I know most of us can’t imagine life without chicken: It’s a cheap, lean meat that gives joy to every broke college student. You can make chicken fajitas, fried chicken, chicken tenders, chicken salad and chicken-fried steak. 

Yet, I’ve learned that there can only be one dish to rule over the rest. There’s always been that one chicken dish I look forward to. And I thought I knew what it was for a long time.

I’ve always loved fried chicken and its cousin, chicken tenders. My earliest and fondest memory was drenching my Jollibee, a Filipino fast food chain, fried chicken and rice with their signature gravy. All across the world, frying is a cheap, scrumptious way to prepare the meat.

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Louisiana is undoubtedly a leader in making great fried chicken, whether it’s Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen or the local mom-and-pop stores here.

Popeyes and Raising Cane’s have been popularized throughout the U.S., and both have a chance to expand into other countries. Popeyes even opened a location in the heart of the British Isles: London. 

But I’m not sure that Popeyes and Raising Cane’s can ever compete with Nando’s, a chain restaurant originating in South Africa and widely popular in the U.K. 

I recently tried Nando’s for the first time in London, and I must admit that I was wrong to assume that Popeyes and Canes alone would sustain my chicken needs.

I’ve eaten grilled chicken before, but never as the defining meal for a franchise. I’ve enjoyed local restaurants that make grilled chicken dishes, but I find them overpriced. 

Yes, I know it’s wrong to compare Nando’s grilled chicken with Popeyes’ or any other American chicken place, but it’s frustrating to be in a grilled chicken desert. 

I’ve always enjoyed the crunch and juicy interior of fried chicken. I love dipping a Cane’s finger into that special Cane’s sauce. There’s a reason why both franchises are expanding throughout the globe. Their chicken is superb.

But for me, my desire to eat fried chicken comes and goes. Its greasiness forces my stomach to reconsider eating it every time I do. 

And the health effects of eating fried chicken drive me away more often than not. Imagine the amount of sodium, preservatives and cholesterol. You may ignore the fact that it wreaks havoc on your health, but eventually, you’ll pay dearly for it.

Nando’s chicken offers a wonderful alternative. Although I initially saw Nando’s as strictly a British restaurant, I was surprised to find out it was a South African franchise. 

The chicken is marinated peri-peri (a spicy pepper sauce) style, based on the Portuguese Galinha à Africana cooking method. The chicken I tried was marinated with lemon and herb, but I later regretted my decision. My greatest regret will be never trying Nando’s the real way: with the spicy peri-peri sauce that every Nando’s aficionado craves.

Apart from the peri-peri-style chicken, Nando’s is a jewel of a restaurant. I found the service simple and efficient. They sit you down at a table, but expect you to order your meal through a QR code. The waiters then bring your food once it’s ready. 

I’m not saying the service in other restaurants is worse; it’s just that Nando’s service makes sense.

Taste-wise, it’s a tough choice to make, but in terms of guilt-free food, Nando’s has the edge over my beloved Cane’s and Popeyes. The child within me craves fried chicken, but the refined man longs for the sophisticated taste of Nando’s grilled chicken with spicy rice. 

Therefore, Nando’s should expand into the grilled chicken desert of the Deep South. Fried chicken franchises have reigned supreme here; it’s time for the grilled chicken crowd to take a good share of the Southern market.

Both fried chicken and peri-peri chicken have humble beginnings as dishes borne out of an exchange between Africans and Europeans. 

Fried chicken in the U.S. came as a result of interaction between the Scottish who used frying as a method of cooking and African slaves who used a familiar blend of spices for their chicken. Peri-peri chicken came as a result of interaction between Portuguese colonists and their African counterparts.

Nando’s peri-peri chicken deserves a chance from us.  

Nathaniel Dela Peña is a 21-year-old political science and history senior from Alexandria.