With the world beginning to open up again for travel, what better way to discover a country’s culture than by its snacks.
The dictionary definition of a snack is a bit dull for something that can bring a world of flavour to your tastebuds – ‘a small amount of food eaten between meals’.
The Encyclopeadia of Food and Health is even more boring – ‘a snack is a smaller, less structured meal that is not eaten during regular meal times’.
Pork Belly’s rules are that a snack shouldn’t be stodgy but has to be just the right size to fill a little hole before the next meal.
So are you ready for a snack-attack?
Here’s our ‘snackshot’ of the globe which will take you around the world in 80 snacks.
Is your favourite on our list?
Austria
A picnic snack of a certain excellence, mohnzelten is a potato-based dough filled with poppy seeds, butter, honey, sugar, cinnamon, grated lemon peel, and a dash of rum.
Australia
Grab yourself a Lamington – a chocolate coated sponge cake rolled in coconut. Named for an 18th century Governor of Queensland, Lord Lamington, it was allegedly whipped up by French Chef Armand Galland to feed unexpected guests. Known affectionately as ‘Lammos’ they are so loved they even have a national day celebrated on 21 July.
Even more traditional, and found absolutely everywhere, is the good old Aussie meat pie.
Bahamas
The conch is more than just a huge shell destroyed by the boys in Lord of the Flies. Conch salad is a fresh tasting dish which uses citrus to tenderise the shellfish. Adding onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, and jalapeños spices it up.
Brazil
For a chicken snack on the go try coxinha – fried breadcrumbed croquettes filled with shredded chicken and cream cheese.
Belgium
The country that gave us frites with mayonnaise and cream smothered waffles it’s inevitable their national snack will be unbelievably more-ish.
Speculoos – those tiny biscuits served with your coffee in smart cafés – are just so delicious you can’t stop. You can even buy sweet, spicy speculoos in a jar so you can spread it on absolutely anything!
Bolivia
Popcorn is found almost everywhere, but in Bolivia it’s called pasankalla. Corn maize is heated up until it pops then it’s coated with sugar.
Canada
Look it’s carb overload, and no-one’s claiming it’s haute cuisine but Canadians love their poutine. French fries topped with cheese curd and gravy is a dish from Quebec and you’ll find it in cafés, fast food restaurants and at sporting events throughout the country.
Chile
America has hotdogs, Chile has the completo, a large sausage in a bun topped with avocado, tomatoes and lashings of mayo. And for an over-the-top completo you can go for green beans, sauerkraut, sauce américaine, fried onions, fried eggs and fries.
China
The land of dimsum certainly knows a thing or two about snacks. We have fond memories of consuming tasty char siu bao every morning on the top deck of a Hong Kong tram.
But have you tried tanghulu? Haw fruits candied in red sweet-and-sour sugar syrup and popped on a skewer.
Colombia
Pan de yuca is a cheesy roll made from cassava starch. Best eaten hot it can stand alone or be served with any number of dips.
The other cheesy Colombian snack is almojábanas – soft pillow-like cornflour buns, usually made with the local cuajada cheese.
Cuba
Plantains are a great alternative to potatoes and in Cuba they use them to make mariquitas. Sliced thin and fried they’re like our UK crisps, a perfect little salty treat.
Czech Republic
Trdlo, also known as Trdelník, is a spit-cake made from dough which is wound around a skewer then grilled. Traditionally topped with sugar and walnuts, fancier versions have almost every type of filling imaginable and lashings of whipped cream. The trdlo is the name for the traditional wooden tool used to make them in the past.
Less well known is the ovocné knedlíky, or fruit dumpling, where blueberries, strawberries or plums are wrapped inside dough, boiled, then topped with melted butter and sugar and sometimes soft cheese.
Denmark
This open sandwich is traditionally topped with pickled herring, beef or prawns but the smørrebrød today is more usually cheese, veggies or cold cuts (leftovers!) on rye bread. Should really be eaten with a knife and fork, but when it’s delicious who cares if it’s messy!
Eastern Europe
You’ll need a cup of tea handy to enjoy sushki. They’re rock-hard bagels which are usually dipped in tea in order to soften them. Just a little more substantial than a rich tea biscuit dunked in an English brew!
El Salvador
Look out for quesadillas – not not the tortilla wraps you get in Mexico. These are a sweet/savoury cheesy delight, more cake than pancake, but just as versatile. Found in local bakeries and restaurants, it is usually served as part of a leisurely Sunday breakfast or mid-morning snack with a cup of steaming hot coffee.
Finland
Like so many traditional snacks, Finland’s kalakukko can trace its roots back to the Middle Ages. It’s fish and bacon baked inside rye bread and was developed – like the pasty and other sturdy snacks – for workers to have an easy way to transport a meal which would give them energy to get through the day.
