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The mere mention of fast food conjures up images of McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Burger King and their fatty high-cholesterol offerings. Fast food has become almost synonymous with these. But all over the world are restaurants offering a range of very different fast foods full of flavour and goodness.

Israeli fast foods for example, include such delights as a falafel, a shish or lamb kebab served in pita bread with a variety of salads. The falafel, a vegetarian dish, consists of a mixture of chick peas, cumin and onion. The mixture is rolled into little balls and fried.

The Shuwarma is ground lamb, chicken or beef grilled and then cut into strips to be served in pita. A shish kebab is a mixture of ground lamb, herbs and spices moulded onto a skewer and grilled.

A lamb kebab is simply chunks of lamb grilled and usually served in a pita with salads. The salads that are added to the main dish may include finely chopped tomato and onion, coleslaw, sauerkraut, beetroot, eggplant salads, chillies and many others. In addition humus - a thick dip made from chick peas - and techina - a sauce made from sesame seeds - is added. Humus and techina are often.

These or similar foods can be found in many Mediterranean countries. Add to these a plate of humus and techina served with a little olive oil, some chillies or olives eaten as a dip with pita bread and you have a relatively healthy and tasty dish available from street vendors and other fast food outlets.

Britain is famous for its fish and chips shops that serve deep fried fish (usually cod) and chips. This has long been a favourite of the British and apart from the fact that everything is fried, is still a relatively healthy alternative to the fat-ridden burger.

Another traditional English fast food is the pie and mash shop. This provided a cheap meal during tough times in the past and is still widely available and popular today. Around the world are many outlets that seek to emulate the traditional British pie. Finally, there are the traditional pub meals that include the famous Cornish pasty, a ploughman's lunch and other quick options.

More recent additions to the British fast food business include the doner kebab which is simply a Turkish shuwarma, kebabs, and a range of fast Indian and Chinese take-away outlets. The latter have given Chinese food a bad name as all the food is highly laced with MSG.

South Africa has many fast food outlets that include many of the international options as well as some

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