Street food - fast and delicious

Food on the go has always been an important part of our culinary history. Long, multi-course meals are not always an option, and gradually, with the progress of civilisation, takeaways have become more and more common, and at times indispensable. We live in a hurry, the world requires things to be done fast, efficiently and without due delays, so we often grab something on the go, on top of having to eat fast while working or commuting. Fast foods of all colours of the rainbow with huge global presence are a perfect answer to such demand, though not always very healthy or tasty one.  

Recent studies demonstrate that the pace of life contributes to losing touch with our taste buds, and instead of enjoying the benefits of globalization when all cuisines are at a hand's reach, many people either stick to the same food or don’t even taste it. The studies also show that close to 80% of the population of most developed countries does not distinguish between basic flavours, the number rising further 10% if eating fast or under pressure. This implies that food is very frequently treated as a way to satisfy hunger exclusively.

It will normally take approximately 20 minutes before the brain receives a satiety message from the digestive system. In terms of fast eating it’s a huge amount of time. As to what’s possible for a human to gulp down within this time, let me quote some of the achievements of Japanese competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi: 10 hamburgers in 3 minutes, 43 slices of pizza in 12mins, 69 hot dogs in 10 minutes.

Fortunately there is a trend to turn to slow food, and also there’s been a growing popularity of healthy fast food movements.

At this year’s World Street Food Festival in London there was a broad array of quick bites from around the world. Located on an open space, only few steps away from the Thames, in the Southbank Centre, it featured a great international selection of food prepared on the spot from fresh ingredients. A mouth-watering rollercoaster of cultures, aromas, flavours, colours and energies, served by enthusiastic hosts. Vegetarian and vegan options were not a rarity either, and most food was artisan and organic. Among them, British beef burgers, Korean bibimbap, Italian pastas and arancini, Greek Loukaniko sausages, Spanish Paella, US-style hot dogs, French crepes, Indian pani puri and curries, mezes and free-range chicken shawarma from the Middle East, Cevapcici traditional Balkan street food, a wide array of Turkish delight, artisan Polish bigos and much more, not to mention the beverages.

A feeling of blissful relaxation after a meal can hardly be rejected by anyone, and making it happen doesn’t necessarily require much effort or time. A quiet spot and tasty bite of something fresh and easily digestible, and if possible some company of a human being rather than a machine is more than enough.