Fire-Roasted Peri-Peri Sauce with Bird's Eye Chiles

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The Portuguese-Mozambican table sauce that built an empire of flame-grilled chicken, made properly at home. Bird's eye chiles and red bell peppers go under the broiler until blistered and smoky, then get blitzed with roasted garlic, smoked paprika, lemon and red wine vinegar. A short simmer knocks the raw edge off the garlic and thickens it into a pourable, brick-red sauce that works as a marinade, a basting glaze and a hot sauce for the table.

Ingredients

• 2 red bell peppers
• 12 fresh African bird's eye or Thai bird chiles, stems removed
• 2 red Fresno or red jalapeño chiles, stems removed
• 1 head garlic, top third sliced off
• 1 small shallot, peeled and halved

• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1/2 tsp black peppercorns
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice, plus 2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup water, plus more as needed

Instructions

1. Heat the broiler to high and set an oven rack 6 inches below the element. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Wrap the garlic head in a small foil packet with a teaspoon of the olive oil drizzled over the cut side.
2. Halve and seed the bell peppers and lay them cut side down on the sheet along with the whole bird's eye chiles, the Fresno chiles and the shallot halves. Tuck the garlic packet onto a corner of the sheet.
3. Broil 12 to 16 minutes, turning the small chiles once with tongs halfway through, until the bell pepper skins are blackened and blistered in patches and the chiles are soft and lightly charred. Pull the sheet out, pile the peppers into a bowl, cover with a plate and let them steam 10 minutes. Leave the garlic packet closed for now.
4. Slip the loose skins off the bell peppers and discard them; keep every bit of the juice that collects in the bowl. Unwrap the garlic and squeeze 6 to 8 soft cloves out of their skins.
5. Toast the coriander seeds and peppercorns in a small dry skillet over medium heat for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, shaking constantly, until fragrant. Grind them fine in a spice grinder or mortar.
6. Combine the peeled peppers and their juices, all the charred chiles, roasted garlic, shallot, ground toasted spices, smoked paprika, oregano, ground ginger, vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice and zest, salt, sugar and 1/4 cup water in a blender. Blend on high for 60 to 90 seconds, until completely smooth and glossy.
7. Pour the sauce into a nonreactive saucepan and bring to a bare simmer over medium heat. Cook 10 to 12 minutes at a lazy bubble, stirring often, until the raw garlic bite has mellowed and the sauce coats the back of a spoon but still pours freely. Thin with a tablespoon of water at a time if it tightens too much.
8. Taste carefully with a clean spoon and adjust: more salt for depth, another teaspoon of vinegar for lift, a pinch of sugar if the chiles are aggressive. Cool to room temperature, then pour into clean jars or bottles.
9. Refrigerate at least 12 hours before serving — the heat and smoke settle and the flavor rounds out overnight. Shake before each use.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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