Needing a little something between lunch and dinner seems to be a thing in just about every culture on earth. Street food vendors thrive in the late afternoon as office workers, travellers and busy passers-by stop for a snack to tide them over.
Snacky food like this is often the best a culture has to offer because recipes have been perfected by the sheer amount of times they've been produced. Vegetarian snack foods are particularly good because they're cheaper for a vendor to produce and thus they're more likely to work their dish to perfection.
Tuck in for a trip from a vendor to vendor across the globe as we find the ultimate vegetarian snack foods to make at home. Don't limit yourself to late in the day, either. Morning snacks are equally good (particularly the ones made in the wee small hours after a big night out).
A vegan spin on classic wings, this recipe drenches cauli in batter and spices and deep-fried it to a moreish effect.
Have tortilla, can taco. Load them up with this tasty tofu and guac filling, or try one of these alternatives:
For the easiest vego snack ever, load up a barbecued corn cob with a smoky chipotle and cheese mayo.
You will always smell the distinctive sweet smoke of garrapiñada de maní in Argentina's parks and plazas. They're both sweet and savoury, spicy and creamy. They're basically the ideal snack.
Load these little pastries up with quince, as here, or chocolate or dulce de leche. They feel extravagant but are actually quite quick and simple to bake.
Doughnuts in any form are snacking done right.
A golden crumb is all a stick of mozzarella needs to fry its way into snack heaven.
The '90s café darling is back in a big way (for Italians it never actually went away). Master good focaccia or two and you'll basically always have a snack on hand.
Cheesy choux pastries are one of the great loves of French patisserie and are surprisingly easy to make. Gougères are made with just six ingredients that you'll no doubt already have on hand; which makes them ideal for last-minute snack attacks.
Blintzes are for special times when you need a serve of comfort with your snack.
This express route to cheese and spinach gozleme bypasses the traditional handmade pastry case and instead uses large pita bread.
These easy falafel are moreish like popcorn. Luckily they only take about 20 minutes to make a whole batch.
Roll 'em up in flatbread or dip them into a bowl of fresh muhammara, either way, these zucchini fritters will hit the snacking spot.
North India is a haven for snacky things all known under the umbrella of chaat. Pakora is some of the best, especially when served with two dipping sauces.
To make gobi Manchurian, batter then deep fry cauliflower florets wok-toss them in a spicy sauce. It's a long ingredients list, but it all comes together quick enough to whip up for a snack.
Vegan dumplings are the ultimate crowd-pleaser. This version is spinach and silverbeet, but mushroom also makes a good dumpling.
It's the chewy tapioca dough that makes Thai chive cakes so irresistible. It's a texture and taste that gets into your head and demands regular revisiting. Fortunately, they're a comparatively easy Thai snack to master.
Many nations are obsessed with fried bananas but it's hard to beat what Thailand is serving up. Gluay tod is sold by street vendors all over the country but it's easy enough to fry up your own.
The snackiest of the flatbreads, roti canai is often served plain with a couple of curry dipping sauces. In a snack pinch, it also tastes amazing spread with strawberry jam.
What's not to love about savoury chive and spring onion pancakes served with an umami-rich soy dipping sauce? Koreans love everything about this vegetarian snack.
Great in a lunchbox or served up as a snack, gim gyeran mari is super tasty and fortunately super easy. You may need some practice to master your folding technique, but you'll be content to eat your attempts along the way.
This is a quick dish that can be a light lunch or a filling late-night snack. It also makes a decent breakfast, so you officially have permission to enjoy it any time of day.
Gyoza is wrapped up like a little gift and rightly so. Try eating just one of these little morsels.
SBS Food is a 24/7 foodie channel for all Australians, with a focus on simple, authentic and everyday food inspiration from cultures everywhere. NSW stream only. Read more about SBS Food
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