Street Foods We Wish Were Common In America

One of the greatest joys of going to a new city is taking a culinary tour of the local street food. The variety, flavor, affordability, and settings cannot be outdone, and it's easy to spend an entire vacation eating exclusively from stalls on busy city streets. In this respect, Americans are spoiled for choice. From soft pretzels and lobster rolls to tacos and Philly cheesesteaks, we have some of the best street foods right here in the U.S.

Sadly, however, some al fresco delicacies have yet to reach our shores. Around the world, vibrant street food scenes abound, and we have to travel to get a taste of what they're all about. From the iconic foods you can only find in Asia to the myriad of mouth-watering options across Africa, Europe, and Central and South America, many of us don't even know what we're missing. Keep reading to discover some of the most delicious street foods from around the world that will have you packing your bags for an international trip before you can say "poffertjes."

You can find Brazilian food all over the U.S., from açai bowls to churrascaria steakhouses. One food that you're less likely to find, however, are coxinhas. Shaped like raindrops, these doughy parcels of meat are a masterclass in texture. From the crispy outer layer, gooey dough, and perfectly seasoned meat filling, it's the perfect, palm-sized snack when you're headed to the beach or in need of a quick, pre-dinner bite after work. Fried dough makes just about anything taste better, but the filling is what stands out. The most common version uses finely shredded chicken, cream cheese, and spices to form something resembling a paste, while the dough sometimes contains potatoes to add to the doughy starchiness.

The origins of the snack are murky, but many believe that coxinhas were invented in 19th century São Paulo. Originally made by dipping chicken drumsticks in batter and frying them, coxinhas are now a beloved street food throughout the country with many variations on the classic shredded chicken filling, from corn to heart of palm to just plain cheese. Easy to make and even easier to eat, it's a mystery why coxinhas aren't ubiquitous in the U.S.

The Filipino street food called halo-halo is unlike anything you'll find in the U.S. Bursting with color, texture, and unfamiliar ingredients, it's a must-try treat on a trip to the Philippines and would be a welcome addition to the U.S. Like a Starbucks Frappuccino, halo-halo is an icy, sweet confection that is difficult to categorize, and comes in just about every flavor you can imagine. The basic ingredients are shaved ice, ube ice cream (made from purple tubers similar to sweet potatoes), and colorful sweets. Common additions include mango or jackfruit jelly, macapuno (a variety of gelatinous coconut), tapioca pearls, and flan.

Halo-halo, which means "mix-mix" in Tagalog, is the tonic to take the edge off a humid summer day. With its bright colors, a riot of flavors, and variety of textures, it will fulfill your nostalgia for playful childhood desserts and your adventurous palate. Try halo-halo and you'll never want to settle for a run-of-the-mill ice cream Sunday again.

If Québec had a national dish, it would almost certainly be poutine. The combination of fries covered in cheese curds and drenched in gravy has proven to be a snack so addictive in the province that it can be found in gourmet restaurants and food stalls alike. Invented in the 1950s in a snack bar in a rural part of the province, the dish is relatively recent considering its outsized role in Québécois identity. Its name comes from the slang word for "mess," and for decades, the food was viewed as lowly and inelegant by the rest of Canada. Fast-forward to today, and it has become something of a national mascot. When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau paid a visit to the White House in 2016, he was served smoked duck poutine canapés. During the press tour of the 2018 movie "Crazy Rich Asians," one of Québec's most popular poutine purveyors created a "crazy rich" version of the dish that included gold leaf, edible orchids, wagyu steak, lobster, and caviar for an eye-watering CAD $448.17.

American eaters don't need a deluxe version of poutine to fill the inexplicable gap in the street food market. All we're asking for is for the dish to migrate south of the border, and become as commonplace as hot dogs and tacos. Squeaky cheese curds, a generous pour of gravy, and fresh-cut fries will do the trick.

