Consider yourself a Hong Kong street food connoisseur? Our checklist puts you to the test!
Hong Kong is undeniably a foodie haven, with fancy Michelin-starred restaurants to a satisfying selection of cuisines from all around the globe, but you haven’t quite tasted the city without sampling its colourful array of street food. From your standard siu mai and fish balls to more adventurous picks like beef offal and stinky tofu, eat your way through our checklist of our top 10 classic Hong Kong street foods.
Read More: The Best Michelin-Recommended Cheap Eats In Hong Kong
Curry Fish Balls
Hong Kong may not have invented curry or fish balls, but we did have the genius to combine the two. In our opinion, the perfect fish ball must have a golden-brown, fried ‘skin’ and springy texture. Head to Cheung Chau island to sample the super-sized version of this beloved street food!
Where to go: Like we said, if you’re a fan of fish balls, it’s worth taking the ferry over to Cheung Chau to gorge on the giant version. There are many different flavours to try too!
Read More: Cheung Chau Island Guide – Ferry Schedule, What To Do & More
Cheung Fun
Cheung fun is a beloved breakfast treat (or anytime really, in our opinion). While soft and chewy bite-sized rice rolls provide a delightful texture, it’s the swirl of peanut sauce, sweet sauce and soy sauce that make this street food so addictive.
Where to go: We recently explored the backstreets of Wan Chai to add some hidden gems to our neighbourhood guide, and we discovered Cheung Fun Wong on Wan Chai Road. The hoard of people standing outside the small snack shop says it all…
Read More: Wan Chai Guide – Restaurants, Bars, Cafes & More
Egg Waffle
Our version of waffles (but better), egg waffles are the go-to not-so-sweet snack for locals. No matter how long the wait, it’s always worth having your egg waffle made fresh so you can enjoy them at their crispiest while their fluffy insides are still steaming.
Where to go: Local egg waffle chain Mammy Pancake always hits the spot, and there’s a wide range of flavours to choose from spanning everything from Banana Chocolate and Earl Grey to Avocado and Pork floss. We also recommend Master Low-Key for its signature Golden Waffle, which is filled with a molten mix of salted egg yolk, condensed milk and brown sugar.
Read More: Your Guide To Local Hong Kong Dessert Shops
Siu Mai
While the siu mai you order at yum cha restaurants are traditionally made with pork and shrimp, the variety you’re likely to find on the street is made with a more basic blend of fish paste and flour. With the latter being more subtle in flavour, we suggest saying yes to the addition of sweet soy sauce and chilli oil.
Where to go: We’re handing this one off to the experts. Follow the Hong Kong Siu Mai Concern Group on Instagram to see which spots are worth hitting and planning a little siu mai crawl.
Read More: The Best Hong Kong Dim Sum
Cold Mixed Noodles
Popular with students who want a cheap, tasty and filling snack, it’s always a blast from the past when we pass cold mixed noodle shops on the street. How it works is you pick your noodle and the ingredients you want mixed in (usually costing $4 a packet), then it’s all stirred together with a savoury sauce, minced garlic and chilli paste. The excessive use of plastic bags are concerning however, so attempting to DIY the snack at home with your favourite toppings may be a better call.
Where to go: Bai Wei Shi Pei (百味食品) is a cold mixed noodle chain that’s been around since we can remember and has one of the widest selection of ingredients. We love that the Mong Kok branch in front of the CTMA Centre allows you to help yourself to extra sauce.
Stinky Tofu
It’s easy to hunt down this pungent street food snack – just let your nose lead the way. The deep-fried variety typically found on the streets is served slathered in a thick sweet sauce and chilli sauce, and we promise it tastes better than it smells!
Three Fried Stuffed Treasures
While street food isn’t known for its nutrition value, you could convince yourself that Stuffed Three Treasures is the less guilty option. It is predominantly comprised of vegetables after all – albeit besmeared in dace fish paste and deep-fried. While they’re commonly called “three treasures”, you’ll usually find a wide assortment to choose from (we recommend the bell pepper, eggplant and tofu varieties). They’re best enjoyed straight out of the oil and drizzled with a bit of soy sauce.
Beef Offal
If you can get past the idea that you’re eating entrails and organs, you might find that beef offal is quite tasty. The mix of tripe, intestine, lung, pancreas and more is slow-cooked together in a soy-based marinade for hours until tender and typically served with stewed turnips.
Where to go: A popular spot for beef offal is Temple Street Beef Offals (you know they’re serious if they add the dish to their name). The offal here is known to be meticulously cleaned and braised to perfection.
Deep-Fried Pig Intestines
Reserved for the more adventurous street eaters, this bright orange delicacy is a textural treat. After being thrown into screaming hot oil, the outer casing of the intestines get nice and crispy, while the inner layers remain tender with a slight chew. If you’re nervous about the offal-y flavour, do as the locals do and smother each piece with sweet hoisin sauce and sinus-clearing yellow mustard.
Where to go: We hear the lines are also long at Temple Street Beef Offals for their deep-fried pig intestines.
Roasted Chestnuts
Once you get a whiff of chestnuts roasting in the street you’ll know you survived another Hong Kong summer. Though the number of roast chestnut vendors in the city has sadly dwindled over the last few decades since the Hong Kong government cracked down on hawking, you can still spot a handful of vendors churning out the winter street-food staple. The chestnuts are toasted with small nibs of coal in an open wok and are sold by the bag. These street carts will often also sell roasted sweet potato and quail eggs.
Where to go: Roasted chestnuts are the perfect snack to munch on while shopping. Follow your nose and seek out the hawker around Times Square in Causeway Bay, or at the Prince Edward flower market (in front of the four-storey Green Life).
Read More: Where To Find The Best Claypot Rice In Hong Kong
Main image by Sassy Media Group using images courtesy of respective brands, image 1 courtesy of tc397 via Getty, image 2 and 3 courtesy of Sassy Media Group, image 4 courtesy of @hksiumaiconcerngroup via Instagram, image 5 courtesy of @girleatworld via Instagram, image 6 courtesy of Canva, image 7 courtesy of josephmok via Getty, image 8 courtesy of Sassy Media Group, image 9 courtesy of josephmok via Getty, image 10 courtesy of Matt Leung via Getty.
