Five Global Flavours: Follow the van. . . Cambridge’s best street food

One Two Culinary Stew blogger Pina Broccoli Anaia has been making the Cambridge food scene a tastier place for 10 years. In her regular column for Velvet, she takes us on a world food tour. . . right on our doorstep. On the menu this month: street food

Summertime, and the living (and eating) is easy – or so the song goes! Street food is definitely having its moment in the sun when eating alfresco is such a delight, despite the unpredictable British weather. There’s a year-round appetite for food trucks though, whether their fare is enjoyed at pubs, bars, cafés, parks, market squares, new home developments, village halls, festivals, workplaces or anywhere else, really.

That’s the beauty of mobile food traders: they create a sense of community and bring a host of dining options to places where restaurant kitchens might not be available. They’re the perfect vehicle (pun intended) for the diverse offerings that appeal to cosmopolitan palates and enrich our food culture.

Cambridge boasts a delectable variety of global street food, prepared by mobile cooks eager to share its rich tapestry of flavours. Here are five food trucks worth tracking for their delicious international cuisine – a culinary journey to Tibet, Korea, Mexico, Naples and Texas.

Tibet Flavour
Tenzin and Sertso, the Tibetan husband and wife team behind food truck Tibet Flavour, are delighting taste buds with their aromatic curries, flavourful lentil dal and hearty momos (a type of dumpling in Tibetan and Nepali cuisine, also found in India and Bhutan). Their handmade momos are wildly popular! One bite of these intricately-folded dumplings – filled with beef or vegetables and served with their homemade chilli oil (sepen), garlic soya sauce and fresh coriander – has customers coming back for more. For those who can’t choose from all the deliciousness, the combo meal includes a bit of all the dishes. An extra order of their wonderfully addictive momos is a must though!
@tibetflavour

Manna Seoul
Bringing popular Korean street food to Cambridge is the venture of Seoul native Lan and her husband Ian. In their cheerful airstream trailer, they make K-dogs (battered hot dogs/corn dogs on a stick), Korean fried chicken (with the requisite crispy exterior and juicy interior) and kimchi fries (loaded with grilled franks or fried chicken, kimchi, gochujang, sriracha, garlic mayo and cheddar melted on the spot with a kitchen torch). The Korean hot dogs are their biggest draw, appealing to adults and children alike. Made with a choice of sausage, mozzarella (for the ultimate cheese pull) or half and half (the best of both worlds), the K-dogs are coated in batter, deep fried, sprinkled with sugar and finished with the condiments of your choice. Bacon with maple syrup, potato cubes or sweet potato chunks are embedded in the pillowy dough for a meld of textures and sweet-salty flavours.
@mannaseoulcambridge

AlChile
Founded by Mexican brothers Octavio and Germán, their AlChile food trucks bring the vibrant flavours of Mexico to Cambridgeshire and beyond. Doubling the pleasure with their bright pink Mexican Gourmet van based outside Cambridge railway station and the multicoloured Street Kitchen making the rounds at various pitches, AlChile serve up tasty tacos (with homemade blue corn tortillas pressed to order), burritos, quesadillas and nachos. Mouthwatering fillings include grilled chicken, Mexican-style chorizo, rib eye steak, slow cooked pork (carnitas), pork marinated in dried chillies (al pastor), slow cooked beef (birria), grilled cactus and cheese and beans with a scrumptious selection of salsas and toppings, such as chimichurri and pico de gallo. A refreshing Jarritos, Mexico’s iconic soft drink in a range of fruit flavours, completes the foodie fiesta.
alchile.co.uk / @alchilemexicangourmet

Pizza Mondo
Pizza Mondo’s bright blue vans (dubbed Bertie and Gertie) are a welcome sight for salivating palates. Owners Mark and Joanne cook up Neapolitan-style pizza with that all-important stretchy, soft crust and bubbly, char-blistered rim. Their homemade dough is hand stretched to order, topped with fresh ingredients and cooked at a high temperature in their truck’s wood fired oven, expertly leaving a thin, ever-so-slightly wet centre. Whether it’s their meticulously sourced meats and cheeses from Italy or the best of local produce, their pizza creations are graced with quality toppings, such as San Marzano DOP tomatoes, fior di latte mozzarella and ‘nduja (a spicy, spreadable salami from Calabria). Favourites include the Trio – a meat fest with salami Napoli, salami Milano and pepperoni – and the Capricciosa featuring Italian smoked cured ham, black olives, artichokes and mushrooms. That’s amore!
pizza-mondo.co.uk / @pizzamondopizza

Meated
Meated use a wood burning smoker to make Texas-style smoked BBQ, served from their converted horsebox. The beef, pork and chicken are slow-smoked using oak logs in a traditional reverse-flow smoker. The low ‘n’ slow process is a labour of love for Ed, Meated’s owner/cook (and the “Ed” in “Meat-ed”). The meats go in the smoker for up to 16 hours, then for a long rest in the cupboard so they’re tender, juicy and flavourful. The taste and appearance of Meated’s BBQ is authentic, complete with the pink ring indicating that the meat has been cooked in the presence of smoke. Imparting delicious smoky flavours are their British Wagyu brisket, chicken thighs, pork belly and pulled pork nestled in artisan buns or as part of the Full Plate, including their Pit Beans cooked in the smoker with all the meats and Pork Belly Burnt Ends covered in their signature BBQ sauce.
meated.co.uk / @meated_bbq

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