sazy rock's top 10 best street food dishes (to date) around the world

For me, there is nothing more satisfying than traveling to a new place and falling in love with the food. Let's face it, the way to this gal's heart is through her tummy (and sometimes, liver). When I look back on my travels, I often drool when I remember all the food I ate.

Last week, I listed my top 10 restaurant dishes.  This week, I'm sharing my top 10 favorite street food dishes I've encountered while traveling.  I'm not sharing those found in the United States because that's where I live (although, I particularly like this taco truck in Los Angeles called, Mariscos Jaliscos, that serves the most delicious shrimp taco I have ever tasted).

So far, these are my top street food dishes I've encountered while traveling listed in no particular order.

1.  Taiwanese sausage in Taipei, Taiwan.

I found all sorts of tasty food in the Taipei night markets. But, the simple Taiwanese sausage caught my eye, nose, and taste buds. My first bite snapped the casing and immediately released slightly sweet juices of the cooked ground pork. While I liked eating the sausage by itself, dipping it in garlic sauce added another layer of flavor.

Taiwanese sausage.

2.  Roti Canai in Singapore.

There's a stall in the Upper Serangoon part of Singapore that served particularly amazing Roti Canai. The cook made the roti to order by repeatedly flipping the dough high above him into the air and then slapping it onto the metal table. The resulting flat bread was flaky, crisp outside and totally fluffy inside. Even better, the liquidy dahl or lentil soup was rich and nourishing. Together, the bread's slight sweetness and the dahl's savory spices, which included a healthy dose of turmeric, was awesome. I still dream about it.

Roti Canai.

3.  Cow's udder in Bori Mohalla, Mumbai, India.

My husband's friend, a noted Indian food blogger, took us on a walking tour of Mumbai's Bori Mohalla neighborhood, which was predominantly Muslim, and introduced us to some ridiculously good food. Top among them was a grilled cow's udder. Yes, you read that right: udder. The meat was very tender and soft. Almost like a hard tofu with a nice crunch on the outside but all softness inside. It was fully spiced with chilies and other Indian spices. Udderly delicious!

Grilled cow's udder.

4.  Hottoek in Busan, South Korea.

When I saw school children lining up at this food cart one evening, I decided it wouldn't hurt to join them. I'm glad I did. The vendor prepared my dessert-y snack by frying the dough, and cutting it in the middle just enough so she could stuff brown sugar, some chopped nuts, and cinnamon inside. My sweet tooth enjoyed every last bite. While the dish had sugar and cinnamon, it was not cloyingly sweet. That meant I could have another one. Sweet!

Hottoek.

5.  Assam Laksa in Penang, Malaysia.

I found this seafood soup everywhere in Malaysia. (I also had another type of laksa, which used coconut milk, but I preferred the non-coconut kind.) The first slurp hit me with heat from the chilies and a nice sourness that woke up my taste buds. The vermicelli noodles and seafood were tasty but, for me, it was the soup that kept me coming back for more.

Laksa.

6.  Cheese Borek in Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovina.

On a trip to Mostar, my husband and I talked to our guide so much about food that he invited us to taste a dish that he claims was best made in Bosnia-Herzegovina: borek. He insisted on paying for the dish and waited expectantly while we first munched on it. I bit into a thin dough (like filo or phyllo) that had a nice crunch and filled with melted cheese. Heaven! Our guide was absolutely right: I greedily bought borek wherever I saw it sold (I'm looking at you Dubrovnik and Melbourne), but none of them tasted like the one we first tasted in Mostar.

Borek.

7.  That eggplant dish in Marrakech, Morocco.

While enjoying the sights and sounds of Jemaa El Fna, the Marrakech main square, Dentite and I happened upon stall 98. It was crowded and surrounded by a lot of locals, who all happened to be mostly men. Not intimidated by the lack of females, we decided to check it out. We ordered squid but, luckily, the vendor handed us other dishes. I am glad he did. The grilled eggplant dish was lightly seasoned and a bit smoky. Such a simple preparation and yet packed with flavor. I'd like to think that the strange looks I got was because I looked like a tourist and not because I had bits of eggplant all over my face. That was so good.

Grilled eggplant.

8.  Chocolate con churros in Madrid, Spain

There are plenty of Churrerias in Madrid. But, while walking around the Salamanca neighborhood, the hubster and I happened upon this food truck selling chocolate con churros. The fried dough had that crisp outside layer and soft fluffy center. The chocolate was thick and semi-sweet. I probably polished 5 churros all in one sitting (or standing, in my case).

Chocolate con churros.

9.  Bolo do Caco in Madeira, Portugal.

For the most part, I was not wowed by the food in Funchal (Madeiras - as in the spirit - were a different story).  But, my husband and I happened upon plenty of street vendors who sold Bolo do Caco.  After observing vendors roll the dough, fill it with strips of cured chorizo, lather it with lots of garlic butter, and grill it, I bought one.  After that, I just kept on buying them every single time I saw a street vendor selling these simple sandwiches hot off the grill.  So simple yet oh so good.

Bolo do Caco.

10. Langos in Budapest, Hungary.

This totally filling deep fried flat bread made from potatoes was topped with sour cream, cheese and any other accoutrement (like tomatoes, onions, ham, etc.). My first bite went through the crisp outside layer of the bread and then through the soft doughy center. The cool tanginess of the sour cream and saltiness of the cheese all came together for a better-than-pizza experience. Sacrilege, right?

Langos.

While I loved these dishes and still dream about them, I reserve the right to change what's on my top ten tomorrow (and, in fact, I'm already wondering whether I should have added that ceviche from a stall in Panama's fish market, or that cevapcici in Dubrovnik, or that....). There's just so much deliciousness out there.

Have you tasted any of the above? What are your favorite street food dishes around the world?