Jamie Oliver’s Grilled Chilli and Lemon Chicken
This grilled whole chicken by Jamie Oliver is perfect for feeding a hungry crowd at a barbecue. It is served with a delicious sauce featuring charred chillies and peppers, fresh herbs and lemon.
Introduction
Bringing piri piri vibes, here we’re making an incredible sauce to use as both a marinade for cooking and a salsa to serve, meaning double flavour impact.
Ingredients
| 9 | mixed-colour chillies |
| 1 | long red pepper |
| 1 | bulb of garlic |
| 4 | bay leaves |
| ½ tsp | dried red chilli flakes |
| 1 bunch of | thyme (20g) |
| 1 | lemon |
| 1 x 1.5kg | whole chicken |
| Optional: | |
|---|---|
| sprigs of bay, thyme and rosemary |
Method
Light the barbecue (see note below for coal set up). Prick the chillies and pepper and, as the barbecue heats up, char the chillies, pepper and whole garlic bulb over the hot zone, lid on, vents open.
Use tongs to toast the bay leaves on the grill for 30 seconds, then tear into a pestle and mortar, discarding the stalks. Add the chilli flakes and a pinch of sea salt, strip in the thyme and pound well. Use a speed peeler to strip in the lemon peel and pound again into a rough paste (you can use a small food processor for this step, if you prefer). Remove the thick white pith from the lemon, then finely chop the flesh. Muddle into the pestle and mortar with 2 tablespoons each of red wine vinegar and extra virgin olive oil.
Scrape away the larger bits of charred skin from the chillies and pepper, discarding the seeds and stalks, peel the garlic, then finely chop it all. Scrape into the pestle and mortar, mix together and season to perfection.
Use a large sharp knife to carefully cut down the back of the chicken, so you can open it out flat like a book, then score the legs. Reserve half the sauce in a small bowl for serving, then rub the rest over the chicken, getting into all the nooks and crannies. Place on the cool zone, skin side up, tucking extra woody herb sprigs around the edge to protect the chicken as it cooks, if you like, and cook lid on, vents open, for 1 hour, or until juicy and cooked through and the internal temperature is 65–70ºC. Move to a clean board to rest for 30 minutes (the internal temp needs to reach 75ºC).
Spoon over the remaining sauce and clank up the chicken. Great with Grilled chips (page 222 of BBQ) or sweet potato wedges, or my Sriracha corn (page 94 of BBQ).
Coal set up
Channel: A channel set-up is useful when what you’re cooking would benefit from more of an even all-round heat. It mimics cooking in an oven, allows you to cook at a slower pace, and is particularly well suited to lid on, vents open grilling. Arrange your coals evenly at either side of the barbecue, leaving a clear coal-free channel in the middle.
*For Jamie Oliver’s top barbecue tips, check out this How To BBQ article.
Reviews
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