Germany isn't known for its major contributions to global cuisine, but in the case of currywurst, it should be. Created in Berlin in 1949 by local restaurant owner Herta Heuwer, it was reportedly an attempt to spice up the dismal food that was on offer in the post-war years. Heuwer bartered with British soldiers for ketchup and curry powder in exchange for alcohol, and within a decade, had opened a successful street stand, created a signature sauce, and patented it. Some claim currywurst was actually invented in Hamburg, while others argue it was in the western Ruhr region. Either way, it remains most closely associated with Berlin, where vendors selling the spicy sausages can be found on almost every street corner.

Currywurst is usually sold in cardboard trays with fries, with the option to have it "mit darm" or "ohne darm" (with casing or without). When the dish was created, Berlin was split between East and West, and the former did not have access to sausage casing. Nowadays, many vendors on the East side of the city still use sausages without casing, despite the decades that have elapsed since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Regardless of which side you fall on, it's hard to resist the unlikely combination of ketchup, curry spices, and fatty sausage.

Not to be confused with flat, crispy Mexican-style buñuelos, Colombian buñuelos are fried balls of cheesy dough with just a hint of sweetness. Tradition relegates them to Christmas time, but they're so delicious that you'll want to eat them year-round. The doughy treats came to Latin America with the Spanish, who devised their buñuelos recipes with spices dating back to the Muslim rule of the country. Across Latin America, variations abound. Mexico's flat discs are sweet and crunchy, while in Cuba, the dessert is shaped into a figure-eight and doused in a syrup made of citrus, anise, and cinnamon.

All these versions are delicious, but Colombian buñuelos deserve special mention for their disguised complexity. They may look like average donut holes, but they're less sweet. The dough might look like a straightforward concoction of white flour, but it's made of yuca and cornstarch to produce its smooth texture. The addition of cheese gives buñuelos a dense, silky mouthfeel, while the use of brown rather than white sugar adds an unexpected hint of caramel. Overall, Colombian buñuelos are exactly the kind of warm treat you're craving during the winter, whether you're baking at home or looking for a quick, comforting bite while holiday shopping.

Many parts of the world have discovered the chewy, syrupy goodness of Dutch stroopwafels but have somehow missed out on the marvel that is poffertjes (pronounced "poh-fur-chess"). These tiny pancakes covered in powdered sugar and a dab of melting butter are popular in outdoor food markets in the Netherlands, especially Amsterdam, where they vie for position amongst stroopwafel vendors and pannenkoeken stalls. Unlike Dutch pancakes, however, poffertjes are yeasted and made with buckwheat flour, giving them a springy, airy texture and earthy flavor.

The bite-sized treat dates back at least to the 1700s when a recipe first appeared in print, but it is believed that they were once used to substitute the communion host. The use of buckwheat was likely a necessity rather than a choice, as the crop was known as a poor man's grain. Some recipes now call for pure wheat flour, but traditional poffertjes still use buckwheat. Interestingly, the small, yeasted pancakes were popular in parts of the U.S. when Dutch settlers arrived, but you're unlikely to find them now unless you're lucky enough to have a poffertjes iron, and regularly make them yourself.

Sfenj is a pastry named after the Arabic word "isfejen," meaning "sponge." These round pastries can be found throughout the Middle East, particularly in Morocco, where street vendors prepare them to order in front of customers. Tubs of yeasted dough leaven, before being portioned into rings, and tossed into a vat of hot oil. The fried pastries resemble donuts, but are less sweet and have a crunchier, deep-fried exterior. The dough is a simple mixture of flour, yeast, and water, making them less cakey than American-style donuts that frequently include eggs or milk. There is no wrong time to eat sfenj, but many Moroccans eat them for breakfast or alongside mint tea in the afternoon. They are often sweetened with powdered sugar, honey, or orange-flavored syrup, though some people prefer to eat them plain.

The pastry holds particular significance for Moroccan Jews, who eat it alongside other fried foods during Hanukkah. Known as the "Festival of Lights," the holiday commemorates the oil that burned for a miraculous eight days in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem where the Maccabean Jews celebrated their successful revolt against the Assyrians. Moroccan Jews introduced this street food to Israel in the 1950s, but it is now largely relegated to street stalls in Northern Africa, and occasionally in Hanukkah celebrations throughout the world.