Nando´s in Lisbon? Forget it! Chicken piri piri only in the neighborhood steakhouse
In Portugal, when you think of fast food the first idea that comes to mind are not burgers or pizzas. For the Portuguese, fast food equals to buy a roast chicken in the neighborhood steakhouse.
This is the perfect option for those days when you do not feel like cooking, when you want a quick meal, that tastes good and satisfy your hunger. Oh, and for those who think Portuguese food means chicken piri piri here’s the truth: we don’t even like spicy food that much. Yes, there is the possibility to order roasted chicken with spicy sauce, but most of the people don’t order the sauce and prefers to accompany chicken with fries.
But then, where was the myth for chicken piri piri born? Once upon a time, in 1987, a Portuguese named Fernando Duarte decided to invite his friend Robbie Brozin to eat in a Portuguese tavern in Rosettenville, South Africa, and taste chicken with piri piri. Not only was the best chicken Robbie has ever ate, but it was also love at first bite!
The rest is history: the restaurant is scattered to the four corners of the world, from South Africa to the United States, Canada, UK, Australia, Singapore or Malaysia. Hence the myth that the Portuguese are addicted to spicy food. Everything might have started with the Portuguese settlers adopting Mozambican chillies to cook throughout the centuries there, but once in Portugal that has not become traditional, but an option.
The trick involves letting the chicken marinate for one day to the other, so the intense flavors can penetrate the meat. Others believe that the secret lies in the way the chicken is roasted. There is no restaurant of Nando’s chain in Portugal yet. You just have to go through a steakhouse to have this tasty grilled chicken to find out where and in what Nando got his inspiration. With or without spicy. Yes, we like spicy food, but definetly we are no spicy addicts. If you feel like very spicy roast chicken, we recommend you to go to an African restaurant like Cantinho do Aziz.
Where can I find a steakhouse:
Cantinho do Aziz
Rua de São Lourenço 5, Mouraria
Churrasqueira da Mouraria
Rua João do Outeiro 56, Mouraria
Churrasquinho do Bairro
Mercado De Campo De Ourique, 11
