Tantalise your tastebuds with this incredible oven-baked peri peri chicken recipe! If you’re a fan of deliciously spicy and juicy peri peri chicken, then this recipe is an absolute must-try. Marinated in a mouth-watering peri peri sauce and baked to perfection, this chicken is going to leave you wanting more of that signature peri peri flavor that we all know and love!
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Oven-baked peri peri chicken
When I was working in London, one of our favourite treats was a lunchtime visit to Nando’s for some of their famous peri peri chicken. Since leaving work, and moving away from London, I find myself in the position of not having a Nando’s restaurant nearby, and that particular pleasure is now just a distant memory.
Until that is, I decided to try making it myself, at home. And now that I’ve perfected the taste, I can enjoy peri peri chicken any time I feel like it. I just wish I’d done this sooner 🙂
What I like about making this at home is that you can adjust the amount of chilli you add. I prefer the peri peri to be hot enough to provide a ‘zing’ but not so hot that it numbs your mouth so you can’t taste what you are eating. With this recipe, you just alter the chilli to suit your own taste.
I also like to bake this chicken in the oven which to my mind is so much healthier than frying. And because the marinade contains olive oil, there’s no need to add any additional oil before baking.
The marinade itself is so easy to make. You just whizz all the ingredients in the food processor and then pour over the chicken to marinate for an hour or two (or overnight in the fridge if you can wait that long). Then it’s just 20 minutes in the oven for the tastiest peri peri chicken ever.
Where did peri peri chicken originate?
Peri peri chicken originated in Southern Africa, specifically in the Portuguese-influenced region of Mozambique. The name ‘peri peri’ comes from the Swahili word ‘pili pili’ meaning ‘pepper pepper’, and refers to the little bird’s eye chillis which are grown in that part of the world. Because of this, you may sometimes hear peri peri chicken as being referred to as pili pili chicken.
In recent years, of course, peri peri chicken has gained even more popularity thanks to the success of fast food chains like Nando’s, which specialise in peri peri chicken dishes.
While peri peri chicken is traditionally made with bird’s eye chillis, I prefer to use a brand of minced chillis from a jar, because that way I can control the heat in the recipe.
What you will need
Equipment
You will need a food processor to blend the marinade ingredients. Even though the marinade has been blended in a food processor, you will still find that it has tiny bits of red pepper in it. If you prefer a smoother marinade you can blend it with a stick-blender once it comes out of the food processor.
You will also need a bowl for marinating the chicken and a baking tray.
Ingredients
This recipe will feed 4 people.
Chicken – it doesn’t really matter what cut of chicken you use. You can use bone-in chicken thighs or drumsticks, or chicken breasts with or without the skin. You will need approximately 100 grams or 4 ounces of raw chicken per person (plus a bit extra if your chicken is on the bone).
Red pepper – I used a fresh red pepper (with the seeds and membranes removed). You could substitute this with the equivalent amount of roasted red peppers from a jar (just drain them from the liquid before using them).
Chilli – this is to your own taste. You can use fresh bird’s eye, jalapeno, or habanero chillis, depending on your tolerance for heat. Remove the seeds before using them. I prefer to use chilli flakes from a jar because that way I can control the heat.
Lemon juice – this is an essential ingredient because it adds the sour citrus tang that is a characteristic flavour or peri peri sauce. You can substitute this with lime juice.
Balsamic vinegar – adds an additional sour element.
Paprika – this adds a smokey flavour.
Garlic – use either fresh garlic cloves, or ready minced garlic from a jar.
Oregano – sometimes knows as wild marjoram. You can substitute with thyme.
Olive oil – helps stop the chicken from sticking to the baking tray.
Salt, black pepper and sugar – for seasoning, and a hint of sweetness. Adjust these to your own taste.
What to do
**You can get the complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making this peri peri chicken on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
- Prep time: 5 minutes
- Marinate: 2 hours
- Cooking time 20 to 25 minutes in the oven
Marinade the chicken
If you are using chicken breasts, cut off the tenderloin (if there is one still attached to the breast) and then slice the chicken fillets through the middle to make them thinner. Two chicken breasts will give you 6 pieces of chicken.
Place all the marinade ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. If you prefer an even smoother marinade, you could blend the marinade with a stick-blender.
Place the chicken pieces into a suitable bowl and cover them with the marinade. Make sure each piece of chicken is well coated. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Line a baking tray with tinfoil (makes for easier cleaning up afterwards) and arrange the marinated chicken in a single layer. If you are using chicken pieces that still have their skin on, arrange them skin-side up.
