BBQ Seafood Platter with Piri Piri Sauce
Try this BBQ Seafood platter with Piri Piri Sauce recipe, or contribute your own.
Try this BBQ Seafood platter with Piri Piri Sauce recipe, or contribute your own.
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 5 tbsp olive oil
- 3 cloves
- for the seafood:
- 4 cloves garlic finely grated
- 1 red chilli finely chopped
- a good handful of parsley finely chopped
- a good handful of coriander finely chopped
- 300 g clams cleaned and prepared
- 250 g mussels cleaned and prepared
- 8 prawns
- 8 langoustines
- 6 baby squid cleaned and prepared
- sourdough bread to serve
- for the piri piri sauce:
- 1 large red onion peeled and sliced in half
- 2 vine-ripened tomatoes, halved
- 4 long fresh chillies
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for griddling
- 2 thyme sprigs
- Carbohydrate 6.38728200781387 g
- Cholesterol 18.24 mg
- Fat 4.62331985475035 g
- Fiber 1.03064043839889 g
- Protein 3.38277088235294 g
- Saturated Fat 0.65096455907334 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (74g)
- Sodium 22.0240270818944 mg
- Sugar 5.35664156941497 g
- Trans Fat 0.2335231618137 g
- Calories 76 calories
Step-by-step
- Place a griddle pan over a high heat while you toss the onion, tomatoes, garlic and chillies in a little oil.
- When the pan is smoking hot, add the vegetables and char them on all sides until softened and caramelised.
- Transfer to a food processor along with the vinegar, olive oil, thyme and paprika and process until smooth.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the oil, garlic, chilli and half the chopped herbs.
- Add the seafood and toss to combine.
- With a hot griddle pan, or over a high heat on the barbecue, cook the marinated seafood.
- Cook for two-three minutes either side, or until cooked all the way through and the mussel and clam shells have opened completely.
- Transfer to a serving platter, top with the rest of the herbs and serve with piri piri sauce and sourdough bread.
How hot should the griddle actually be before the seafood touches the metal? A smoking hot surface is non-negotiable here, requiring ten full minutes of high heat to achieve proper char without overcooking the delicate flesh inside. When cooking mixed shellfish and cephalopods together, visual cues dictate timing entirely rather than a rigid clock. Mussels and clams require two to three minutes to gape open fully, while squid demands a rapid sear to avoid turning rubbery.
Piri piri traditions trace back to Portuguese and Mozzarella exchange routes where small bird's eye chillies met European vinegar-making techniques. Charring the onions, tomatoes, and chillies on a dry griddle first breaks down their natural sugars through caramelization. Blending these blistered vegetables with extra-virgin olive oil and smoked paprika builds a pungent condiment anchored by deep, smoky undertones.
Preparing components ahead of time streamlines the cooking process significantly on busy evenings. The finished piri piri sauce stores safely in an airtight jar in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Pouring a thin slick of olive oil across the surface before sealing creates an oxygen barrier that prevents oxidation and spoilage.
Crustaceans like prawns and langoustines absorb aromatics rapidly during a brief ten-minute marinade in garlic and chilli oil. Sourdough bread toasted directly on the hot grill bars captures remaining pan juices before serving. Extra herbs scattered at the finish provide a fresh aromatic contrast to the heavy char from the fire.
