These air fryer peri peri chicken thighs are great for a spicy, bold and delicious meal any night of the week! You need two simple ingredients to make this easy recipe: A bottle of piri-piri sauce and your choice of bone-in and skin-on or boneless and skinless thighs. Marinate the chicken for as little as half and hour (or overnight). Then cook the thighs in 20 minutes or less for a quick and easy dinner with a serious kick of flavor!
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Fiery and flavorful peri peri chicken is all the rage right now at popular restaurants (like Nando's). And it's easy to see why! You are always going to have a crowd-pleasing dish when you coat tender pieces of chicken in an irresistibly spicy, tangy, and savory sauce. With this great air fryer peri peri chicken recipe you can make a restaurant-quality main dish right at home, any time you get a craving!
I love these piri-piri chicken thighs for an exciting and delicious dinner that takes barely any effort to cook in the air fryer. And for only including 2 ingredients, this recipe is super customizable! Use your choice of boneless and skinless or bone-in and skin-on chicken thighs, plus your favorite brand of bottled peri peri sauce with whatever level of spiciness you like.
The meat marinates in the sauce for as little as 30 minutes. Or save some day-of cooking time and get the thighs in the marinade the night before or in the morning before heading out for the day!
Then air fry the chicken to juicy, spicy, and crisp perfection in under 20 minutes. They're great to pair with any number of side dishes, from southern comfort foods to simple and light veggies.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Chicken thighs. Chicken thighs always come out juicy when cooked properly in the air fryer. Its hard to overcook them because of the high fat content. You can substitute them with chicken quarters or chicken drumsticks.
- Peri-peri sauce. Alternatively you can use any other spicy sauce but this will make it a completely different recipe. Peri-peri sauce also comes in different flavors like garlic or extra hot. Use the one you prefer.
Frequently asked questions
Exact ingredients will vary from brand to brand. Most traditional peri peri sauces include oil, vinegar, and lemon plus spices like garlic, onions, and crushed dried chiles for the signature kick of heat. The ingredients are cooked together and then pureed into a smooth, pourable sauce.
The flavorful sauce has its roots in both South African and Portuguese cooking. Both spelling versions refer to the peri-peri or piri-piri bird's-eye chiles used to make the sauce. Peri with an "e" comes from the African spelling. Piri with an "i" is how the word is spelled in Portuguese.
This spicy sauce has become very popular over the last several years. You can likely find it at your local grocery store in the same aisle as other marinades and condiments. And you can definitely purchase bottles online, of course!
Yes, it is quite spicy... However, the chicken thighs are not "burn your tongue off" spicy. Bird's-eye chiles are much hotter that jalapeños, and are similar to the same level of spiciness as habanero peppers. The heat is balanced by the lemon, vinegar, and spices. So you get a delicious kick of heat that's mellowed a bit by the other ingredients.
I recommend marinating chicken for at least 30 minutes to infuse the meat with flavor. You can keep the chicken in the marinade for up to 24 hours. But the meat tends to get a bit too soft if marinated for any longer.
In this air fryer peri peri chicken recipe we use the sauce as a marinade before cooking the thighs. The marinated chicken gets nice and crisp in the fryer; I like to then serve as-is to keep the skin extra crispy. But you can brush on some more sauce (NOT the same sauce that the raw chicken was marinaded in) after air frying if you like. Or serve extra sauce on the side for dipping!
Storage instructions
Store leftover air fryer peri-peri chicken leftovers in the glass or plastic container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat in the same container in the microwave or in the air fryer at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 2-3 minutes.
Another great recipe that you may like is this air fryer bacon wrapped chicken thighs. So juicy on the inside and crispy om the outside! Or air fryer blackened chicken thighs, with a perfect blend of spices and really delicious flavor.
Hope you will like this air fryer peri peri chicken as much as we do. Rate the recipe if you made it and leave a comment below if you have any questions or suggestions.
Recipe
Air Fryer Peri Peri Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs skin-on bone-in
- ½ cup peri peri sauce
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Marinade chicken in sauce for 30 minutes.
- Place in air fryer, cook at 375 degrees for 15-17 minutes.
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