A quick and easy recipe for a homemade version of Nando’s Peri Peri Chicken Breasts. Perfect for a busy midweek evening!
Another week another homemade Nando’s recipe…
Yep, I am back again with another Nando’s copycat recipe. This week I am sharing the recipe for my Easy Peri Peri Chicken Breasts!
I love this recipe as it’s so quick and simple… but utterly delicious! It’s quick and easy enough for a weeknight, but delicious enough for a weekend treat 😀
Made with my homemade Nando’s marinade
I generally try to avoid using processed foods where possible, so when it comes to making the peri peri marinade for this Nando’s style chicken breast recipe, I always make it completely from scratch.
But don’t worry – it’s dead easy! Just mix together a little olive oil, some smoked paprika, oregano, chilli flakes, garlic and lime juice – plus salt and pepper. Then smother this delicious paste all over your chicken breasts!
In an idea world, you would cover and put the chicken breasts in the fridge for a couple of hours to marinate – this allows the marinade to get right into the chicken and also tenderises the chicken breasts. But if time is of the essence (which it usually is for me!), just skip this step and cook the peri peri chicken breasts straight away.
Pan fried, grilled or oven baked – your choice!
Personally, I prefer to pan fry these Easy Peri Peri Chicken Breasts in my griddle pan – that way you get those lovely char marks and wonderful smoky flavour, which is what I really associate with Nando’s style chicken. Plus, it’s super quick. You can pan fry my Nando’s style chicken breasts in just 15 minutes!
However, if you prefer, you can absolutely grill, oven bake – or even barbecue these delicious chicken breasts. See the recipe card notes for the specific times and temperatures.
What to serve with Peri Peri Chicken Breasts?
My favourite thing to serve with these Nando’s copycat Peri Peri Chicken Breasts is my Homemade Nando’s Spicy Rice and a green salad.
But there are lots of other options… This easy Nando’s style chicken breasts recipe would also go well with homemade chips, Cheesy Mashed Potatoes, sweet potato mash, sweet potato wedges, garlic bread, coleslaw, corn on the cobs… Basically anything that you would normally eat with Nando’s chicken!
What to drink with Peri Peri Chicken Breasts?
My favourite wine to drink with Nando’s style chicken is a bold and gutsy Sauvignon Blanc from somewhere like South Africa or New Zealand. If you prefer red, then go for a ripe and fruity Merlot or Grenache/Garnacha based wine. Merlot and Grenache/Garnacha based rosés also work well here.
If you are more of a beer drinker, then I recommend an IPA or golden ale.
If you like this recipe…
… you might also like
- Peri Peri Chicken Thighs
- Peri Peri Chicken Burgers
- Peri Peri Chicken Wings
- Peri Peri Chicken Traybake
- Homemade Nando’s Spicy Rice
Peri Peri Chicken Thighs
Easy Peri Peri Chicken Breasts (Nando’s Copycat)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons chilli flakes (or to taste)
- 4 cloves garlic crushed or grated
- Juice of 2 limes
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- Black pepper to taste
- 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Instructions
- Mix together all of the Peri Peri marinade ingredients (i.e. all the ingredients apart from the actual chicken!) in a large bowl. Place the chicken in the bowl, turning to coat each piece of chicken with marinade. (You can do this in a ziplock bag if you don’t like getting your hands messy!)
- Cover and marinate the chicken for 2 hours in the fridge or up to 24 hours if you have the time. Alternatively, just continue with the recipe.
- Heat your griddle/frying pan for 2 minutes over a high heat (see notes for alternative cooking methods). Place the chicken in the pan and cook for 7-9 minutes on each side (depending on thickness – you can check if your chicken is done by cutting into the thickest one – if it’s not raw and pink, you are good to go!).
- Serve with all your favourite Nando’s style sides!
Notes
Pin Easy Peri Peri Chicken Breasts for later
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Corina Blum says
We are big fans of Nandos and I love your copycat recipes! These chicken breasts look perfect – such a lovely colour! x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Corina! So pleased you like them 😀 Eb x
moey says
Damn were did you learn to make this.Its so nice
Eb Gargano says
Haha – thank you 😀 I ate a lot of Nando’s for ‘research’ and then played around with my spice cupboard trying to replicate it – many versions later, this was the result! It’s hard job, but someone has to do it 😉
Monika Dabrowski says
I am sure this chicken is better than the original Nando’s recipe! It looks gorgeously browned. Healthy, easy, delicious, pinned!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Monika! Easy, healthy and delicious recipes are my favourite 😀 Eb x
Janice says
Another cracking recipe! I love how simple this is and it will be going on my menu very soon.