Bake the chicken in a preheated oven (200C / 400F) for 20 to 25 minutes depending on the thickness of your chicken pieces.
The internal temperature of cooked chicken should be 74C or 165F.
Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the oven, cover the tray loosely with tinfoil and leave to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
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Peri Peri chicken FAQ
I like to serve this peri peri chicken with this spicy mushroom rice, a few slices of fresh tomatoes to cut through the peri peri, and a slice of garlic bread.
You could also serve it with potato wedges or crispy french fries or sweet potato wedges and a side dish of fresh corn on the cob.
If you are looking for extra salads, why not try serving the chicken with a bowl of tangy coleslaw or some homemade pickled red onions? These onions only take 10 minutes to prepare, and they are ready to eat in half an hour, so you could whip up a batch while the chicken is marinating.
The baked chicken also makes a delicious burger. Just sandwich it between one of these crusty Portuguese bread rolls for an easy lunch or light supper.
You can freeze the raw chicken in the marinade. Just tip the marinade and chicken into a ziploc bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Let it defrost in the refrigerator before baking.
You can safely store the chicken in the marinade in a covered container in the refrigerator for 12 hours. Anything longer than that and the lemon juice in the marinade will tend to make the chicken turn mushy.
What leftovers? 🙂
Seriously though – this chicken is perfect served in a sandwich, or even just cut into slices and served with a plate of cherry tomatoes and a crusty breadroll for a light lunch.
Save for later
If you would like to make your own peri peri chicken, why not pin this recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily? Just click the image below.
Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.
Other chicken recipes
If you enjoyed this peri peri chicken recipe, you may also like to try some of my other chicken recipes.
- Easy garlic chicken stirfry in a crusty breadroll – tasty chicken stir fry served in a crusty bread roll – a simple Friday night supper with a difference.
- Chicken and bacon meatloaf with ham and cheese – tasty ham and cheese wrapped in a layer of flavourful chicken and covered with crispy bacon.
- Crispy air fryer chicken wings with blue cheese sauce – the crispiest chicken wings with a tangy blue cheese dipping sauce
- Orange chicken thighs with a tangy sauce – juicy chicken thighs oven-baked in a fruity orange sauce.
- Peri peri chicken livers – tender chunks of chicken livers swimming in a delicious tomato and onion based peri peri sauce.
- How to spatchcock a chicken – a spatchcocked chicken delivers perfectly cooked chicken every single time – and it’s so easy to do!
The recipe
Oven-baked peri peri chicken
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Stick blender optional
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1 pound / 450 grams skinless chicken breast fillets or your chicken of choice
Marinade
- 1 medium red bell pepper or use the equivalent amount of bottled roasted red pepper
- 4 cloves garlic or the equivalent amount from a jar
- 2 small bird's eye chilis or use the equivalent of dried chili flakes
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
Instructions
- Cut each chicken breast through the middle so that you have two thinner pieces.
- Place all the ingredients for the marinade in a food processor and whizz around until very finely processed.1 medium red bell pepper, 4 cloves garlic, 2 small bird's eye chilis, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- Place the chicken pieces in a mixing bowl and pour the marinade over. Mix through until the chicken is completely coated.1 pound / 450 grams skinless chicken breast fillets
- Cover the chicken and place in the refrigerator to marinade for 2 hours.
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C / 400°F
- Arrange the chicken pieces on a baking tray and pour any remaining marinade over the chicken.
- Bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 74°C / 165°F
- Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
- See notes for serving suggestions.
Notes
You could also serve it with potato wedges or crispy french fries or sweet potato wedges and a side dish of fresh corn on the cob.
If you are looking for extra salads, why not try serving the chicken with a bowl of tangy coleslaw or some homemade pickled red onions? These onions only take 10 minutes to prepare, and they are ready to eat in half an hour, so you could whip up a batch while the chicken is marinating.
The baked chicken also makes a delicious burger. Just sandwich it between one of these crusty Portuguese bread rolls for an easy lunch or light supper.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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Looks yummy! I followed the recipe (kind of -switched citrus to orange and lime, left out sugar, not a sweet fan although I realize you’re going more for sweet/sour or possibly caramelization with the sugar here.), my chicken is marinating now, should be baking in an hour or so.
Hope the chicken turned out well for you!
I will try this
I hope you enjoy it 🙂