Peri Peri Chicken Cheddar Bake (High Protein, Low Calorie Nando’s Fakeaway)

Peri Peri Chicken Cheddar Bake

If you love a Nando’s but you’re keeping an eye on your calories, this peri peri chicken bake is about to become your new best friend. It’s everything you want from a Friday night fakeaway – spiced, juicy chicken, tender asparagus and courgette, and delicious, golden, bubbling Cheddar on top – and it comes together in just 30 minutes from start to finish.

I’ve always been a huge fan of peri peri seasoning. There’s something about that smoky, aromatic, spicy blend that just lifts chicken to another level entirely. And the clever thing about this low calorie peri peri chicken recipe is that it uses the spice mix to do all the hard work. You don’t need a complicated marinade or hours of prep. You just slice the chicken, sprinkle generously, pile on the veg and the cheese, and the oven does the rest.

At 343 calories per serving, it fits brilliantly into any calorie-controlled day without making you feel like you’re missing out on anything. In fact, I often make up a batch of my homemade peri peri spice mix (the recipe is in the notes below, and it takes about 2 minutes to throw together) so that I have it permanently sitting in a jar, ready for quick midweek meals like this one. Most supermarkets also sell a good peri peri seasoning if you’d rather just grab one off the shelf.

I usually serve this with a big mixed salad, but if you’re hungry and want something more filling, a portion of Slimming World chips, sweet potato fries, as well as corn on the cob or my simple homemade garlic bread alongside it turns it into a proper Nando’s fakeaway dinner that the whole family will love.

In this post

• What is peri peri chicken?
• Why you’ll love this recipe
• Variations and substitutions
• Serving suggestions
• Storing and reheating
• How does it work on Slimming World?
• Is this good for Mounjaro or Wegovy users?
• More chicken fakeaway recipes
• FAQs
• The recipe

What is peri peri chicken?

Peri-peri (also spelled piri-piri or pili pili) is a chilli-based cooking style that developed through Portuguese and Mozambican culinary influences. While it has been used in southern Africa for centuries, it was popularised globally more recently by restaurant chains such as Nando’s. The flavour comes from a spice blend typically built around paprika, chilli, garlic, coriander and cayenne, giving chicken a smoky, spicy, slightly tangy flavour that’s completely addictive. If you love cooking Nando’s-inspired food at home, you might also enjoy my lemon and herb roasted chicken – it uses a similar spiced yoghurt marinade on a whole bird for a proper weekend fakeaway feast. This baked Cheddar version is the quick weeknight take on those same lovely flavours.

Why you’ll love this recipe

• Only 343 calories per serving. All the satisfaction of a Nando’s fakeaway at a fraction of the calories – without skimping on flavour.
• Ready in 30 minutes. Five minutes of prep and 25 minutes in the oven. It’s genuinely one of the quickest fakeaway-style dinners you can make.
• The cheesy topping is a game changer. Golden, bubbling Cheddar over peri-peri spiced chicken and veg – it feels indulgent in the best possible way.
• Use shop-bought or homemade seasoning. You can use a jar of supermarket peri peri seasoning for total convenience, or whip up your own spice mix in 2 minutes (see the notes in the recipe card). Either works beautifully.
• Easy to scale up. This recipe serves 2, but it’s easy to double and cook in a larger dish if you’re feeding the whole family.

Variations and substitutions

• Swap the vegetables. Asparagus and courgette are my favourites here, but red pepper strips, Tenderstem broccoli or cherry tomatoes all work brilliantly with the peri peri flavours.
• Use chicken thighs. Boneless, skinless chicken thigh fillets are a great alternative to breast – they stay a little juicier and have plenty of flavour. Just check they’re cooked through before serving.
• Change the cheese. Mozzarella gives a milder, stringier melt if you prefer it to Cheddar. Reduced-fat Cheddar is a great swap if you want to bring the calories down further (just note that in my experience it dosn’t always melt as nicely as regular cheddar, which is why I tend to stick to the full-fat version). If you love the whole baked-chicken-with-cheese concept, my hunter’s chicken is another brilliant (and incredibly popular) version – BBQ sauce and bacon instead of peri peri, equally indulgent-tasting.
• Make it dairy-free. Simply leave the cheese out – you’ll still get a delicious, flavour-packed bake. Scatter over some toasted pine nuts or sunflower seeds at the end for a bit of texture instead.
• Adjust the heat. If you’re cooking for children or people who prefer milder food, look for a mild or lemon & herb peri peri seasoning rather than the hot version. If you want to make your own, you can follow my recipe in the notes, but cut down on the amount of chilli flakes and cayenne pepper, which are what bring the heat to this mix.

