One day, when Nelly was still a child, she thought about joining the now-defunct paramilitary army of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Little did she imagine that in the future, she would emigrate from her country, escaping the violent daily life imposed by the FARC themselves. Today, seven years later, she still tries to forget those times when she “lived in the shadow of death 24 hours a day,” and one of her main allies is street food. The Colombian woman offers the typical Papas Rellenas, potatoes stuffed with rice, chicken, and egg, which are very popular in the streets of neighboring Peru, Chile, and of course, Colombia. At home, Nelly prepares everything by hand: she mashes cooked potatoes, makes the fillings, assembles and fries the breaded balls in a mixture of flour and water. She also makes homemade ají (hot sauce) and guacamole to accompany them. Then, at the food stall, she heats the Papas Rellenas on the grill. “I sell food with a story, with a past,” she says, “I pass my culture through it.”