Frango Piri-Piri

Chicken

• 1 chicken, ~1.4 kg, spatchcocked and the thick flesh scored to the bone

Piri-piri baste

• 6 bird's-eye (piri-piri) chillies
• 4 garlic
• 80 ml olive oil
• 40 ml white wine vinegar
• 1 lemon, juice and zest
• 1 tbsp sweet paprika
• 1 tsp salt

Spatchcock, baste, marinate

1. 1

   Spatchcock the 1.4 kg chicken — cut out the backbone and press it flat — so breast and thigh cook in the same time and maximum skin meets the fire. Score the thick flesh of breast and thigh down to the bone so the marinade penetrates.

   10m

   Piri-Piri Marinade & Spatchcock Grill
2. 2

   Blitz the baste smooth: 6 bird's-eye chillies, 4 garlic cloves, 80 ml olive oil, 40 ml white wine vinegar, the juice and zest of 1 lemon, 1 tbsp sweet paprika and 1 tsp salt. Set aside a clean portion for the table BEFORE it touches raw chicken; rub the rest over and under the skin and into the scores, and marinate at least 2–4 h, ideally overnight.

   10m

   Reserve a table portion before the baste touches raw chicken — never brush the table sauce from the bowl used on raw bird.

Grill and baste

1. 3

   Grill over MEDIUM charcoal, not searing heat — the oil and sugars in the baste scorch black and bitter over high flame before the inside is done. Start skin-side up, turn every 8–10 min for ~40 min total, brushing with fresh baste at every turn.

   40mmedium

   Medium heat and repeated basting are the dish — high heat burns the baste before the bird cooks; juices should run clear at the thigh joint (74 °C / 165 °F).

   Piri-Piri Marinade & Spatchcock Grill
2. 4

   Rest 5–10 min so the juices set, then cut up. Boil the reserved table portion of baste for a minute to make it raw-safe and spoon it over, with a final squeeze of lemon, fries and salad alongside.

   10m