I am still working on learning to smoke in my WSM Mini. So, I decided to do a spatchcock Piri Piri Chicken.
I started by mixing up a Piri Piri Sauce:
Zest of one lemon
45 ml (3 tablespoons) lemon juice
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
15 ml (1 tbsp) piri piri spice
You can get Piri Piri spice in specialty stores but I have used 1/2 the amount of crushed dried chilies as a substitute with good result.
I spatchcocked a 2 1/2 pound frying chicken.
Then I rubbed the Piri Piri over both sides of the chicken.
I pushed some under the skin of the breasts and thighs and let it sit in the fridge for 4 hours.
I heated up a chimney of lump charcoal and set up the Mini with some plum wood chunks. I got it to about 275 F and put the chicken on.
I cooked it for a little under an hour to get the breast meat to 160 F.
I wanted the skin a little crispier so I threw it on the Weber Grill on high for a couple of minutes.
I cut it into serving pieces and She Who Must Be Obeyed made some coleslaw and green salad.
The Verdict: I thought this was perfect. The chicken is spicy with a nice lemon overtone. However, She Who Must Be Obeyed said there was too much garlic (she was wrong). Of course, I will use next garlic the next time I make it (even though she is wrong). Even with the garlic argument, this was a great success and will be made again. However, next time I will kick up the heat in the mini and might be able to get away without grilling for a crisper skin.
Disco
I started by mixing up a Piri Piri Sauce:
Zest of one lemon
45 ml (3 tablespoons) lemon juice
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
15 ml (1 tbsp) piri piri spice
You can get Piri Piri spice in specialty stores but I have used 1/2 the amount of crushed dried chilies as a substitute with good result.
I spatchcocked a 2 1/2 pound frying chicken.
Then I rubbed the Piri Piri over both sides of the chicken.
I pushed some under the skin of the breasts and thighs and let it sit in the fridge for 4 hours.
I heated up a chimney of lump charcoal and set up the Mini with some plum wood chunks. I got it to about 275 F and put the chicken on.
I cooked it for a little under an hour to get the breast meat to 160 F.
I wanted the skin a little crispier so I threw it on the Weber Grill on high for a couple of minutes.
I cut it into serving pieces and She Who Must Be Obeyed made some coleslaw and green salad.
The Verdict: I thought this was perfect. The chicken is spicy with a nice lemon overtone. However, She Who Must Be Obeyed said there was too much garlic (she was wrong). Of course, I will use next garlic the next time I make it (even though she is wrong). Even with the garlic argument, this was a great success and will be made again. However, next time I will kick up the heat in the mini and might be able to get away without grilling for a crisper skin.
Disco
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