BBQ Chicken with Piri Piri Sauce and Marinade

Surfing through the web checking out other blogger's tasty posts, I found this amazingly delicious barbecue chicken marinated in Piri Piri Sauce. The blog where I found this recipe is at LIVE. LOVE. EAT.
I’d never heard of Piri Piri before, so I went on the hunt for more information.

Apparently Piri Piri was the name given to a particular chile used in cooking in Mozambique, Angola and Portugal. The name is used to describe a special chile plant called the African Bird’s Eye Chile. Here is a picture of it.

There is an excellent review of Piri Piri at David Leite’s website: Leite’s Culinaria.


According to Wikipedia:
"“Nando's, the Portuguese-themed chicken restaurant, originated in South Africa from Portuguese who left Mozambique after the independence in 1975. The chain uses piri-piri in many of its dishes, and helped popularise them worldwide. The company, however, prefers the common South African spelling peri peri on its menus and branded sauces.”

The Congo Cookbook website also gives you a fascinating and detailed history of Piri Piri.

Here's the recipe:

Grilled Chicken Piri Piri

• 2-3 lemons, zested & juiced plus 2 sliced for garnish
• 1/2 head garlic cloves, peeled
• 2 red peppers, seeded & roughly chopped
• 5 chili peppers like serrano or jalapeno
• 2 cups fresh parsley leaves
• 1 1/2 tblsp paprika
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 cup olive oil
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 3 pkgs cut up chicken pieces, skin on

In a food processor add lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, red pepper, chiles, parsley, paprika, red wine vinegar & oil. Process until it becomes a paste (wasn't too pasty to me, it was pourable). Season with salt & pepper. Reserve 1 cup of the sauce as set aside for garnishing cooked chicken later.
Divide chicken pieces into 2-3 large resealable plastic bags. Divide the marinade into both bags & seal. Turn the chicken around in the bags to distribute the marinade. Place chicken in the refrigerator & let it marinate for at least 1 hour & up to 1 day. I did mine overnight after baking it (see my thoughts).
Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Remove chicken from bags with tongs & drain well. Season with salt & pepper. Place on grill, skin side down first & grill for about 15 minutes on each side turning occasionally until cooked through.
Serve with lemon wedges & the reserved piri piri sauce.

{Her Thoughts}
Whenever I grill out with chicken I always bake it first for about 25 minutes with just a bit of salt & pepper in a 375 oven. (I totally agree with her on this point. It does cut down on the cooking time over the coals therefore keeping the chicken from getting that “burnt” look and taste.) Not only does this cut down on the time on the grill it also allows the marinade to really penetrate the chicken better. And it’s still on the grill long enough (about 15 min) to get that delicious grilled flavor. My Dad & I have been doing this for years & swear by it!!!!! For this recipe, I needed 2 baking sheets, one for the thighs & legs & the other for the breasts.I halved the original recipe & it’s reflected above. 3 pkgs of cut up chicken feeds about 6 for a BBQ at my house. As for the peppers, I used about 4 jalapenos because I didn't want it to be too spicy for my in laws. It was perfect.

{Back to me}
After combining the ingredients for the marinade and leaving the chicken to absorb the sauce in the fridge, I decided to add the left-over piri piri sauce to a cup of barbecue sauce. I love chile, but my tummy cannot tolerate anything too spicy. The results were quite delicious. The heat of the marinade had been infused into the chicken and when over the hot coals, a slathering of BBQ sauce with the remaining Piri Piri made it mouth watering.
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We roasted some corn and Lily cut up a fresh pineapple and removed the pits from a couple of nectarines. She squirted the fruits with limejuice and sprinkled some paprika over them and roasted these as well. This lovely meal was topped off with a root beer float and we were all quite content…and sleepy after the meal.

I decided to do this recipe after posting about all the delicious chiles available to us for our cooking adventures. I hope you try this magnificent sauce. I guarantee you’ll like it. Hasta luego my friends.
Come check out our latest chocolate indulgence -- Chocolate "Caliente" Souffle.
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A smiley, just for you! :)

THE SENILITY PRAYER :
Grant me the senility to forget the people
I never liked anyway,
The good fortune to run into the ones I do, and
The eyesight to tell the difference.
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Always Remember This:
You don't stop laughing because you grow old,
You grow old because you stop laughing!!!

