Piri piri is a must-eat in Portugal. But what is Piri-Piri, you ask?
Well, technically piri-piri (or peri-peri) is a type of spicy pepper that is said to have made its way to Portugal from Africa.
Colloquially, however, piri-piri refers to traditional portuguese grilled chicken and you can order it spicy (with piri-piri pepper oil) or not spicy.
For our first frango piri piri (chicken piri-piri) in Portugal we visited O Piri Piri in Vilamoura.
What We Ordered
Piri Piri Chicken
The first thing you’ll notice if you’re an American is that this chicken is tiny! The second thing you’ll notice is how flavorful and delicious this chicken is!
You can see the piri piri oil pooled at the bottom of the bowl. Be sure to wipe it up with the chicken as you go. It’s spicy and glorious!
Pork Ribs
Again, I have to laugh, because as an American you will probably be thinking.. this must have been the skinniest pig in all the land – there is no meat on those bones!
It’s true, these ribs don’t have a bounty of meat, but what they do have is a bounty of flavor. I’m not sure what they are marinating these in or if it’s just the grilling technique, but on our visit the pork was muito saboroso.
Algarvian Carrots
On an absolute whim we ordered the Algarvian carrots and boy were they intriguing! This carrot dish is cold. But the carrots seemed soft, as if they were first boiled. They are marinated in what I assume is a combination of olive oil, a touch of vinegar, rough chopped garlic, and cilantro.
O Piri Piri Review
O Piri Piri is a churrasqueira in the heart of Vilamoura, an area of the Algarve known for prosperity. The prices reflect the location. The food quality was high. To date their piri piri chicken is one of my favorites that I’ve had in Portugal (it’s all in the spicy oil guysss) and the same is true with the cenouras algarvias (algarvian carrots). We’ve had them other places and they just weren’t nearly as flavorful as at O Piri Piri.
The algarvian carrot saladinha (little salad) is so unique that it’s something I would like to learn to make well and feature in Cooking Inspired by Travel. I am thankful that the first place I tried it was O Piri Piri, so that I knew how absolutely delightful this seemingly simple dish could be!
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