• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Food Banjo

  • Home
  • Recipes
  • Air Fryer Recipes
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Air Fryer Recipes
  • About
  • For Bloggers
    • Food Blog Mini-Audit
    • Food Blog Advanced Audit
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Air Fryer Recipes
  • About
  • For Bloggers
    • Food Blog Mini-Audit
    • Food Blog Advanced Audit
×
  • Carrots in air fryer basket.
    Can You Put Parchment Paper in Air Fryer
  • Air fried roma tomatoes on a white plate.
    Air Fryer Roma Tomatoes
  • Air fried turkey meatballs with parsley on a white plate.
    Air Fryer Turkey Meatballs
  • Air fried green beans.
    Air Fryer Green Beans
  • Cooked meatballs on a plate
    Frozen Meatballs in the Air Fryer
  • Air fryer zucchini on a white plate.
    Air Fryer Zucchini
  • Apple pie crescent rolls on a plate
    Air Fryer Apple Pie Crescent Rolls
  • Crescent rolls in air fryer basket.
    Air Fryer Crescent Rolls
  • Air fried meatballs with tomato sauce over spaghetti.
    Air Fryer Meatballs
  • Sweet potato fries on a plate.
    Frozen Sweet Potato Fries in Air Fryer
  • Air fried snap peas with sesame seeds.
    Air Fryer Snap Peas
  • Waffle fries on a white plate with green onions.
    Air Fryer Waffle Fries (from Frozen)
Home » Found Food

Peri-Peri Sauce - Trader Joe's Versus Nando's

Published: Aug 30, 2021 · Last Updated: Oct 14, 2021 by Aimee - This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Share with others!

  • Share
  • Tweet

It's a Per-Peri showdown. Nando's Peri-Peri sauce versus Trader Joe's Peri-Peri sauce. Which is better? Which is spicier? Which should you reach for when you're making all your spicy recipes? Find out more when we dive into the flavor profiles, the ingredients, and the colors.

bottles of nandos and trader joes peri peri sauces

Recently I spied a Peri-Peri sauce at Trader Joe's. It was a new item, and I knew I had to try it. Having Peri-Peri chicken a few years ago in London, and falling in love, I knew this sauce was right up my alley.

But then I wondered -- how did it compare to the sauce that made Peri-Peri famous? Nando's Peri-Peri sauce. (If you're in the US and looking for a Nando's restaurant, they are sadly only located in the DC and Chicago areas. But you can find Nando's sauce at many grocery stores, including my local one in Texas!)

So I embarked on a journey to try both of them, side by side. A comparison of colors, flavors, ingredients. Which is better? Which is spicier? How should these be used?

What is Peri-Peri Sauce?

Peri-Peri sauce originates in Africa (with a Portuguese influence) and is traditionally a blend of African bird's eye chilis. The flavor is typically spicy, garlicy, tangy, and lemony. The Nando's franchise popularized the sauce and flavors, but Peri Peri simply means "pepper pepper" in Swahili.

The Color and Look

As you can see, the colors vary wildly here.

The Trader Joe's version is on the left and Nando's is on the right.

two dollops of peri peri sauce on a white plate

Trader Joe's sauce is definitely more yellow/orange, and also more opaque. Because of that, it almost looks creamier. You can still see the flecks of chili peppers.

Nando's sauce is more reddish, and more translucent. You can see more peppers and textures in the sauce.

The Ingredients

This is one area where the sauces vary wildly. Let's take a look at Trader Joe's first.

trader joes peri peri sauce ingredient label

The first ingredient in Trader Joe's Peri-Peri sauce is lemon juice, then water, followed by fermented chiles. It doesn't specify what type of chilis they use. This also does state that this is a product of South Africa.

By comparison, let's take a look at the Nando's label. This is for their medium sauce.

nandos peri peri sauce ingredient label

Nando's sauce definitely shows more ingredients on their label. The first is water, then vinegar, then onion puree, salt, and THEN lemon puree. Nando's label does call out the spices (cayenne pepper, African Bird's Eye Chili, Paprika). It also calls out the stabilizers, followed by rosemary extract. Also, the Nando's sauce is made in the Netherlands (at least the one that is distributed in the United States).