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Janice. I’d love to know what you think if you try it! Eb x
Helen - Cooking with my kids says
These look great. I love making marinades myself as I can adjust the spice so that my kids will (hopefully) eat it. I think this would go down well with them (and their Dad!) #cookblogshare
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Helen! I am the same with marinades – I love making them myself so I can adjust the spicing level to suit my family… and also so I KNOW there are no hidden nasties! I’d love to know what you and your family think if you try it 😀 Eb x
Hannah says
These look incredible – I already have all the spices so I’m planning on trying them ASAP! It’ll be nice not to have to rely on the store-bought nandos marinade bottles – not that they taste as good as the real thing anyway!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Hannah! I’d love to know what you think if you try it 😀 Eb x
Louise Fairweather says
These look and sound amazing. Thanks for sharing on #cookblogshare
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Louise 🙂
LINDA says
Made these for dinner last night WOW did not have a lime so used lemon instead, will be making again ,
Eb Gargano says
Yay! So happy you enjoyed them so much. Thanks for taking the time to let me know 😀 And glad to hear it worked well with lemon – always a good sub for lime! Eb 🙂
Lou Gunstone says
I (secretly) love Nandos so this is a perfect recipe to feed my peri peri addiction… and my family, of course. Love that the peri peri is made from scratch as well. And as a Kiwi, I am also happy with the NZ Sauvignon Blanc pairing 😉
Eb Gargano says
Aaah glad to ‘meet’ a fellow peri peri addict 😀 I am a huge fan of NZSB (and NZ wine in general!) so it often appears in my wine recommendations. It goes so well with so many dishes. I’d love to know what you think if you try this recipe! Eb x
Holly says
Loved this recipe! I ended up making “peri peri pockets” with it and they were a huge hit! I chopped the chicken into small pieces after cooking it. Then I put triangles of crescent roll dough in a muffin tin, put a little bit of shredded cheese in (I used an Italian blend), followed by a few pieces of the chopped chicken, topped with some more cheese, then folded the dough triangle over the top so that hardly any of the filling was exposed. I sprinkled a tiny bit of cheese on the top of each pocket, then baked according to the directions on the crescent roll can. The leftovers also make an amazing work lunch!
Eb Gargano says
Hi Holly, thanks for this lovely review and especially the 5* rating 😀 And wow – I love your idea for Peri Peri Pockets – they sound so delicious! Eb 🙂
Sam says
Yummmmmmm!!!! Tried it in the oven with all kinds of veggies. This is not my usual cuisine but I’ve been wanting to try something other than the same old Indian food. Loved this. So easy to make and super delicious. Thank you so much. I’m so glad I stumbled across this recipe and your site. I’m a peri peri fan too.
Eb Gargano says
Yay! Good to meet a fellow peri per fan 😀 And so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe. Eb 🙂
Nikki Landis-Litman says
These were delicious. Tons of flavor and so simple to make. Thank you!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks for this lovely review Nikki! That’s so good to hear 😀
Nina says
I love this recipe. I’ve made it 10+ times. It’s my go-to lunch meal prep. I slice the chicken and put it in a wrap with lettuce, tomato, a little cheese, and Nando’s mayo. It’s perfection.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks so much for this lovely review! I’m delighted you like the recipe so much 😀
Wesley says
Hi Eb,
I want to make this with 8 chicken pieces, do I need to double the marinade ingredients or would this still be enough?
Thanks,
Wesley
Eb Gargano says
It should be enough, so long as your chicken pieces are fairly small. If they are larger (or you want a stronger Peri Peri flavour), you might be better off doubling the marinade. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
Deb_TheBakingNurse says
Hi there, I’m a huge nandos fan, had to review your ‘copycat’ recipe. I came across it awhile back, I tweaked it, like I do with all recipes & it was fab. Made it again today, tweaked it some more and it was another hit. Daughter & Husband said it was better than Nandos. I made it a lot spicier as that is how we roll in this house. Had it as chicken burgers. I flattened out 4 chicken breasts & cut them in half before marinating overnight. I used garlic powder instead of fresh, chilli flakes, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, hot paprika, 1 lime, dried peri-peri seasoning mix, 4 tbsp hot nandos peri-peri sauce, oregano, salt, olive oil & freshly ground black. I’m one of those that love to research recipes but I’m a ‘tweaker’, I love doing my own version.
The potential is endless – thank you for the idea! I shall have a look at the rest of your recipes!
Eb Gargano says
Great to hear! I must confess I am a ‘tweaker’ too. But that’s a good thing in my book! Recipes are a starting point and an inspiration. Lovely to hear about your adaptations. (Sounds like you like your food a lot hotter than me – I think that would blow my head off – but great that you made it work for your tastes!) Thank you for the lovely review 😀
Vanessa says
My teenage daughter made the Peri Peri Chichen last night and it was divine. We cut the chicken breasts into smaller pieces to make it easier to fry and it was so yummy and very simple to make. My 12 year old son made the Nando’s Spicy rice to go with it (also very scrumptious). Just wanted to thank you as the food was perfect for us and we followed your instructions throughout. This and the Spicy rice will definitly be a regular on our family menu.
Eb Gargano says
Aw yay – that’s so great to hear! Really lovely that your kids enjoyed cooking this meal together and were so pleased with the result. Thanks for this lovely review and especially the 5* rating 😀
Antony Wheeler says
Twice a week and goes down great with our beautiful local Welsh butchers chicken.
Eb Gargano says
That’s so great to hear! Thanks for this lovely review 😀