Fried dough is exactly that: raised dough stretched flat, fried, and served with powdered or cinnamon sugar, or with sauce and cheese on the savory side. Elsewhere in the country the same idea appears as elephant ears or funnel cake, but in New England the name and the flat shape are the norm. Expect a stand wherever a fair listing carries a food flag.
fried dough
A flat sheet of fried yeast dough dusted with sugar or topped savory, the standard New England fair food.