Exotic Foods

Australian & Indian Snacks

Vegemite, Australia's No. 1 Spread

Vegemite, an all-Australian symbol of a power breakfast, is the No. 1 spread in the country. It's salty, bitter and packed with vitamins. It was introduced as a spread during wartime when there was a shortage of Marmite. It's now a symbol of Australia that is spread onto toast, added to curries and even churned into ice-cream. Since its invention a century ago in Melbourne, the spread gained such popularity that it was found in nine out of 10 Aussie homes.

The intensely flavoured condiment is so strongly linked to Australian identity that international culinary figures, such as Nigella Lawson and René Redzepi, are driven to cook with Vegemite while visiting the country, and local chefs draw on the flavour in multicultural dishes. 

In addition to brewer's yeast, Vegemite contains concentrated extracts of onion, malt and celery. It is also made up of salt and several different types of Vitamin B (thiamin B1, riboflavin B2, niacin B3 and folate).

Vegemite continues to be Australia's most popular yeast spread, with more than 22 million jars manufactured annually.

Video Link: Vegemite 

(Video: Courtesy Noko's Kitchen)

India's Most Popular Snack

Samosa, a snack introduced from Persia (now Iran), is a popular fried South Asian and West Asian snack. It is a pastry with a savoury filling, mostly vegetables, spiced potatoes, onions, and peas. It may also contain meat or fish. It is made in different shapes, including triangular, cone or crescent, depending on the region. Samosas are usually accompanied by chutney. The sweet variants of Samosas are a popular entrée, appetizer or snack in India, South Asia, the Middle East, Central Asia, East Africa and their South-Asian diasporas.

Samosa was introduced to the Indian subcontinent in the late 13th century by chefs from the Middle East and Central Asia who cooked in the royal kitchens for the rulers of the Delhi Sultanate. Amir Khusro (1253–1325), a scholar and the royal poet of the Delhi Sultanate, wrote around 1300 that the princes and nobles enjoyed Samosas prepared from meat, ghee, onion and other ingredients.

Video Link: Samosa

(Video: Courtesy Cooking Foodie)