Peri-Peri Chicken Thighs with Blistered Peppers
A peri-peri rub built from two chillies and a lemon, blistering onto chicken while the peppers soften in the drippings underneath.
Why it works
Boneless thighs opened out flat cook through in thirteen minutes and stay juicy where breast would tighten and dry. The vinegar and lemon keep the rub loose enough to coat every surface, so it browns into a lacquer rather than pooling in the drawer. Potatoes given seven minutes in the microwave first go into the basket already tender, so they only have to crisp.
Method
- Heat the air fryer to 200°C (400°F). Put the potatoes in a heatproof bowl with a splash of water, cover with a plate and microwave on high for 7 minutes — a knife should slide into them before they go anywhere near the basket.
- Meanwhile, open the thighs out on the board and press the thick lobes flat so each is an even 2 cm (¾ in).
- Stir the chilli, garlic, paprika, oregano, vinegar, oil, lemon zest and juice and salt in a bowl. Add the chicken and turn it until every piece is streaked red.
- Drain the potatoes and tip them into the basket with the peppers and onion, turning them through a spoonful of the rub. Lay the chicken on top in a single layer and scrape the last of the rub over.
- Air fry for 13 minutes, turning the chicken once at 8 minutes. It is ready when the edges have caught dark and the juices run clear at the thickest point — 74°C (165°F) on a probe.
- Stir the yoghurt with the grated garlic and a pinch of salt in a mug while the basket runs.
- Let it settle for the minute it takes to find plates, then serve the chicken over the potatoes and peppers with the pan juices, the garlic yoghurt, parsley and lemon wedges.
For the toddler
Set aside one thigh, a few potato halves and some pepper strips at step 3, before anything meets the rub, and cook theirs in the basket with nothing but a little plain oil. Two bird's eye chillies cannot be toned down after the fact. Shred the cooked chicken finely, crush the potatoes and cut the peppers into soft finger-length strips. Spoon them plain yoghurt with no garlic or salt stirred in.
How the toddler notes workChef’s notes
Drumsticks work on the same rub but need 20 minutes. Halloumi or thick portobello slices take 10.
Double the rub and keep half in a jar; it holds two weeks chilled and cuts prep to two minutes.
Tomatoes and red onion in vinegar, or something green and plain — buttered cabbage, or shredded lettuce with lemon.
Shred the cold chicken through the peppers and crush the potatoes into it with more lemon. Keeps 3 days chilled.