This easy version of Nando’s Peri Peri Chicken can be on your table in well under an hour. Serve with my coconut lime rice and corn on the cob for a feast that looks fancy, but is actually really easy peasy – promise I won’t tell!
You guys know how much I love a fakeaway! I love recreating my restaurant and takeaway favourites, giving them my very own easy peasy spin and usually making them healthier in the process too.
I’ve been wanting to do my own version of Nando’s Peri Peri Chicken for a while now, but I’ve only just got round to it…and boy am I glad I did!
Not only does this Nando’s copycat taste pretty awesome, but doesn’t it look a showstopper too? And I’ll let you into a little secret…it’s actually really easy to make!
Just throw together some simple spices, smother them over the chicken, pop the chicken in the oven to do its stuff, cook up some rice, pop the corn into the same tray the chicken is in for the last 10 minutes and BAM you are done!
It can easily all be done in under an hour and makes a perfect Saturday night feast…in fact this is so easy you could even do it midweek!
And of course this Peri Peri Chicken comes in way cheaper than eating out in a restaurant and I promise you, your tastebuds will not be disappointed!!
I found 2 teaspoons of chilli flakes in my marinade was just perfect to give a mild to medium tingle of heat, while still keeping it family friendly. But do feel free adjust the level of chilli according to your liking.
Depending on how much time you have you can either give the chicken a quick 5 minutes in the marinade while the oven heats up, an hour in the fridge or, if you have the time, you can even marinade the chicken overnight in the fridge. It tastes great with just a quick few minutes marinating time, but even better if you have longer!!
I have served this delicious Peri Peri Chicken with my Coconut Lime Rice, which is super simple to make and goes so well with the spicy marinade, and also some little corn on the cobs, which the kids loved and which are also super simple to cook as you can just chuck them in the same tray as your chicken for the last 10 minutes, where they gets coated in all that gorgeous peri peri chicken flavour.
If you don’t fancy the idea of getting your hands messy (or the idea of serving a marinade coated corn on the cob to your kids fills you with dread and horror), simply slice the corn off the cob after it has cooked and stir it into the rice.
Since this recipe is gluten free and dairy free and corn on the cob is in season right now, this recipe is perfect for joining in with the latest challenge from the #FreeFromGang which is called #FreeFromHarvest. If you want to see more #FreeFromHarvest recipes, see below or follow the #FreeFromHarvest and #FreeFromGang hashtags on social media!
If you like this recipe…
… you might also like
- Peri Peri Chicken Breasts
- Peri Peri Chicken Burgers
- Peri Peri Chicken Traybake
- Homemade Nando’s Spicy Rice
Peri Peri Chicken (Nando’s Copycat)
Ingredients
Peri Peri Chicken & Corn
- 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
- 8 chicken legs (or thighs or a mixture)
- 4 small corn on the cobs (cobettes)
Coconut Lime Rice
- 300 g basmati or long grain rice
- 400 ml tin coconut milk
- 200 ml water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 400 g tin black eyed peas (or black beans or kidney beans, drained)
- Juice of 1 lime
- 4 spring onions sliced
To serve
- Sliced spring onions and lime wedges
Instructions
Peri Peri Chicken & Corn
- Preheat your oven to 220C / 200C / gas mark 7 / 425F. (Save this step till later if you plan to marinate your chicken first)
- Mix together all of the Peri Peri Chicken ingredients (apart from the corn on the cobs and the actual chicken!) in a large bowl. Score the skin of the chicken with the point of a sharp knife and place the chicken in the bowl of marinade, turning to coat each piece of chicken with marinade.
- Marinate the chicken for 1 hour in the fridge or up to 24 hours if you have the time. Alternatively just continue with the recipe.
- Place all the chicken pieces on a roasting tray and place the tray in your preheated oven.
- Roast the chicken for 30 minutes, remove the tray from the oven, add the corn on the cobs turning them in the juices, then return the tray to the oven for a further 10 minutes.
Coconut Lime Rice
- While the chicken is cooking, place the rice, coconut milk and water in a pan and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and cook for a further 8 minutes, or until the rice has absorbed almost all the liquid.
- Add the drained black eyed peas, lime juice and spring onions and cook with the lid on for a further 2 minutes or until the black eyed peas have warmed through and the liquid is all absorbed.
- Keep the lid on until needed.
To serve
- Arrange the rice on a serving platter, top with the chicken pieces and corn on the cobs. Drizzle over any juices from the chicken pan and then scatter over the spring onions and lime wedges.
Notes
The #FreeFromHarvest Challenge
I have made this Peri Peri Chicken as my contribution to the Free From Gang’s #FreeFromHarvest challenge. For more delicious #FreeFromHarvest recipes check out the following blogs, or follow the #FreeFromHarvest and #FreeFromGang hashtags on social media!