Chiles...YUM

Recently I won some delicious dried chiles from Heather’s contest on her blog, Girlichef. The contest was the Chile Pepper Roundup and Giveaway. The entries were impressive. If you missed seeing the post go here to check them out. Thank you Heather, you made me very happy. When I started opening the box, the aromas filled the entire house. It was magnificent. If you've ever roasted your own chiles, you know what I'm talking about.

Dried chiles are very easy to reconstitute and make into a paste or sauce. Here are a couple of simple recipes to go by.

Red Chile Pureé

9- (about 3 ounces) dried New Mexico or California red chiles, hot or mild or a combination of both
2- cups water, or more, to cover chiles completely with water in pan
1- small onion, chopped
2- cloves garlic, chopped

Toast chiles on a large baking pan for approximately 4 minutes. Let cool slightly and then remove seeds and stems. IMPORTANT! Wear rubber gloves when handling chiles. If you accidentally rub your eyes when handling chiles without gloves, it will really sting.

In a 4-quart pan, combine chiles, water, onion, and garlic. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer (covered) until chiles are soft (about 30 minutes). Remove from heat and cool slightly.

In blender, whirl chile mixture till smooth. Run through sieve (strainer) to discard residue and any unprocessed chile skins. Purée can be refrigerated (covered) up to 1 week. Makes 2 cups.

* If you want a hotter tasting chile sauce, try adding 1 or 2 "chile de arbol", stemmed and seeded, to the chile in the water simmering step.

Red Chile Sauce

12 whole dried ancho or pasilla chiles
3 cups warm water
¼ cup tomato sauce (paste may be substituted)
1 clove garlic, pressed or minced
¼ cup salad oil
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dry oregano
½ teaspoon ground cumin

Spread whole dried chiles on baking sheet and toast in a 400 ° oven until fragrant (3 to 4 minutes). Remove and let cool. Discard stems and seeds; place in a bowl with 3 cups warm water, and let stand for 1 hour.

Whirl chiles in a blender with enough of the soaking liquid to moisten. Add remaining liquid, tomato sauce, garlic, oil, salt, oregano, and cumin. Blend until smooth. Pour into a pan and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes. Keep warm. If made ahead, cool, cover, and refrigerate for up to a week. Freeze for longer storage. Reheat before using. Makes 3 ½ cups.

This sauce is great on enchiladas and carne con chile colorado.
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There are some chiles that I will always have on hand to add to simple meals to give them that WOW factor.

These are jalapenos, poblano and long green. Living in the desert SW means having chiles on hand, fresh or dried, is a must.

Here is a list of the some of the chiles I found while researching online in preparation of my cookbook, Aprovecho, A Mexican-American Border Cookbook, to give you an idea of the possibilities to use in your Border cooking. Enjoy.

