Filipino desserts and Indian kulfi falooda voted world's best street food sweets

Online food guide TasteAtlas has compiled a list of 50 dishes, with Turkish ice cream taking the third spot

Taho is a Filipino dessert made of soft tofu, caramelised sugar syrup and tapioca pearls. Photo: Joshua Salva / Unsplash

Three Filipino desserts have been ranked in the Best Street Food Sweets in the World list compiled by TasteAtlas.

The 50 dishes that made the online food guide's cut also include Turkish ice cream and Indian dessert kulfi falooda.

The three Filipino dishes are: taho, made of soft tofu, tapioca and caramelised sugar; maruya, or deep-fried banana fritters; and chewy rice cake espasol.

Each dish was selected on the back of two parameters: how sweet it is and whether it is sold as street food. Taho, for example, is drenched in a caramel syrup and is famously peddled in huge tin cans every morning.

Portuguese custard tart pastel de nata ranked first on the TasteAtlas list, followed by Indonesian pancake serabi, usually prepared with rice flour and coconut milk. Dondurma or Turkish ice cream, known for its dense and chewy texture, came in third.

TasteAtlas described the Turkish dessert as containing mastic resin and salep, a kind of flour derived from the roots of the early purple orchid. These ingredients are mixed with milk and sugar to produce the chewy ice cream, which is popular in the Gulf.

Another dish on the list that is well known in the Middle East is kulfi falooda, which combines thin, sweet noodles with a traditional South Asian ice cream seasoned with sweet basil seeds and rosewater.

The online catalogue says it is “usually associated with northern Indian regions. Traditionally enjoyed during the summer, kulfi falooda is commonly prepared at home, but can also be found on the menus of traditional restaurants or at specialised street stalls.”

Other lists released by TasteAtlas, which is often sought out by foodies looking for dish and restaurant recommendations, include the World's Most Legendary Restaurants and the World's Worst Dishes.