Serving suggestions

• A big, crisp mixed salad with cucumber, cherry tomatoes and a light lemon dressing is my go-to alongside this. Slimming World chips or homemade frozen chips (made with spray oil) turn this into a full Nando’s-style fakeaway feast – keep a batch in the freezer and they’re ready whenever you need them. Quick sweet potato fries are another brilliant pairing – the slight sweetness works beautifully against the peri peri spice. Serve with fluffy white rice or Tenderstem broccoli for a more filling midweek dinner.

Storing & reheating

• Fridge: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Freezer: This dish freezes well – allow it to cool completely, then transfer to a freezer-safe container for up to 1 month. Defrost fully in the fridge before reheating.
• Reheat: Reheat in the oven at 180°C fan for 10–12 minutes until piping hot all the way through, or microwave in 1-minute bursts until hot. The cheese won’t be quite as golden second time around, but it still tastes great.

How does peri peri chicken work on Slimming World?

This peri peri chicken bake works really well if you are following Slimming World, with a few things to consider. The chicken breast, asparagus, courgette and lemon are all Free Foods, so the bulk of the dish costs you nothing. The peri peri seasoning is swip-free (previously syn-free) if you use sweetener, and contains a very small percentage of a swip/syn per portion if you are using sugar. If you are using a supermarket blend it may well contain swips – just check your brand using the official Slimming World tools to confirm. The Cheddar is one Healthy Extra A allowance – 30g of Cheddar counts as a full HEA on the plan, so used this way, this dish is essentially free if you count the cheese as your HEA.

Is this good for Mounjaro or Wegovy users?

This recipe can be a good option if you’re taking a GLP-1 medication such as Mounjaro (tirzepatide) or Wegovy (semaglutide). Here’s why it works well:

When your appetite is reduced – which is exactly what these medications are designed to do – every bite needs to work a bit harder nutritionally. One of the key priorities while using GLP-1 injections is getting enough protein, as higher protein intake can help protect muscle mass during weight loss. This peri peri chicken bake delivers 45g of protein per serving for just 343 calories, meaning it provides a substantial amount of nutrition in a relatively small, easy-to-eat portion.

Other reasons this dish suits people on GLP-1 medications

It’s light and not overly rich
GLP-1 medications slow gastric emptying, which helps you feel fuller for longer but can also make very heavy or high-fat meals uncomfortable for some people. This dish uses lean chicken breast and vegetables with a moderate amount of cheese, so it tends to sit more comfortably than richer meals.

The portion size is naturally moderate
Because this recipe serves two, it results in a compact, satisfying portion rather than an oversized plate of food, which often fits better with the smaller appetites many people experience on these medications.

It’s relatively low in carbohydrates
At 5.4g of carbs per serving, this is a lower-carb option. While low-carb eating isn’t required for GLP-1 medications to work, some people find that meals lower in refined carbohydrates help them maintain steadier energy levels and blood sugar throughout the day.

Quick to make when you’re not feeling hungry
A less talked-about challenge of appetite-suppressing medications is that cooking can start to feel like a chore. With around five minutes of prep and the oven doing the rest, this is an easy way to still eat something balanced without much effort.

A note on the cheese

If you’re experiencing nausea in the early weeks of treatment, you may find smaller amounts of higher-flavour cheeses – such as Parmesan – easier to tolerate than larger amounts of milder, higher-fat cheeses. Fat-rich foods can sometimes worsen nausea while your body adjusts to GLP-1 medications.

As always, follow the advice of your prescribing doctor or dietitian for personalised guidance on eating while using GLP-1 medications.

More chicken fakeaway recipes

Love a chicken fakeaway? Here are a few more of my favourites on the blog:

• Cheeky Nando’s style peri peri chicken – the classic griddled version if you fancy firing up the pan instead of the oven
• Korean-style sticky chilli chicken – crispy baked chicken in a sweet, spicy gochujang glaze, ready in under 30 minutes
• Crispy honey soy chicken – a brilliant fakeaway bake with a sticky Asian-inspired glaze the whole family loves
• Hunter’s chicken – juicy chicken breast with BBQ sauce, bacon and melted cheese; so satisfying
• Chicken katsu curry – crispy baked chicken with a rich, warming Japanese-style curry sauce
• Easy chicken jalfrezi – a 30-minute spiced tomato curry that’s a real crowd-pleaser