France
Land of a thousand cheeses, the best breads and stunning patisserie. Traditional French cuisine requires you to sit down and take your time but who hasn’t scarfed down a quick croissant or pain au chocolat on the run? Pork Belly’s favourite, flan nature, isn’t an easy hand-to-mouth treat but that’s never stopped him when we’ve been on the road!
Georgia
This country takes pizza to a new level. Khachapuri looks like a little canoe made of bread and filled with cheese and a fried egg. Sort of like dippy eggs with bread soldiers but all in one!
Germany
It has to be wurst – any type of wurst will do – slapped between two sides of bread and served with beer!
Or you can go for halve hahn, a rye roll topped with gouda cheese, loads of butter and a pickle or two.
Greece
Breakfast on the go in Greece usually means koulouri – bagels rolled in sesame seeds. Simple but a perfect morning tummy-filler.
Haiti
Breadfruit is the Haitian stand-in for potatoes and they work wonders with it. Breadfruit flour can be made into rolls but fried strips of breadfruit, like french fries, are the most popular snack.
Hungary
Similar to the Czech Trdelnik, but shaped more like a chimney, kürtőskalács are a sweet pastry, basted in butter, rolled in sugar and roasted over a spit fire. You can have them plain, but most people like to stuff ’em with something extra sweet and creamy.
Iceland
You’d expect something fishy, and you’d be right. Iceland’s favourite snack is called harðfiskur, strips of dried, salted fish spread with butter. Crunchy and savoury many Icelanders prefer it to crisps, and it’s much more healthy, being rich in protein and Omega-3.
Icelanders have also embraced the hot dog, making it their very own. Pylsa (sometimes spelt pulsa) is made of pork, mutton, and beef and usually topped with ketchup, fried and raw onions, mustard, and remoulade.
Israel
Bamba, a peanut butter flavoured puffed maize snack, is the unofficial flavour of childhood in Israel.
For grown-ups it’s more likely to be halvah – a sweet treat with dozens of variations on the traditional honey, vanilla, tahini and pistachio blend.
Italy
It has to be gelato. Yes, often a dessert but just as likely to be served from a gelateria as a snack-to-go with a multitude of flavours to choose from. Try Pork Belly’s favourite zuppa inglese for something out of the ordinary.
And for savoury tastes, of course there’s pizza but don’t forget the delightful arancini – deep-fried risotto balls with mozarella filling and a tomato dipping sauce.
India
There are so many different regional versions of pani puri that they’re almost 80 snacks on their own! Sometimes called golgappas, a typical pani puri is made from puffed, hollow dough stuffed with tamarind chutney, chaat masala, chilli, chickpeas, potato and onions. They are utterly, mouthwateringly delicious.
Vada pav are also popular – mini buns stuffed with fried potato fritters served with chutney.
Jamaica
Coco bread is eaten across the island for breakfast or an anytime snack. Fluffy, folded rolls sweetened wth sugar and coconut milk they can be packed with almost any filling.
Japan
Another snack-lovers paradise, Japanese food culture is full of delights. Try senbei, large rice crackers that have been around for centuries. Savoury or sweet there’s one for every taste.
And why not have a sweet made from your favourite soda drink? Ramune gummy candies are a sweet treat that come in as many flavours as the original and very popular fizzy drink.
Oh, and it’s probably the only country you’ll find a matcha tea or melon-flavoured Kitkat.
Just sayin’.
Korea
If you’ve watched The Squid Game on Netflix you might think the nation’s favourite is the honeycomb Dalgona candy, but yakgwa are even more loved. Deep-fried sweet honey and sesame cakes, they can be freshly made or bought from supermarkets. And nobody has to die to get them!
Lebanon
Parents encourage their children to eat kdaameh between meals. It’s sugared chickpeas and is much healthier than other sweet snacks.
Malaysia
Kuih cara berlauk are small, savoury cakes made with coconut milk and topped with minced meat. The fanciest ones are cooked in a special mould and have very pretty toppings that are added during the baking.
And the kids can’t get enough of bahulu, cute sponge cakes in the shape of buttons or goldfish.
Malta
Pastizzi are usually stuffed with ricotta or curried pea mash. Very similar to empanadas and calzone they use a lighter puff pastry so are a little more delicate.
Mexico
Corn on the cob, known as elote is a popular street food treat. Usually served with mayonnaise, a squeeze of lime, a little chilli powder then topped wth cotija cheese.
Morocco
This breakfast bread is so poular people eat it any time of day. Pan friend harcha is made from semolina and served with cheese or melted butter and honey.
