Piri-Piri Chicken with Spicy Rice
This dish is a perfect blend of smoky, spicy, and tangy elements, featuring succulent grilled chicken thighs coated in a home made piri-piri sauce and paired with an aromatic rice dish.
Ingredients
- 12 chicken thighs trimmed of excess skin/fat and patted dry
- 1 ½ tablespoons of piri-piri seasoning
- 3 tablespoons piri-piri sauce recipe below
Rice
- 4 bell peppers multicoloured
- 1-2 jalapeños
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 large onions
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ½ tablespoon piri-piri seasoning
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 cups multigrain rice or long grain rice
- 4 cups chicken stock if cooking on the grill, add hot stock
Piri-Piri Sauce
- 16 to 20 piri piri peppers jarred - or 3 long red chilies
- 4 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup cilantro leaves & tender stems
- ¼ cup basil leaves
- ¼ cup parsley leaves
- Juice from 1 lemon
- ¾ cup olive oil
Garnish, optional
- lemon wedges
- Chopped fresh cilantro basil, parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the grill on high.
- Season the chicken with 1 ½ tablespoons of piri-piri seasoning, set aside.
Grill the Peppers
- Add the bell peppers and jalapeños to the grill and cook until nicely charred on all sides, 10-12 minutes. Once charred, remove to a bowl and cover with a plate or plastic wrap.
- While the peppers cook, make the piri-piri sauce (just remember to keep turning the peppers).
- When the peppers are cool enough to handle, remove the loose skin, stems, seeds, and drain excess water, then thinly slice. Set aside.
- Reduced the heat on the grill to medium (400°F to 425°F).
Make the Piri-Piri Sauce
- Add all the sauce ingredients to a food processor or blender and blitz until well combined.
Grill the Chicken
- Brush 3 tablespoons of the Piri-Piri sauce over the chicken. Then place the chicken to the top rack (or indirect heat zone of your grill) and close the lid.
- While the chicken is cooking, start the rice.
Cook the Rice
- The rice can be prepared on the grill or on a stovetop. If using the grill, let the chicken cook undisturbed for 5 to 7 minutes before starting the rice and keep the lid closed when not stirring or adding ingredients
- Heat a 5 or 6-Qt pan over medium heat. Add a tablespoon of olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onions to the pan and cook until softened, stirring occasionally, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic, ½ tablespoon piri-piri seasoning, and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally for 2 minutes. Add peppers and jalapeños to the pan and stir to combine.
- Add the rice to the pan, then the stock and stir to combine. Cover and cook with the lid on as per the directions on the rice or until the rice is fully cooked through.
- Remove the rice from the heat source and let it stand covered for 5 to 10 minutes.
Finish Grilling the Chicken
- When the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 175°F (about 35-40 minutes depending how often the lid is opened) place the chicken, skin side down on the lower rack for 1 to 2 minutes, until lightly charred.
- Remove from the grill and let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Garnish and Serve
- To serve, drizzle with piri-piri sauce and garnish with chopped cilantro, basil, parsley, and a wedge of lemon.
- Delicious served alongside grilled corn, a green salad and with the extra piri-piri sauce.
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- Last step! If you make this, please leave a review letting us know how it was!
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