Frango à Piri-Piri (Mozambican Grilled Piri-Piri Chicken)
Local name: Frango à piri-piri
In short: A flattened whole chicken marinated in garlic, lemon, vinegar and piri-piri chili, then grilled until crisp-skinned and juicy. Mozambique's best-known dish. It takes about 1 h 15 min in total and makes 4 servings.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 55 min
- Resting
- 4 h
- Total
- 1 h 15 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Calories
- 560 kcal
Grilled piri-piri chicken is the dish that put Mozambique on many menus around the world. A whole chicken is flattened, marinated in garlic, lemon, vinegar and small, fiery piri-piri chilies and grilled over charcoal until the skin blisters and the meat stays moist. It is served with chips, rice or salad and extra sauce. The marinade is also the basting sauce, so make a little extra before it touches the raw bird.
Instructions
- Cut along both sides of the backbone with kitchen shears and remove it. Flatten the chicken with your palm, slash the thickest parts of the thighs and legs, and rub the 1 teaspoon of salt over the bird.
- Blend the garlic, chilies, lemon juice, oil, vinegar, paprika, oregano, salt and pepper to a rough paste. Scoop 4 tablespoons into a clean bowl for basting and serving, and keep it away from the raw chicken.
- Rub the rest of the marinade over and under the skin of the chicken. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
- Heat a grill to medium, with a cooler zone. Grill the chicken skin side down for 5 minutes to color, then move it to the cooler zone, skin side up, cover and cook for 35 to 40 minutes.
- Brush the chicken with the reserved clean sauce for the last 10 minutes. The thickest part of the thigh should reach 74°C (165°F) and the juices should run clear.
- Rest the chicken for 10 minutes, then cut it into pieces. Serve with lemon wedges and the remaining sauce.
Tips
- No grill? Roast the flattened chicken on a rack in a 220°C (425°F) oven for 45 to 55 minutes, until the skin is deeply browned.
- Always set aside sauce for basting before the marinade touches raw chicken. Marinade that has touched raw meat must be boiled for several minutes before it is used as a sauce.
Questions and answers
How hot is piri-piri chicken?
It is as hot as the chilies you choose. Use 3 or 4 chilies for a medium heat, and remove the seeds to tone it down further.
Can I use chicken pieces instead of a whole bird?
Yes. Use 1.4 kg (3 lb) of bone-in thighs and drumsticks and grill them for 35 to 40 minutes, turning them every 10 minutes.
What do you serve with piri-piri chicken?
Fries, rice, xima or a simple tomato and onion salad. Extra piri-piri sauce and lemon wedges go on the table.
How long does it take to make Frango à Piri-Piri (Mozambican Grilled Piri-Piri Chicken)?
About 1 h 15 min in total: 20 min of preparation and 55 min of cooking.
How many calories are in Frango à Piri-Piri (Mozambican Grilled Piri-Piri Chicken)?
About 560 kcal per serving, with 56 g of protein, 4 g of carbohydrates and 34 g of fat. These values are estimates.
Nutrition per serving
| Calories | 560 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 56 g |
| Carbohydrates | 4 g |
| Fat | 34 g |
| Fiber | 1 g |
| Sugar | 1 g |
| Sodium | 1250 mg |
Estimated values, calculated from the ingredients.
