Across the world, people are drawn to amazing food, and the right flavor combinations transcend borders and become a truly undeniable experience. Global street food sings, shouts, and sometimes burns your tongue in the best way possible. It’s alive with color, culture, and crave-worthy combinations of sauce, spice, and smoke. So why not find a way to channel that boldness?
At NuSpice, we take the pulse of the street, one Korean taco, one empanada, and one smoky satay at a time, and translate it into something that’s ready for your product lines and menus. Through innovation grounded in food science and a respect for culture, we craft seasoning blends that bring the heartbeat of global cuisine to your production line, menu, or retail shelf.
Capitalizing on the Surging Popularity of Global Street Food
Identifying the most iconic global street foods and instilling their essence into an immediately identifiable seasoning blend can breathe new life into your offerings. One of the most exciting areas right now? Global street food. From Seoul to São Paulo, we pinpoint the street foods that define regions—and translate their flavor profiles into distinctive seasoning blends that stand out. We’ve seen the rise in demand for gochujang-laced snacks inspired by Korean fried chicken, the craveability of elote-flavored chips with cotija and lime, and the appeal of shawarma-spiced roasted nuts layered with cumin, garlic, and coriander. We’ve talked about how customers crave meals that tell stories and snacks that transport them to a new place with every bite in our post, Global Flavors, Local Plates: The Rise of Third-Culture Cuisine. The appetite for adventure is growing from pad thai with tamarind to gyros with cucumber and garlic. Global street food satisfies the hunger for flavor and experience; the food industry can infuse these iconic flavor profiles into their offerings with the right application of seasoning blends. Here are some of the most iconic street food options:
Korean Tacos
This is fusion cuisine at its finest: grilled beef marinated in soy sauce and sesame oil, tucked into a tortilla and topped with kimchi, cabbage, and spicy chili pepper sauce. The Korean taco rides the line between heat and harmony, where umami meets that satisfying crunch. It’s a dish that brings Mexican cuisine and Korean flavors together on one portable plate.
By incorporating those immediately identifiable flavors of soy, sesame, kimchi, and chili pepper sauce, we can create seasoning blends that give your menu and new snack items the extra pop of flavor they need to stand out in a crowded marketplace.
Empanadas
Empanadas deliver crispy fried dough stuffed with protein-rich fillings ranging from ground beef and onion to spinach and cheese. They’re savory pockets of comfort, dunked in dipping sauces or topped with salsa. Whether they nod to Latin America or take a twist from Europe, empanadas are prime candidates for blends rich in cumin, paprika, and chili heat. They fry up golden and taste like home, no matter where “home” is.
Incorporating these readily recognizable ingredients and transforming them into seasoning blends that give you the edge you need, our food ingredient solutions take your food products to the next level.
Kebabs
Charcoal-kissed kebabs capture the soul of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean street food. Whether it’s kofta made from ground meat, satay with peanut sauce, or classic lamb skewers, kebabs showcase grilling at its finest. Think coriander, garlic, and black pepper layered with yogurt or lime-based marinades. These sticks serve as a canvas for spice blends that are rich in depth, heat, and soul. In NYC, there are multiple carts on almost every street and corner where they’re serving up their family’s recipes for hungry patrons
Our food scientists know how to incorporate these familiar ingredients into readily applicable seasoning blends. These food ingredient solutions are ideal for quick-service restaurants, snack food companies, and food entrepreneurs looking to elevate the humble kebab and apply it across a range of products.
Dumplings
From Chinese mantou to Polish pierogi to Japanese gyoza, dumplings are a global phenomenon that is instantly recognizable. They’re steamed, fried, or boiled bundles of joy filled with meat, cabbage, tofu, or vegetables, dipped in umami-heavy sauces made with soy, vinegar, or sesame. We can develop seasoning blends that highlight the joy of Asian cuisine, Polish heritage, and more, celebrating the versatility of the dumpling without having to crimp countless pieces of dough.
Arepas
Thick maize cakes from Latin America, arepas are pan-fried, split open, and stuffed with everything from pork and avocado to cheese and black beans. Their soft interior is a blank slate for blends with heat and heart, including paprika, cumin, and chili paired with buttery undertones. From street vendors in Colombia to food trucks in Jersey, arepas are a street food that holds up to bold flavors and big ideas. We take those immediately recognizable flavors and distill their essence into a custom seasoning blend that your customers will crave.
Pupusa
A Salvadoran national dish, the pupusa is typically filled with cheese, beans, or ground pork and served with curtido (a pickled cabbage slaw) and salsa. It’s comfort in flatbread form, griddled to crisp perfection. Think spice blends with chili, oregano, and a touch of smoke. It’s salty, tangy, creamy, and chewy all at once, something that only a smart seasoning blend can replicate at scale. Our food scientists take these iconic ingredients and flavors to create a seasoning blend that goes great in any snack line or new menu item.
Yakitori
Japanese skewered chicken, grilled over charcoal and basted with soy, sugar, and sake sauce, yakitori brings subtlety and smoke in every bite. It’s a dish that balances salt, sweetness, and umami, which exemplifies Japanese cuisine. The right blend channels balance, leaning on garlic, ginger, sesame, and a gentle heat from white pepper or sansho. Perfect for poultry, this is simplicity dialed up with precision.
Our Food Scientists Transform These Iconic Dishes Into Dynamic Spice Blends
Every iconic street food dish tells a cultural and sensory story that our food science team knows how to translate into a seasoning blend. We combine global ingredients with scalable formulation to deliver bold, authentic flavors ready for manufacturing, grilling, frying, roasting, or mixing across all levels of production. From the crunch of a bánh mì crust to the sweet heat of red curry in fried rice, we develop food ingredient solutions that work for your brand and wow your customer.
Partner With NuSpice & Capitalize on the Global Street Food Craze Today
Global cuisine has gone beyond a passing trend to the main focus of the culinary conversation. Consumers want to find the best in global flavors that highlight what makes these culinary traditions unique, and street food-forward flavors go a long way toward making that a reality. They want bold ingredients that make their palate travel across continents. At NuSpice, we give you the seasoning blends to bring that excitement to your product line. From curry-spiced beef flavorings to jerk-infused potato snacks and falafel-inspired spices, our blends combine research and development with decades of experience in crafting spice blends.
Our team collaborates with brands across the food industry to create spice blends that celebrate culture, promote sustainability, and delight consumers. Whether you’re scaling up your sausage recipe, adding Thai curry heat to your menu, or looking for an extra kick for your new snack item, we have you covered. Let’s take that food truck heat and bring it to your kitchen, your snack aisle, and your customer’s mouth.