Nicaragua
Quesillo stands are found all around the country, selling tortillas topped with Nicaraguan cheese, pickled onions, sour cream, and salt.
Nigeria
The puff-puff is a popular antyime snack. Similar to the New Orleans beignet it’s a deep-fried sweetened dough.
Even easier to snack on is the donkwa or tanfiri – a mix of chilli, cloves, cornmeal, ground peanuts, sugar, oil and water which is shaped into balls and eaten straight away.
Poland
You may think they’re doughnuts, but pączkis are richer with a shot of alcohol added to the dough. The filling is usually a sweet, sticky, oozy plum jam.
And the Poles have their own version of a baguette-based pizza. Zapiekankaxxa are traditionally topped with mushroom, cheese and loads of tomato sauce.
Russia
A flat, sweet yeasted dough bun filled with baked quark or cottage cheese is a Russian sweet treat. The vatrushka does have savoury versions, but the sweet one is the original.
Scotland
These aren’t just pies, these are Scotch pies. Small, round, but very deep, these pies are filed with minced lamb. The crust at the top is deliberately left standing proud above the lid, so there’s the option to fill the top with gravy or mashed potato.
South America
All across the continent you’ll find these delicous sweet, crumbly biscuits. Alfajores can be made lots of different ways but all have a sweet filling like dulce de leche. Argentina claims to be the biggest consumer of alfajores being eaten at any time of day.
South Africa
Biltong is the classic snack of spiced, dried meat, usually beef or local game animals such as springbok and wildebeest, and sometimes ostrich. The name comes from the Dutch words for ‘rump’ and ‘strip’.
Spain
Churros and hot chocolate – Pork Belly says they’re the perfect cure for a hangover! Yeah, he overdid it once on a holiday with friends and swears that his recovery was aided by the soft, sweet, chewy dough strips.
And in the land of tapas you can’t go far wrong with pan con tomate – tomatoes and garlic mashed up and put on fresh, crunchy bread and served with a drizzle of olive oil. Perfection!
Thailand
Yes you might be offered deep fried crickets from a wok on the roadside, but if that’s a step too adventurous for you then go for miang kham. Leaves (tradititionally from the tea bush but any green vegetable will do) topped with fresh coconut, chilli, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, lime, mango, nuts, shrimps and shallots. The name translates roughly as ‘one bite wrap’.
And for meat eaters nang kai thot is popular – deep-fried chicken skin, seasoned with herbs and garlic and dropped in hot oil.
Turkey
Boreks come in a multitude of varieties. They can be fried, baked, cooked on a griddle or boiled but their paper-thin pastry is wrapped around a range of savoury fillings like cheese, minced meat or potatoes.
And then there’s baklava. Yes usually served as a dessert but who hasn’t grabbed one for a honey-sweet, sticky treat on the move? The traditional Turkish version is usually filled with pistachios, walnuts, hazelnuts or almonds.
UK
Gonna go out on a limb here and say sausage rolls! Just look at the queues for Greggs on any given day, plus the excitement when they produced a (very tasty in my opinion) vegan alternative.
Love ’em or hate ’em pork scratchings are a popular bar snack. Canadians call them scrunchions which makes them sound a little more appetizing!
Pork pies rate very highly too and if you haven’t had beans on toast as a quick filler-upper then you have no idea how Brits really live!
Ukraine
Not exactly my cup of tea but apparently it goes very well with vodka. Salo is raw pork fat which is served with rye bread or spread on sandwiches.
USA
For many years Ritz Crackers were the nation’s favourite go-to snack but latest research suggests a sweeter tooth is developing with M&Ms topping the list in 2021 swiftly followed by Hershey’s chocolates.
For sandwich fillings the all-american peanut-butter-and-jelly seems to have given way lately to a ham or cheese salad option with all the trimmings.
But I guess the go-to US snack of choice is the hot dog.
And finally
Whether you call them crisps or chips the potato based snack is king in almost every country.
Purists swear by ready salted, but look out on your travels for seaweed, wasabi, hot chilli squid and other local variations. And of course in the run up to Christmas all sorts of different flavours pack the shelves (sprout crisps anyone?)
And what is the most popular snack in the world?
It comes in all shapes, sizes and flavours but the most popular snack everywhere, judging by the number of people who eat it, is …
Chocolate
Fancy trying some snacks from around the world but can’t travel right now?
Why not set up a snack exchange with any friends and family who live abroad?
Or you could subscribe to one of those companies that send you a box of treats from a different country each month. We’ve not tried them, but they look fun!
Where to next?
• Celebrate World Chocolate Day
• Afternoon Tea – a visitor’s guide
• Cupcake or muffin?