I finally did the uber touristy thing and hit up Bonjardim in the heart of Lisbon to try their famous spit-roasted Chicken Piri Piri. Let me tell you, it DID NOT disappoint. I don’t think I’ve ever had chicken so tender, juice and flavorful. My friend and I sat in absolute silence as we inhaled our chicken. When we finally stopped to breathe again, we couldn’t stop commenting on how great this simple dish is…and now we’re obsessed.
As soon as I got home, I began looking up recipes so I could figure out how to make this at home. While it’s never going to be as good as a spit-roasted chicken, you can make a pretty tasty version yourself by baking or grilling the chicken. The recipe I used to make my first Chicken Piri was from 24 Kitchen. While the potatoes looked scrumptious, we decided to keep it simple and serve the dish with baked potato wedges we found in the freezer section.
And, here’s a great list from Taste Atlas of the most popular places in Portugal to get Chicken Piri Piri according to food experts.
We used this DELICIOUS Chicken Piri Piri recipe from 24 Kitchen. 24 Kitchen is not only good for recipes, it’s great for learning Portuguese. We love how relaxing it is (vs watching Portuguese news) and bonus, you learn traditional, authentic Portuguese recipes while learning Portugal. It’s great!
Here is the recipe for you in English with the addition of U.S. measurements to make it easy to make wherever you are in the world! And, you can watch exactly how local, celebrity chef, Henrique Pessoas, makes it.
The ingredients and instructions are a little loosey goosey so you’ll have to feel into it but you really can’t mess up this dish! So don’t worry about being precise. Just roll with it and enjoy this tender dish with a spicy kick!
Have you eaten this dish at a restaurant or tried out this recipe at home? If so, leave a comment below and tell us how and where you like to eat Chicken Piri Piri!
Chicken Piri Piri
Succulent Chicken with a Spicy Kick!
- Immersion/Hand Blender
For the marinade:
- Juice of 1 Lemon
- Zest of 1 Orange
- Fresh Rosemary
- Fresh Thyme
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- Salt
- Pepper
Chicken:
- 1 whole Chicken; cut in half or quarters
- 1 Lemon, sliced
- Fresh Rosemary
- Fresh Thyme
Piri Piri Sauce:
- 2 Fresh Piri Piri Chilis, chopped
- 5 cloves Garlic, chopped
- 1 tbsp Cilantro leaves, chopped
- Zest of 2 Lemons
- 1 tsp Red Bell Pepper, chopped
- 150 ml Olive Oil (5 oz)
Potatoes:
- 1 bag Frozen Potato Wedges
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Make marinade by mixing the lemon juice, orange zest, olive oil, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
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Rub marinade on chicken and put the chicken in the refrigerator to marinate for at least 6 hours.
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Heat up a grill or saute pan with a little olive oil. Brown the chicken slowly for 4 to 5 minutes.
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Put whole thyme and rosemary on the baking tray. Slice another lemon and place it in the bottom of the tray with the herbs.
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In a measuring cup, add the piri piri chilis, the crushed garlic cloves, the chopped cilantro stalks, the lemon zest without the white part, the sweet bell pepper and cover generously with olive oil. With a hand blender, blend all the ingredients.
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Remove the chicken from the plate and place on the tray. Brush the chicken with the Piri Piri sauce.
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Bake the chicken at 200°C/200°F for 45 minutes to 1 hour, brushing the sauce on the chicken every 15 minutes.
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When the chicken still has 15 minutes left to cook, bake frozen potato wedges on a separate baking sheet.
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When the chicken is cooked through (about 45 mins – 1 hr), take the chicken out of the oven and brush it one last time with Piri Piri sauce.
Here’s a bonus video with a different chef making the dish. We wanted to include this because they start with a nice, “slow” explanation of Piri Piri peppers in Portuguese at the beginning and the chef speaks kind of slow so you can hear and learn more Portuguese.
