Molho Piri-Piri Caseiro (Homemade Portuguese Piri-Piri Sauce)

When I posted my recipe for Portuguese Piri-Piri Chicken (recipe on the site), half the comments were people asking where to buy the sauce, and the honest answer is: don’t buy it, make it, it takes ten minutes and tastes a hundred times better than anything in a bottle. This is the sauce my husband’s family keeps in a repurposed wine bottle on the kitchen table year-round, next to the olive oil, ready for absolutely everything.

True Portuguese piri-piri sauce isn’t the fiery, vinegar-forward hot sauce Americans sometimes expect; it’s more of an infused, garlicky chili oil, built on African bird’s eye chilies that Portuguese sailors brought back centuries ago and that became fully woven into Portuguese cooking, especially in dishes with roots in Mozambique and Angola. It’s meant to season, not just to burn.

I keep a jar of this in the fridge at all times because it goes on everything: grilled chicken, my Portuguese Piri-Piri Chicken, roasted potatoes, even a fried egg. Lucas has started asking for ‘the red sauce’ on nearly everything he eats, which I take as a very good sign. It’s also fantastic brushed on my Sardinhas Assadas (recipe on the site) right before they come off the grill.

Molho Piri-Piri Caseiro Recipe

Prep time: 10 minutes (plus 3 days resting for best flavor) · Cook time: 5 minutes · Total: 15 minutes active (up to 3 days for full flavor) · Servings: about 1 cup · Calories: ~45 per serving

Ingredients

• 8 to 10 fresh red bird’s eye chilies (or piri-piri chilies if you can find them), stemmed
• 4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. If you like your sauce with some texture, roughly chop the chilies; for a smoother sauce, leave them whole, they’ll break down more in blending.
2. Warm the olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat until just warm to the touch, not simmering. Add the chilies, garlic, and bay leaf, and let steep off the heat for 10 minutes to take the raw edge off the garlic.
3. Transfer the chili mixture (minus the bay leaf) to a blender or food processor with the lemon juice, smoked paprika, and salt. Blend until mostly smooth, with just a little texture remaining.
4. Pour into a clean glass jar or bottle and add the bay leaf back in. For the best flavor, refrigerate for at least 3 days before using, though it’s usable the same day in a pinch.
5. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks, shaking before each use as the oil and solids will separate.

Recipe Notes

• Fresh piri-piri chilies are hard to find in the US; Thai bird’s eye chilies are the closest substitute and widely available at Asian markets, or use fresh red serranos for a milder version.
• Wear gloves when handling the chilies, and don’t touch your eyes, this sauce has real heat.
• For a smokier, more traditional depth, char the chilies briefly in a dry skillet before steeping them in the oil.
• This sauce mellows and deepens after a few days in the fridge, so resist eating it all on day one if you can.