Fabulous #FreeFromHarvest Recipes…
Best ever gluten-free & dairy-free apple crumble – Intolerant Gourmand
Beetroot Brownie Cake – Glutarama
Easy Vegetable Korma (Vegan) – Easy Peasy Foodie
The Best Pumpkin Risotto – Intolerant Gourmand
Apple & Blackberry Crumble – Dairy Free Kids
Sensational Sausage Stuffed Marrow – Free From Fairy
Love chicken? Check out my collection of Easy Chicken Dinners…
Want more delicious and hassle-free midweek meals? Find more here…
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Michelle Frank | Flipped-Out Food says
Fakeaways are the BEST. The versions of peri peri I’ve made in the past required that the marinade sit and age for 2 weeks, so I’m excited to try a version that’s fast and easy. I also love that you use full-fledged chicken thighs—the flavor is just fantastic! And the pairing with corn-on-the-cob is brilliant!
Eb Gargano says
2 weeks WHAAAAAT??? You are NEVER going to to find anything like that on Easy Peasy Foodie, thats for sure – LOL!! Fast and easy is definitely my bag. I will admit this does taste nicer if you can give it an hour or two in the marinade, but if 5 minutes is all you’ve got this still tastes very good! Love chicken thighs – I like legs, but thighs are my favourite. Thanks for your lovely kind comments 🙂 Eb x
Lesley @lostinfood says
Love the sound of this dish, a perfect mid week meal that I’m going to try for those nights we all have when time is limited.
Eb Gargano says
It is done and dusted within an hour and very little hands on time…I find it’s perfect for evenings when I am working as I can catch up on bits and bobs in between cooking the dinner. Thanks for your kind comments 🙂 Eb x
Jenny says
One of my favourite go to recipes. I have cooked it when entertaining and added addition Nando style sides – Macho Peas, Corn on the Cob, Garlic Bread and Colslaw. A Nando style banquet at the fraction of the price!
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so happy to hear that 😀 Your Nando’s Banquet sounds amazing. Thank you so much for this lovely review… and especially the 5* rating!
Cat says
I love Nandos and this looks just as tasty!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Cat – so glad you like it! 😀 Eb x
Monika Dabrowski says
This is such a mouth watering dish – the spicy smokey chicken with that sweet aromatic rice are a fantastic pairing! And I love the fact there is so much lime juice in this recipe! #CookBlogShare
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Monika – I am a big fan of lime, so delicious and super good for you too! And yes the pairing of smoky chicken and coconut rice is such a good one. Eb x
Vicki Montague says
This is seriously genius lady! I love the photos and am going to love the dish too!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks sweetie – I must say I am pretty pleased with it. Hope you love it as much as we do!! Eb x
Corina says
I love this meal Eb! It’s exactly the type of meal that my family would love too. I’ve made peri peri chicken at home a couple of times and we all love going to Nandos as well! Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Corina. Peri Peri Chicken is super lovely, isn’t it? Eb x
Jo Allison - Jo's Kitchen Larder says
Your copycat dish looks fantastic Eb! I love the sound of your coconut lime rice as well. Delicious and straightforward and perfect for any day of the week 🙂 I really like it. Pinned to try! x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Jo! It’s proving rather popular…can’t think why 😉 It is honestly so yummy, though, and super easy – perfect for busy days!! Eb x
Mel says
Oh wow wow! I love Nando’s Peri Peri chicken! I’ve just pinned your recipe on my ‘to try’ board (amongst others hahaha!) xxx
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Mel – Oh yes, I have a ‘must try’ board too….with quite a few things pinned there!! The thing is with all the testing and photographing etc. for my own site, I don’t have much time to try other people’s recipes…I did once plan to clear a whole week just to try other blogger’s recipes…but that never quite happened – must do it one day though…it would be a fun challenge!! Eb x
Leyla Preston says
Really, really yum! Must try this! x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Layla 🙂 Do let me know how it goes if you try it!! Eb x
Carolin says
*whispers* I’ve never been to Nando’s. Can you believe it? This looks absolutely delicious, though, and I love that I can try it out at home now. Your photography is beautiful. I love how colourful and fresh everything looks x
Eb Gargano says
Haha, I’m sure you are not the only one!! And now you don’t need to, as you can make it at home instead! Thanks for your lovely kind words…and do let me know what you think if you try it 🙂 Eb x
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
Yum Yum! Mouth-wateringly good and perfect with the corn. I haven’t been to Nandos for a very long time (usually because the queues are too long whenever I fancy it), so good to see a quick home-made option on the table xx
Eb Gargano says
Haha – that’s a great advert for my dish “why stand for ages in the queue at Nando’s when you can make your own easy peasy Nando’s at home?!?” Thanks for your kind comments…it really is yummy 🙂 Eb x
Ayesha Bhatti says
HI Eb,
Your take on Peri Peri Chicken looks really awesome!!! i would love to try it for tonight. Please let me know did you use chicken with skin or without. Thanks and happy cooking!!
Eb Gargano says
So pleased you like it! I used chicken with the skin on. Do let me know how it goes 😀 Eb x
Emma says
Yum, yum, yum. That’s all!!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Emma 🙂
Jhuls | The Not So Creative Cook says
This is fantastic! I am a huge fan of Nando’s Peri Peri Chicken and I can’t wait to try this. Thanks for sharing, Eb. Have a lovely time!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Jhuls – hope you like it! Eb x
Rebecca says
Hi the picture looks fantastic! Is all the marinade going in a blender before you put on chicken or you’ve just got 4 cloves of garlic pieces in the marinade? Sorry ???
