Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (2024)

Why It Works

  • Butterflying the chicken ensures that it cooks evenly on the grill, even without a rotisserie.
  • A vinegary, spice-filled marinade evokes the best restaurant versions of the dish.
  • Using mayonnaise as a base for the spicy, tangy green sauce makes it creamy and rich. A mix of jalapeños and ají amarillo peppers brings fruity heat.

This Peruvian-style grilled chicken is a recipe I back-hacked from the awesome chicken and green sauce they serve at Pio Pio in NYC. The basics are simple: Butterflied chicken with a vinegar and spice rub gets slow-cooked on the grill, then quickly cooked directly over the coals to crisp the skin. It comes out tender and juicy, and goes perfectly with a simple spicy and creamy sauce made with jalapeños and ají amarillo peppers.

Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (1)

Making the Green Sauce

When it comes to that kind of Peruvian roast chicken, it's all about the green sauce, right? I mean, sure, the tender chicken, kissed with the smoke of a live fire and a hint of spices and garlic, is pretty damn good on its own, but it's that green sauce—spicy, tangy, and cooling—that keeps us coming back for more, right?

Luckily, the sauce is not too difficult to make: a tangy mayonnaise base, pepped up with a squeeze of lime juice and lemon, along with the heat of fresh jalapeños and a big handful of cilantro. The key is to season it pretty heavily. When made right, it will have a powerful but balanced combination of salty, acidic, spicy, and creamy elements. It's great on grilled chicken, awesome as a salad dressing, perfect for dipping fries into, a nice accompaniment to grilled corn, and excellent drizzled over grilled chicken hash the morning after.

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Prepping the Chicken and Marinade

The best Peruvian roast chicken restaurants cook their chickens on rotisseries, slowly rotating in front of a live flame, fat rendering out from the skin and dripping around and through the meat, distributing flavor and ensuring that the chickens cook evenly. Fortunately, we already know that you don't need a rotisserie to get moist, crispy results from your home grill. All you've got to do is butterfly the bird.

Once you've perfected the basic grilled chicken recipe, the jump to a perfect Peruvian-style grilled chicken is pretty simple. The key is the right marinade. Cumin, paprika, and garlic (freshly minced, please!) are all typical ingredients, as is vinegar. I like to add plenty of salt and black pepper and a couple of tablespoons of oil to make a paste that I can rub all over the chicken.

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How to Grill the Chicken

From there, I simply follow my typicalgrilled chicken procedure—a low, slow start on the cooler side of the grill, with the skin side up, until the skin has dried out and started rendering some of its fat, then a finish over the hot side of the grill, skin side down, to crisp and char it.

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Make sure to make extra sauce, because you're gonna want it on everything.

August 2012

Recipe Details

Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe

Prep10 mins

Cook85 mins

Active30 mins

Total95 mins

Serves4 servings

Ingredients

For the Sauce:

  • 3 whole jalapeño chiles, roughly chopped (see notes)

  • 1 tablespoon (15ml) ají amarillo pepper paste (see notes)

  • 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves (1 ounce; 28g)

  • 2 medium cloves garlic

  • 1/2 cup (120ml) mayonnaise

  • 1/4 cup (60ml) sour cream

  • 2 teaspoons (10ml) fresh juice from 1 lime

  • 1 teaspoon (5ml) distilled white vinegar

  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) extra-virgin olive oil

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Chicken:

  • 1 whole chicken, 3 1/2 to 4 pounds (1.6 to 1.8kg)

  • 4 teaspoons (12g) kosher salt

  • 2 tablespoons (18g) ground cumin

  • 2 tablespoons (18g) paprika

  • 1 teaspoon (3g) freshly ground black pepper

  • 3 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tablespoon)

  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) white vinegar

  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) vegetable or canola oil

Directions

  1. For the Sauce: Combine jalapeños, ají amarillo (if using), cilantro, garlic, mayonnaise, sour cream, lime juice, and vinegar in the jar of a blender. Blend on high speed, scraping down sides as necessary, until smooth. With blender running, slowly drizzle in olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sauce will be quite loose at this point, but will thicken as it sits. Transfer to a sealed container and refrigerate until ready to use.

    Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (5)

  2. For the Chicken: Pat chicken dry with paper towels and place on a large cutting board, breast side down. Using sharp kitchen shears, remove backbone by cutting along either side of it. Turn chicken over and lay out flat. Press firmly on breast to flatten chicken. For added stability, run a metal or wooden skewer horizontally through chicken, entering through one thigh, going through both breast halves, and exiting through other thigh. Tuck wing tips behind back.

    Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (6)

  3. Combine salt, cumin, paprika, pepper, garlic, vinegar, and oil in a small bowl and massage with fingertips until hom*ogeneous. Spread mixture evenly over all surfaces of chicken.

    Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (7)

  4. Light a chimney full of charcoal. When all charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread coals evenly over half of coal grate. Alternatively, set half the burners of a gas grill to high heat. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill, and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil grilling grate.

    Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (8)

  5. Place chicken, skin side up, on cooler side of grill, with legs facing toward hotter side. Cover grill, with vents on lid open and aligned over chicken. Open bottom vents of grill. Cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of breast registers 110°F (43°C). Carefully flip chicken and place, skin side down, on hotter side of grill, with breasts pointed toward cooler side. Press down firmly with a wide, stiff spatula to ensure good contact between bird and grill grates. Cover and cook until skin is crisp and an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of breast registers 145 to 150°F (63 to 66°C), about 10 minutes longer. If chicken threatens to burn before temperature is achieved, carefully slide to cooler side of grill, cover, and continue to cook until done. Do not leave the lid off for longer than it takes to check temperature, or chicken will burn.

    Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (9)

  6. Transfer chicken to a cutting board and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Carve and serve with sauce.

    Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (10)

Special Equipment

Grill, blender, instant-read thermometer, metal or wooden skewer

Notes

For a less spicy sauce, remove the ribs and seeds of the jalapeños before puréeing. Ají amarillo is a Peruvian yellow pepper paste that can be found in most Latin markets. It can be omitted.

Read More

  • Serious Entertaining: A Spring Grilling Menu
  • The Food Lab's Grilled Chicken World Tour: 5 Recipes to Rock Your Backyard Bird
Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken With Green Sauce Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is Peruvian green sauce made of? ›

Ají Verde is made from cilantro, scallions, garlic, lime juice, ají amarillo paste, mayonnaise, and a touch of salt. The fresh mint in this version isn't at all traditional, but it is delicious — feel free to skip it if you'd prefer. Some versions also include cheese and/or huacatay "black mint" paste.

What is Peruvian chicken made of? ›

The basics are simple: Butterflied chicken with a vinegar and spice rub gets slow-cooked on the grill, then quickly cooked directly over the coals to crisp the skin. It comes out tender and juicy, and goes perfectly with a simple spicy and creamy sauce made with jalapeños and ají amarillo peppers.

Why is Peruvian chicken so good? ›

What makes Peruvian-style rotisserie chicken so uncommonly delicious? It's the spice rub. Not only does it taste amazing, the thick wet rub also creates a sensational crust that seals in juices. The result is a bird that's incredibly juicy with a super-flavorful crispy crust.

Where is Peruvian chicken from? ›

The dish was developed by Roger Schuler, a Swiss resident of Chaclacayo, Lima, in 1950. Schuler was a Swiss national who found it difficult to return to his home country during World War II, and after migrating around several locations in Chile and Peru, settled in Lima, working in hotels and restaurants.

What is green sauce made of? ›

The Italian salsa verde is a cold rustic sauce, and includes parsley, vinegar, capers, garlic, onion, anchovies, olive oil, and possibly mustard. The ingredients are coarsely chopped, formerly by hand, now often in a food processor.

What seasoning is in Peruvian food? ›

Ingredients
  • 2 teaspoons ground aji peppers* or cayenne or chiles de árbol for similar heat; Aleppo for fruitiness (but less heat)
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin.
  • 2 teaspoons ground annatto.
  • 1 teaspoons ground oregano*
  • 2 teaspoons ground dehydrated garlic.
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika.
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground.

Is Peruvian chicken unhealthy? ›

When you search for the 'best Peruvian chicken near me,' know that it's one the tastiest healthy dishes you can choose. If you're planning to eat something on a busy workday, Peruvian chicken is a great source of healthy protein.

What meat do Peruvians eat? ›

The four traditional staples of Peruvian cuisine are corn, potatoes and other tubers, Amaranthaceae (quinoa, kañiwa and kiwicha), and legumes (beans and lupins). Staples brought by the Spanish include rice, wheat and meats (beef, pork and chicken).

What is the Peruvian dish blood? ›

Sangrecita is a Peruvian cuisine dish of chicken blood. It is seasoned with garlic, onion, chili pepper, herbs and prepared with baked potatoes, fried sweet potatoes or cassava.

What is the most delicious chicken in the world? ›

Today the poulet de Bresse has the reputation of being the best quality table chicken in the world.

Why does Peruvian food taste like Chinese food? ›

Peruvian cuisine is a blend of not only authentic South American dishes but also flavors from Asia, Africa, and Europe. In fact, around three to five percent of the population of Peru has Asian roots. And guess what? The first Asians to arrive in Peru were the Chinese.

Why is Peruvian food so famous? ›

Peruvian Recipes are Based on the Freshest Ingredients

Peruvian dishes can be so diverse, with so many ingredients to choose from, but there's one common aspect: freshness. No matter how simple, every Peruvian dish values its components' freshness. Even drinks like chicha Morada use the best variety of purple corn.

What does Peruvian mean? ›

Peruvian means belonging or related to Peru, or to its people or culture. ... the high, fertile valleys of the Peruvian Andes. A Peruvian is someone who is Peruvian.

What is the most popular meat in Peru? ›

Pollo a la brasa is a popular Peruvian dish consisting of crunchy and juicy charcoal-grilled chicken that is traditionally served with French fries and salads. Today, it is one of the most consumed meals in Peru, so much that 27 million Peruvians eat it daily.

What's the difference between green sauce and salsa verde? ›

Another key difference is the consistency. Green enchilada sauce is thinner than salsa verde and is cut with stock or water. Salsa verde, on the other hand, skips the liquid and consists only of vegetables and peppers blended together.

Is salsa verde the same as green sauce? ›

The biggest misconception about salsa verde is that it's literally salsa—as in, to dip tortilla chips in. But it's so much more than that. It's a category of green sauces that are served cold or room temperature and uncooked.

What does green sauce taste like? ›

It is believed that green sauce is not very spicy. However, as the tomatillos can be slightly sweet, the green chilies add to the heat. Some green sauce recipes will also have jalapenos and serrano which cranks up the heat. Green sauce ranges from a mild to hot spicy flavor.

What is the difference between green sauce and tomatillo sauce? ›

Tomatillo sauce: A Sause made using tomatillos, most of the time the final result is a green looking salsa, but it can end up being other color depending on other ingredients that where used. Salsa verde = Green salsa, is just to generic.

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