20 Popular Types of Chiles Used in Mexican Cooking

1. Anaheim: A type of fresh long green chile grown in Southern California.
2. Ancho: Dried form of poblano chile; dark red to brown; sweet & fruity; mild to sweet.
3. Cascabel: Round; very hot; dried chile.
4. Chile de Arbol: Dried; small, red; very hot.
5. Chipotle: Dried; smoked jalapeño; dark red.
6. Chipotle in Adobo Sauce: Chipotles in a hot, tomato-base chili sauce.
7. Fresno: Fresh, small bright green or red chiles. Good substitute for jalapeño. Milder than other small chiles.
8. Green Chile: Fresh, long green. Most common type know as Anaheim because it was the first large commercial crop grown in southern California. It is very green when picked; red if allowed to ripen on plant. Types include:Anaheim; Española; New Mexico #64; Chimayo; Big Jim; Dixon;New Mexico
9. Guajillo: Dried, brownish-orange, fruity-hot. Called Mirasol when fresh.
10. Güero: Fresh, yellow-blond; fiery-hot. Use in place of jalapeños or serranos.
11. Habanero: Not easily found fresh. Ripens from green to red to orange. Extremely hot.
12. Jalapeño: Fresh or canned. Comes from Jalapa, Mexico. Small, hot. Green and/or red.
13. Mirasol: Fresh Guajillo.
14. Mulato: Similar to Ancho; dried form of fleshy green chile.
15. New Mexico: A type of long green chile; fresh.
16. Pasilla: Dried chile; has a wrinkled appearance. Dark red to red-black.
17. Piquin: Dried red chile; also called piquin. Very small; very hot. Good substitute for cayenne.
18. Poblano: Fresh; wide, dark green. Mild to medium.
19. Serrano: Fresh, dark green up to 3 inches long; hotter than jalapeño.
20. Tepin: Dried, tiny; very hot. Use like cayenne or piquin.
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Remember what the weather man said:
"Chile today, hot tamale!" (Oh, dear, I have to get some new jokes! This one is bad, bad, bad.)

Cinco de Mayo

“The Battle of Puebla took place on May 5, 1862 near the city of Puebla during the French intervention in Mexico. The battle ended in a victory for the Mexican Army against the occupying French forces. The victory is celebrated today during the festivities of Cinco de Mayo (5th of May).”

This holiday is celebrated by more and more Americans every year. To the first (like myself) and second generation Mexican American, the holiday means a whole lot more than just the remembrence of the Battle of Puebla. The courage and determination shown by the humble and meager Mexican Indians and farmers against the French armies and their artilleries, represent the struggle for equality in society. We teach our children that they can never be anything less than someone else simply because of their heritage and the color of their skin. Un brindis (A toast) to our forefathers for having taught us how to stand up for our rights, ourselves, and our children’s future. Feliz Cinco de Mayo everyone.

Coctel Bandera Mejicana

1 pint Tequila
½ cup lime juice
½ cup sugar
Crushed ice
1 jicama
1 cup green seedless grapes
1 cup cherries

Mix the tequila with the lime juice and sugar. Add crushed ice and mix thoroughly. Serve in tall cocktail glasses. Skewer one green grape, one cube of jicama, and one cherry. To represent the colors of the Mexican Flag, garnish each cocktail with the skewered fruits. Makes 8 servings.


Mexican Bloody Mary

1 ¼ cups tomato juice
½ cup orange juice
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 ½ tablespoons finely chopped onion
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt, cayenne pepper, to taste
1 cup tequila
Ice cubes


Puree all ingredients in blender except tequila. Pour into pitcher and chill in refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Just before serving, blend in tequila. Makes 4 servings.



Dulce de Leche Cupcakes (Con Sombreros!)
(This is not an original. I saw this in a Woman’s World magazine and instantly knew that I had to make them.)

1 box yellow cake mix
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
3 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1 ½ cups dulce de leche (either Hershey’s or La Lechera)

1 ½ cups (3 sticks) butter, room temperature
2 boxes powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Granulated sugar
Gumdrops in assorted colors
Decorator sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin cups with cupcake liners. Beat cake mix, milk, eggs, and oil until thickened and smooth, about 3 minutes. Bake 20-22 minutes. Cool on racks 5 minutes.Using a wooden skewer, poke about 5 holes in the top of each cupcake. Drizzle half cup (1 teaspoon at a time) dulce de leche over the tops of each cupcake. Cool completely on racks.Beat butter until fluffy. Gradually beat in powdered sugar. Beat in 1 tablespoon of water, 1 tablespoon of vanilla and 1 cup of the dulce de leche. On medium high, beat until frosting is light and fluffy.

For Sombreros, sprinkle sugar on a piece of waxed paper. Flatten the gumdrop. Place on sugar and sprinkle more on top. Cover with a second piece of waxed paper. Roll out. Use a small round cookie cutter, about 2 inches in diameter, to cut the sombrero brims. Discard scraps. Attach a whole gumdrop to the top with a little frosting. Decorate brims with zigzags and sprinkles. Place on frosted cupcakes. Makes bout 24.