Chinese Street Food & SnacksWhat to eat at night markets and food stalls
Night markets and food streets are one of the best parts of travelling in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Point, pay with your phone, and try these.
Chinese Street Food & Snacks: the essential names
1. Stinky tofu
Fermented tofu, deep-fried or stewed. It smells strong but tastes mild — a night-market favourite in Changsha and Taiwan.
2. Lamb skewers
Grilled lamb on skewers with cumin and chilli, from Xinjiang and now everywhere.
3. Roujiamo (Chinese burger)
Chopped braised pork stuffed into a crisp flatbread, from Xi'an. Often called the Chinese hamburger.
4. Liangpi (cold skin noodles)
Cold, chewy strips steamed from wheat or rice starch, served with cucumber, chilli oil and vinegar, from Shaanxi.
5. Malatang
Pick your own vegetables, tofu and meatballs; they are boiled in a spicy, numbing broth and sold by weight.
6. Taiwanese fried chicken cutlet
A huge, flattened chicken cutlet fried until crisp and dusted with pepper and chilli powder — a Taiwanese night-market favourite, bigger than your face.
7. Kaolengmian (grilled cold noodles)
A northeastern snack: a thin sheet of cold-noodle dough grilled with egg, sauce and onion, then rolled and cut.
8. Shouzhuabing (flaky pancake)
A flaky pan-fried pancake, often filled with egg, lettuce and sausage, wrapped up to eat on the go.
9. Roasted sweet potato
Sweet potatoes roasted in a barrel oven — the smell of winter streets in northern China.
10. Potstickers
Long dumplings pan-fried on one side until crisp and golden.
11. Sugar-roasted chestnuts
Chestnuts roasted in hot sand with sugar, sold by weight in autumn and winter.
12. Bubble tea
Milk tea with chewy tapioca pearls, from Taiwan. You choose the sugar level and the amount of ice.
Useful phrases
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 这个多少钱？ | Zhège duōshao qián? | English How much is this? | Note |
| 来一串。 | Lái yí chuàn. | English One skewer, please. | Note |
| 少辣。 | Shǎo là. | English Less spicy. | Note |
| 半糖，少冰。 | Bàn táng, shǎo bīng. | English Half sugar, less ice (for bubble tea). | Note |
| 可以扫码支付吗？ | Kěyǐ sǎomǎ zhīfù ma? | English Can I pay by QR code? | Note |
Frequently asked questions
What is the most famous Chinese street food?
Lamb skewers, stinky tofu and roujiamo are among the best known (and jianbing, on our breakfast page); bubble tea is the most famous street drink.
How do you pay at Chinese food stalls?
Almost always with a phone (WeChat Pay or Alipay) by scanning a QR code. Visitors can link a foreign card to these apps.