Game Day

About this collection

Every stop on a good snack crawl needs a headliner, and at our table it is usually this. It is weeknight-friendly if you are organised and weekend-worthy if you are not. We first ate something like this at a street stall in Seoul, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it. It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink.

There are snacks you eat standing at the counter, and then there are game day — the kind you clear your evening for. The crisp edge is what people remember, so be brave with the heat and generous with the seasoning. We first ate something like this at a street stall in Osaka, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it.

1. Lemony Aubergine Tostadas

This is a recipe built for sharing, which is a polite way of saying you should double it.

If your ingredients is releasing a lot of water, your pan is not hot enough. Take everything out, get it smoking, and start again in smaller batches. The trick with lemony aubergine tostadas is patience: let the ingredients take on proper colour before you even think about moving it. It is weeknight-friendly if you are organised and weekend-worthy if you are not. Do not skip the carrots; it is the bright note that stops the whole plate from feeling heavy.

The mixture will look too wet at first. Trust it; the caster sugar hydrates as it rests. Aroha, who runs our test kitchen on Thursdays, calls this “the one that ruins other snacks for you”. If you can chop celery and hold a wide non-stick frying pan, you can make this. We promise. Season in layers. A pinch at each stage beats a panic-handful at the end.

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2. Fiery Chickpea Spring Rolls

We first ate something like this at a street stall in Lisbon, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it.

No furikake? A mix of panko and a little chicken stock gets you most of the way there. The mixture will look too wet at first. Trust it; the neutral oil hydrates as it rests. We first ate something like this at a street stall in Bangkok, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it. Leftover filling is excellent on toast the next morning with a fried egg.

We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner. The mixture will look too wet at first. Trust it; the black pepper hydrates as it rests.

Get the full recipe →