Sweet Potato Balls (Kanom Kai Nok Krata) ขนมไข่นกกระทา

Despite a common belief by many Westerners that vegetarianism is impossible to communicate in Thailand, and that fish sauce goes in everything, the Thai language has a word to indicate veganism that is universally understood. เจ translates in English to je, or jay, and means no animal products. The concept is so well understood, in fact, that for ten days a year the country celebrates a vegan diet with such a fervour that it’s near impossible in a large city to find a venue without vegetarian options!

One of the best times in Thailand to try street foods is during this annual festival, tesagaan gin jee (เทศกาลกินเจ), in the autumn. Yellow flags are strung across tables and shophouses of participating vendors, indicating they have vegan friendly foods for sale. That’s how I came to try these moreish fried sweet potato balls, a cheap and delicious vegan snack you can find sizzling in vats of oil half the size of your bathtub.

Not quite sweet, but also outside of savoury territory, these steaming nibbles are both easy to prepare and contain minimal ingredients. Just be sure you make them to order as they are rubbish leftovers.