Eb Gargano says
Oh yikes, good spot. No blender (unless you want to) but the garlic should be crushed/grater/minced. Sorry about lack of clarity – I’ll fix that in the morning. Enjoy! Eb 🙂
Sabine says
Made this for Christmas this year. It was fingerlicking good! I didnt have enough thighs, so I used additional chicken wings and that was perfect for the kids. I made the rice as well as suggested in the recipe. Was little too spicy for the kids. But the grown ups said it was perfect combination with the meat.
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so pleased you and your family enjoyed this so much. Thank you so much for leaving this lovely review and especially for the 5* rating! Eb 🙂
Mateo says
I am new to cooking so I have a question: What type of “roasting tray” should I use? When I do a search online I see just a big pan, one with little raised lines in the bottom, ones with some type of rack in it? It’s ok to laugh at my naivety. 😉
Thanks,
Mateo
Eb Gargano says
Hi Mateo! I would never laugh at a newbie question – we all have to start somewhere 😀 Honestly, any kind of tray / pan that you can put in the oven will be fine with this recipe, though you do want one with sides… otherwise the juices will run off the tray and you’ll have a big cleanup on your hands! I like Falconware and I have one exactly like this one: https://amzn.to/3jhCwXz which would work perfectly for this recipe. I also have one very similar to this one: https://amzn.to/3jn4Yay which would work well for this recipe, but also for other traybakes/sheetpan meals which require a larger roasting tray. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
P.S. Just to be 100% honest and transparent, the links above are affiliate links. I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
Kath says
Hi, I made this tonight and it was AMAZING!!! Only thing is, I’ve got tons of rice left (I used kidney beans). Is it safe to freeze and reheat??
Eb Gargano says
Aw, yay! I am so happy to hear that. Yes it’s safe to freeze and reheat rice so long as you: get it into the freezer within 2h of cooking, defrost in the fridge overnight (not at room temperature) and reheat until it’s piping hot all the way through. You must also only reheat once. Hope that help! Eb 🙂
Trisha Brindle says
This dish is going on my table after the Easter weekend, I do enjoy Nando’s but I feel sure your recipe will stand up to Nando’s it looks absolutely delicious 😋
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks! So pleased you like it 😀
Jen says
Thumbs up all round for this dish. I made it even easy peasier by using sliced marinated breast fillets which I fried and added a can of sweetcorn to the rice!
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe so much. Love the sound of your adaptations. Thank you for taking the time to leave a review… and especially for the 5 star rating!
Simon says
Thanks Eb! I am an incredibly lazy cook, but I made this recipe after finding four chicken legs reduced to clear for 80p (yeah, that’s for all four, not each), and it worked fine for me. The fresh lime juice really adds some zest.
Eb Gargano says
Great to hear – and what a find! Thank you for this lovely review 😀
Peter says
Such an amazing recipe, i have blessed many people with it 😄
I have found that if you get skin on boneless thighs (you sometimes have to de-bone yourself to keep the skin) work fanstastically, fyi.
I highly recommend making this 🤙🏼
Eb Gargano says
Aw yay – that’s so great to hear! Thank you for this lovely review 😀
Jo says
Thanks you for this, made it last night and it was a lovely family meal and so easy. I’m really pleased I found this recipe!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, that’s so great to hear! Thanks for this lovely review and especially the 5* rating 😀
Jenny says
This looks fantastic! Can I also use chicken breast? Not everyone in my family likes dark meat. Thank you!!
Eb Gargano says
Yes you can! Though I recommend you cook the chicken breasts for a shorter time. Depending on the size of your chicken breasts 15-20 minutes is usually plenty. Alternatively, you can pan fry the chicken breasts, using this recipe >>> https://www.easypeasyfoodie.com/easy-peri-peri-chicken-breasts-nandos-copycat/
Debbie Lukic says
Very simple recipe to follow, in fact it was easy peasy!!! and after several hours marinading it was absolutely superb, cooked it for friends and they all said it was better than Nandos…I will definitely be cooking this recipe again it was really good! Thanku
Eb Gargano says
Aw, yay – that’s so great to hear! Thanks for this lovely review and especially the 5* rating 😀
Steve says
Tried it last night. It was delicious. Thank you, Eb.
Would it work with a whole chicken, that needs to be in the oven for much longer?
Eb Gargano says
That’s great to hear! I have to say, I’ve never tried it with a whole chicken so I can’t say for definite how well it would work. But certainly worth a try! And yes it would need longer in the oven. I do a 2kg whole chicken for 1h30 @ 220C / 200C fan / gas mark 7 / 425F. I guess the only thing I would say about doing a whole chicken is that less surface area would get covered with the marinade, so you’d get less of the Peri Peri flavour in each mouthful. If you try it, let me know how it goes! 😀