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Street Food - the very essence of a country or region's tradition. Wherever you go in the world, the food of the streets mirrors the ways of ordinary people - each recipe reflecting lifestyle, race and religion.
Often developed over centuries, it is more than a cheap source of nourishment. It tells stories of shifting populations, trade connections and evolving identities. Key ingredients proclaim a melting pot of cultures, while culinary customs and techniques give a place its individuality.
Often, across the world - from the richest city to the poorest backwater - the story of street food is one of poverty, struggle and enterprise.
Some dishes are iconic, others unknown beyond their street corner, but all blend the flavours of local history, economy and politics. And they are given extra piquancy by very relevant modern issues - famine, obesity, ethnic rivalry and the environment.
Whether you are a tourist or a local tribesman, join us on a unique global exploration of street fare.
Everything is overshadowed by politics in Jerusalem. Even the most basic of things like food.
Food is a marker of identities and culture and is no different for the Palestinians and Israelis.
It is a city torn by war - but whatever a citizens' race or religion, much of their customary street food is the same.
What does that say about a shared identity and, despite decades of turmoil, how much hope does that bring for the future?
Cairo is today a sprawling metropolis where a quarter of all Egyptians live and work.
In a city where rain is seldom seen, life is lived on the street creating an endless bazaar where everything is for sale.
Selling food on the street has always been a precarious vocation for vendors - given that if they move their stalls they often lose their customers, but now they face an additional challenge.
In the last 12 months food inflation across the world has seen large increases in the prices of basic commodities.
A desperate shortage of staple foods, brought about partly by rising oil prices, has sparked riots around the world.
In Egypt, where the common word for bread is "life", Street Food investigates the cost for the average person.
Beijing is the vibrant centre of a new global superpower. A place where old meets new, where Communism meets Capitalism.
China's economy is expanding at an astounding rate - but its waistlines are too.
The food of the streets tells the story of a culture torn between tradition and modernity, the customs of an ancient past competing with the convenience age of the new.
In many ways the stroy of how food has changed here is the story of how China has changed in the last two decades.
What will survive and what will be lost? In a China which has gone within two generations from mass starvation to mass obesity, what does the future hold?
One of the most interesting things about Nairobi is its diversity - there are more than 42 different ethnic communities living in the Kenyan capital. Each brings unique dishes, traditional foods and flavours.
However, as with all African cities, the divide between rich and poor is stark.
Many millions of people across Africa are dependent on street food not only for nourishment but as a way of making a living.
But poor hygiene practices and rising food prices have cost thousands of lives.
Street Food explores what, if anything, is being done to tackle the issue.
Visitors to London could be forgiven for thinking they are seeing a quintessentially English city. But behind the picture postcard facade of some of its most recognisable monuments, London is one of the most multicultural capitals in the world. More than a third of Londoners belong to a minority ethnic group and speak one of the 200 different languages in the city of about eight million people. Nowhere is this more evident than in the city's East End, an area that has seen centuries of immigration.
Food has played a crucial part in the integration of these communities and one street - Brick Lane - tells this story most clearly.
Once the home of traditional fare, it is now the heartland of the city's Bangladeshi community.
Known as the Big Apple, New York City is home to about nine million people and hosts an additional 40 million visitors every year.
That is a lot of stomachs to feed.
Quick snacks, in particular the hot dog, are as synonymous with New York as yellow cabs and skyscrapers and reflect the city's eclectic ethnic mix.
Yet few people realise that many of the city's approximately 3,000 street vendors - including Brooklyn's famed 'Falafel King' - face a daily struggle to survive that belies the city's wealthy and glamourous image.
San Sebastian is the food heartland of Spain's Basque region.
The Basque people are proudly protective of their culture, language and traditions. Among the traditions they have maintained are the men-only food societies, where women are barred from cooking and the conversation over a meal ultimately turns to the sometimes volatile political climate.
The cuisine, both in Basque homes and on the streets of San Sebastian, is also a product of a traditional way of life: Seafood, delivered by generations of local fishermen, takes centre stage.
This fish diet, around which the Basque palette revolves, is one these people want to preserve. It provides local families with a livelihood and their evening meal, but over-fishing and competition threatens stocks and a unique way of life.
From the alleys of San Sebastian dotted with pinxto bars, to nearby sleepy fishing villages where fish is consumed directly from the sea - this episode of Street Food explores the struggle to preserve identity and maintain simple local traditions against the political backdrop of the region.
On an island off the north-west coast of Malaysia, multiculturalism is not an idealistic ambition - it is simply a way of life.
Ethnic Malays, Indians and Chinese live side-by-side, producing a melting pot in a city renowned for the fabulous food served up by roadside vendors.
This Malaysian state epitomises the variety, colour and flair of Asian street food culture.
Watch part one of Street Food, Penang
Watch part two of Street Food, Penang
Street Food, Jerusalem airs from Saturday, July 26, 2008
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