Rainy-Day Cart · Fried Dough Disc

Torta Frita

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Uruguayans have a saying for it: "día de lluvia, día de torta frita" — rainy day, torta frita day.

A simple dough of flour, water, and beef fat is flattened into a disc with a small slit or hole in the center so it cooks evenly, then dropped into hot oil until puffed and golden. Street carts along Montevideo's Rambla sell them hot in paper bags, sprinkled with sugar and paired with mate or coffee.

Why it's made this way: The rainy-day custom is shared across Uruguay and Argentina; the usual explanation is that wet weather kept rural workers indoors with time to heat a pan of fat and fry dough.