Sous Vide Piri Piri Chicken
By America's Test KitchenPublished on June 25, 2018
Time
Sous vide: 1½ to 3 hours; active cooking time: 50 minutes, plus marinating time
Yield
Serves 4
Sous Vide Temperature
1½ to 3 hours
Ingredients
2–5 arbol chiles, stemmed1 shallot, chopped2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon salt 1 tablespoon tomato paste 2 teaspoons sugar 1½ teaspoons paprika 1½ teaspoons five-spice powder 1 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest plus 2 tablespoons juice, plus lemon wedges for serving½ teaspoon pepper ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper 2 bay leaves, crumbled4 12-ounce bone-in split chicken breasts, trimmed
Before You Begin
If you can find piri piri chiles, use them instead of arbols. For a spicier dish, use the greater amount of chiles. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.
Instructions
- Process arbols, shallot, oil, salt, tomato paste, sugar, paprika, five-spice powder, garlic powder, lemon zest and juice, pepper, cayenne, and bay leaves in blender until smooth, scraping down sides of blender jar as needed, about 1 minute. Place chicken and chile paste in 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag and toss to coat. Seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Refrigerate chicken for at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.
- Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 150°F/65.5°C in 7-quart container. Gently lower bag into prepared water bath until chicken is fully submerged, and then clip top corner of bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook chicken for at least 1½ hours or up to 3 hours.
- Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Set wire rack in aluminum foil–lined rimmed baking sheet and spray with vegetable oil spray. Transfer chicken skin side up to prepared rack and let rest while preparing sauce.
- Pour accumulated juices into 8-inch skillet, bring to simmer over medium heat, and cook until reduced by two-thirds, 3 to 5 minutes. Brush chicken with sauce and broil until skin is crisp and lightly charred, 6 to 8 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.TO MAKE AHEAD: Chicken and accumulated juices can be rapidly chilled in ice bath and then refrigerated in zipper-lock bag after step 2 for up to 5 days. To reheat, return sealed bag to water bath set to 150°F/65.5 °C for 20 minutes. Proceed with step 3.
Time
Sous vide: 1½ to 3 hours; active cooking time: 50 minutes, plus marinating timeYield
Serves 4Sous Vide Temperature
1½ to 3 hoursIngredients
2–5 arbol chiles, stemmed
1 shallot, chopped
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 teaspoons sugar
1½ teaspoons paprika
1½ teaspoons five-spice powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest plus 2 tablespoons juice, plus lemon wedges for serving
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 bay leaves, crumbled
4 12-ounce bone-in split chicken breasts, trimmed
Ingredients
2–5 arbol chiles, stemmed
1 shallot, chopped
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 teaspoons sugar
1½ teaspoons paprika
1½ teaspoons five-spice powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest plus 2 tablespoons juice, plus lemon wedges for serving
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 bay leaves, crumbled
4 12-ounce bone-in split chicken breasts, trimmed
Ingredients
2–5 arbol chiles, stemmed
1 shallot, chopped
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 teaspoons sugar
1½ teaspoons paprika
1½ teaspoons five-spice powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest plus 2 tablespoons juice, plus lemon wedges for serving
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 bay leaves, crumbled
4 12-ounce bone-in split chicken breasts, trimmed
Why This Recipe Works
For our rendition of piri piri chicken, we start by blending garlic powder, tomato paste, herbs, spices, lemon juice, and dried arbol chiles to make a thick paste. We throw the paste straight into a plastic bag with the chicken to first marinate and then circulate. (Marinating is key to give the salt time to penetrate the meat to both season it and help it retain moisture during cooking.) Because there is little to no evaporation due to the sealed bag, this cooking method produces a considerable amount of juices. We reduce the juices in a pan to intensify the flavors, and then we brush them over the chicken before giving the meat a final broil in the oven to brown the skin.
Before You Begin
If you can find piri piri chiles, use them instead of arbols. For a spicier dish, use the greater amount of chiles. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.
Instructions
- Process arbols, shallot, oil, salt, tomato paste, sugar, paprika, five-spice powder, garlic powder, lemon zest and juice, pepper, cayenne, and bay leaves in blender until smooth, scraping down sides of blender jar as needed, about 1 minute. Place chicken and chile paste in 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag and toss to coat. Seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Refrigerate chicken for at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.
- Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 150°F/65.5°C in 7-quart container. Gently lower bag into prepared water bath until chicken is fully submerged, and then clip top corner of bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook chicken for at least 1½ hours or up to 3 hours.
- Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Set wire rack in aluminum foil–lined rimmed baking sheet and spray with vegetable oil spray. Transfer chicken skin side up to prepared rack and let rest while preparing sauce.
- Pour accumulated juices into 8-inch skillet, bring to simmer over medium heat, and cook until reduced by two-thirds, 3 to 5 minutes. Brush chicken with sauce and broil until skin is crisp and lightly charred, 6 to 8 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.TO MAKE AHEAD: Chicken and accumulated juices can be rapidly chilled in ice bath and then refrigerated in zipper-lock bag after step 2 for up to 5 days. To reheat, return sealed bag to water bath set to 150°F/65.5 °C for 20 minutes. Proceed with step 3.
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