Posted August 1, 2006 by Vic in Reviews

Review: Nando’s Hot Peri-Peri Grinder

If you remember back from my first Nando’s review, I tore into Nick’s box of goodies and “my” first product choice was redirected by my better half, this was the first item “I” wanted to try. So finally after what I feel is a good amount of feild testing, here it is. And believe me it’s worth the wait!

By now you’ve seen and read a lot of information about Nando’s products, to me each of them is uniquely different and stands proudly on their own representing well their ingredients and it’s own individual taste. This item from them is no different- Nando’s Hot Peri-Peri Grind is awesome. “Yeah yeah we know, you like everything you try Vic”. I hear you and your probably not to far from the truth, but I can tell you I have not been given something to review that I’ve hated or tatsed bad- guess I’ve been lucky so far. And in continuance of my luck, I have a bottle Nando’s Hot Peri-Peri Grind to use whenever I want or more accurately until I kill this bottle in the next couple of meals or so. 😉

Ingredients: Sea Salt, Paprika, Sugar, Black Peppercorns, Garlic Granules, Chili Granules, White Peppercorns, Onion Granules, Sodium Diacetate, Dehydrated Thyme, African Birds Eye Peppers (Peri-Peri Peppers), Citric Acid, Dehydrated Parsley, Sunflower Oil (1%), Silicon Dioxide (Anti-Caking Agent), Capsicum Oleoresin, Lemon Oil, Garlic Oil.

As you can see there is a lot of stuff in this mixture; whole peppercorns, good size pepper flakes, seeds, and a bunch of flavor. Also nicely hidden in there is some pretty good heat! You can actually smell it when you break the seal. You can detect the salt if you’re like us and not use it much, Sea Salt has a distinct aroma and it’s pronounced in this blend. Quickly jumping out were the Onion and Garlic with what I thought were the Peri-Peri’s, a nice dryed pepper smell following closely behind. It’s a warm pleasant overall smell with a kick in the tongue when you taste it.

Spice of Inspiration! Taunt your taste buds with this inviting African blend of Coarse Sea Salt, African Birds Eye Peppers (Peri-Peri Peppers), Lemon and Garlic. Spice up all your meals with this hot and passionate blend. Nando’s Hot Peri-Peri Grind is fabulous over grilled chicken, meats, fish, pizza, fries & burgers. Add full, fiery flavor to pasta dishes, salads, baked potatoes, soups & curries

Field Test: After much thought on what to try this on, I think I just confused myself. All the back and forth decisions on what food would go good with it, what dish would look good on the Blog, and Damn I look good! After my first choice of good old home made Spaghetti, it was on!- This stuff is going to compliment almost every type of meal I could whip up.

I put it generously on a suateed Strip Steak with Mushrooms and Onions, a side of Brocoli Rice, and a lightly toasted Garlic Baguette. You can see the I put it on everything, and picked up just about every granule with my finger.

And also on the Neice’s “Famous in Her Own Mind” Pork Chop ala’ Cream of Mushroom Soup Casserole with Mashed Potatoes and biscuits. Always a crowd favorite! everything I put the Nando’s Hot Peri-Peri Grind on accented the flavorings well and did not overdue and/or steal the meals flavor.

Conculsion: Nando’s Hot Peri-Peri Grind is a very versatile dry spice blend, with a suprisingly amount of sustainable heat. The heat is warm and hangs around in your mouth long enough to really relish it. I enjoyed this grind thoroughly, it went well with everything I tried it on. As directed be sure to replace the cap tightly and always store in a cool, dry place to keep the product fresh. Nando’s also suggests not use this product over steaming pots but beyond that, the sky is the the limit. Enjoy….

Packaging/Label: 7 out of 10
Aroma: 9 out of 10
Taste: 8 out of 10
Heat: 8 out of 10
Overall: 9 out of 10