The Taste

Trader Joe's definitely had the more citrusy Peri-Peri sauce. First taste was "wow, that is spicy and bright and lemony!" After looking at the ingredients, I wasn't surprised. The lemon flavor definitely comes through in the sauce. And it felt much spicier than the Medium Nando's sauce.

Nando's sauce had a slower building heat. And it's important to note, I had the medium spice level. It still had some heat, but not nearly as much as the Trader Joe's sauce, and it didn't hit you right away either. It also felt like it had more depth of flavor, which may be because the lemon flavor wasn't as strong, which allowed more flavors to come through like the onion, rosemary and different chilis.

peri peri sauces compaired

Which is the Winner?

Good question. Both?

They are both great sauces, it just depends what you're looking for. If you're used to Nando's, you may want to stick with their sauces for familiarity.

If you're looking for just a good sauce, choose either. Both will make great marinades for wings, chicken, etc.

If you're looking for a sauce with more heat and citrus, reach for the Trader Joe's Peri-Peri. If you're looking for a milder sauce that still has that flavor, try Nando's. These can both be used for dipping sauces (or mix with mayo for a Peri-Peri mayo dipping sauce), to flavor any dish, or as a drizzle on top of a finished meal.

Bonus idea - try using as an ingredient in a salad dressing.

« Air Fryer Gyoza
Chia Seed Green Tea »

Share with others!

  • Share
  • Tweet

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Andy

    December 22, 2022 at 11:33 pm

    I fell in love with Nando’s and had to try TJ’s version buts it’s sooooo spicy. Any ideas how to dampen the spice without ruining the flavor? I want to use it as a marinade and dipping sauce.

    Reply
    • Aimee

      December 27, 2022 at 4:28 pm

      The Trader Joe's version is spicier! I would say you could add some unsweetened Greek yogurt (or regular yogurt). That will make it less spicy, but should still work great as a marinade and dipping sauce! I've also added some honey, but that wouldn't cut down the spice as much as some yogurt or coconut milk would.

      Reply
  2. Scott

    July 26, 2022 at 1:50 pm

    If you want to try a different take on Peri Peri sauce, check out African Rhino Peri Peri. Unlike the citrus focused base of these, it has roasted tomato as the first ingredient with lemon juice, cider vinegar, roasted garlic and peri peri chilis. So it's more savory and has a great blend of flavors.

    Reply
    • Aimee

      July 26, 2022 at 5:05 pm

      Sounds delicious! I love trying all the variations.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Hello!

foodbanjo-authors
Hi! I'm Aimee, and I'm so glad you stopped by! I love sharing easy recipes that are flavorful and delicious.
Read more about Food Banjo!

Air Fryer Desserts

Air Fryer Pineapple with ice cream and lime zest.

Air Fryer Caramelized Pineapple

Air fryer banana split.

Air Fryer Banana Split

Air fried pears on a white plate with whipped cream and pecans.

Air Fryer Pears

Air Fryer Cinnamon Toast on a White Plate

Air Fryer Cinnamon Toast

Pumpkin French toast on a plate with whipped cream and syrup.

Air Fryer Pumpkin French Toast

three donuts on a plate

Air Fryer Pumpkin Spice Donuts

Air Fryer

Salami chips on a plate with basil

Air Fryer Salami

Air fryer baby potatoes on a plate.

Air Fryer Baby Potatoes - Mini Potatoes

air fryer croissants up close

Air Fryer Peanut Butter Chocolate Crescent Rolls

Mediterranean salmon on a plate with a fork and lemon wedge.

Air Fryer Mediterranean Salmon

salmon on orange slices on a white plate with a fork

Air Fryer Orange Salmon

Buffalo cauliflower up close.

Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower with No Breading

Footer

↑ back to top

About

  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Nutrition Disclaimer
  • Food Blogger Resources

Recipes

  • Air fryer recipes
  • Recipes for one
  • Recipes for two

Follow us

  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Copyright © 2023 Food Banjo