will start to burn if you leave it too long. Leave it long enough that the skin firms up and the heat cooks the meat closest to the skin. Turn the chicken back over onto its back and get it shut up for about another twenty five minutes. The easiest way to check if its done is to just cut down to the bone. Make sure the juice is clear and there is no blood present. so there you go that’s some peri-peri

With this done your chicken is ready for eating. Serve it up with your favorite sides. Maybe some potato salad, a nice bit of salad or just some fries.

Love this? Then you will love our Smoked chicken recipe!

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