2008 State Fair Food Preview

It's a little late this year, but here you have it: The 2008 State Fair Food Preview. Last year was a pretty monumental one, the advent of the Deep Fried Latte has kinda changed the game for me. It is probably the best food invention that the Sate Fair has seen in years. Hopefully the great folks at the Desperados tent will be doing them again this year, while you are there be sure to grab a chicken fajita, which are also great.This year offers up a nice variety of fried confections, and I will be there this weekend to try them. The game is early this year (11 am) so I will probably try to grab some of these afterwards.
Every year, all the vendors enter their new concoctions in the Big Tex Choice Awards. I think that I could make a pretty good case to be one of the judges. Will try for that one next time.

Here is a recap of some of the entries that sound particularly interesting to me.

Chicken Fried Bacon - Thick-cut pepper bacon dipped in a special batter, then deep fried. The end product has a fried chicken consistency. It is then served with a side of Ranch or Honey Mustard. This one won Best Taste in the competition. When I first heard about this one I thought 1) this is way to simple of a recipe and 2) bacon is already greasy enough. But it seems that everyone has been raving about it, so I am interested. I will give them points for coming out of left field with a simple recipe that the peeps are talking about. I will be trying this one for sure.****
Served at N30 located on Nimitz at MLK

Fernie’s All-American Fried Grilled Cheese Sandwich - Your basic grilled cheese - two pieces of white bread filled with American and Cheddar cheese. Dredged in an egg and milk batter, then coated with panko bread crumbs and deep fried. Served with shoestring potato sticks, a pickle spear some tomato soup dipping sauce (I wonder if they mean warm ketchup?). This one was a Finalist in the competition. Ok, so sans the warm tomato dipping sauce, I am into this one. This is kind of a lay-up though - basically a Monte Cristo without the turkey. Willing to try this one out as well.****
Served in the Dock Restaurant inside the Embarcadero Building.

Fried Banana Split - Oh my this one sounds pretty delicious. A mixture of banana and honey peanut butter is rolled in balls, battered and deep-fried and topped with assorted, delicious fixings, including powdered sugar, caramel and chocolate syrups, chopped peanuts, whipped cream and banana split flavored ice cream bites then fittingly crowned with the traditional cherry. Anything that starts with banana and honey peanut butter rolled into balls is a good start. Fried pastries and ice cream go together nicely. Winner of Most Creative in the Big Tex Choice Awards competition. I am interested in see what this sucker looks like, will be sampling this one as well.***
Served at the Auto Grill inside the Automobile Building.

Texas Fried Jelly Belly Beans - What you've got here is basically Jelly Bellys rolled in funnel cake batter and fried to a crunch. And what an unsatisfying crunch that would be, these sound absolutely terrible. I am not really a big fan of Jelly Beans in the first place, but I am still surprised someone thought these would be good. Can you imagine munching on some deep fried nuggets and as you bite in your mouth fills with warm licorice - disgusting.*
Served at Granny’s Funnel Cake stand C6.

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Waffle Balls - Plump, fresh strawberries covered in a thick chocolate shell are dipped in a sweet, waffle batter and deep-fried. Dusted with powdered sugar and served on a stick. This one sounds pretty great, plus I love that they still call it a waffle even though it never touches a waffle iron, oh those crazy State Fair vendors! Maybe they should be called pancake balls? Bravo. Will be trying this one as well. Finalist in the Big Tex Choice Awards competition.****
Served at the Belgian Waffle stand G39 located on the NE corner of the Esplanade.

Fire and Ice - A pineapple ring battered then deep fried, then topped with banana-flavored whipped cream that’s been frozen in liquid nitrogen. The smoking concoction is then drizzled with strawberries and syrup. This one sounds delicious, and I applaud their forward-thinking cooking methods. Bonus points for incorporating science. Will most definitely be seeking this one out after the game and am anticipating a delight that rivals the Deep Fried Latte. Finalist in the Big Tex Choice Awards competition.****
Fire & Ice is served by Abel Gonzales at the family-run stand on Nimitz Drive.

Deep Fried Smores - Marshmallow cream and chocolate chips are sandwiched between two graham crackers, dipped in a feather-light batter and fried to a golden brown. Hmm this one sounds pretty good as well, but I am kinda wanting a nice big piece of Hershey bar in there. Maybe it works better with the chips? Interested to see how this one turns out. Finalist in the Big Tex Choice Awards competition.***
At stand N9 located near the Embarcadero entrance.

Here are a few that failed to impress:

Fried Pop Rocks Fundae Blast - Fried ice cream bomb covered in Hershey’s Syrup and Pop Rocks. The fuse is a Twizzler rolled in Pop Rocks. In the center of this fried ice cream bomb is an atomic fireball. Which is perfect for cracking a molar on as you finish your dessert. Points taken away for using the word "fundae". *
Stand FW-22 located on Fun Way

Fried Snowballs – Snowballs are pretty great - however I think that this dessert would best be served with a scoop of ice-cream, and maybe some strawberry sauce. Would get *** if it is served with ice cream. **
Shirley London and Sons stand M-19 located on The Midway

Apple iPie – A crispy fried apple pie with just a hint of cinnamon, is smothered in vanilla ice cream and topped with an edible iPod “like” mp3 player and whipped cream. It also comes with a pair of working earbuds. Gimme an f-ing break! What pathetic excuse for a State Fair food. First off, there is nothing new or inventive about apple fried pies (you could get one at the snack bar in your middle school) - and dressing it up like an ipod is just insulting to the fair-goer. Oh my, and I just discovered that this is this year's Desperado's booth entry! What a let-down!*
Desperado’s stand N-19 located on Admiral Nimitz Circle.

Here are some Stay Classy Dallas ideas for next year's entries:

Deep Fried Caprese Salad - Fresh buffalo mozzarella balls stuffed with sun-dried tomatoes and basil and wrapped with a thin slice of proscuitto. The cheese ball is twice battered in funnel-cake batter then deep fried. It is then served split in halves and served with a garlic aoli.

Deep Fried Buffalo Wing Quesadilla - Chili's boneless buffalo wings are sliced thin, then placed on flour tortilla and covered with monterrey jack cheese and another torilla and seared on the griddle. The Quesadilla is then dredged in funnel-cake batter and deep fried. It is then served on a plate topped with Roquefort cheese crumbles and creamy Ranch dressing.

Thanksgiving Dinner Eggrolls - Start with some cornbread dressing, then add turkey, greenbean casserole, and sweet potatoes. Mix until fully combined. Take a large eggroll wrapper and add your filling, then roll an eggroll that is a bit smaller than a Chipotle burrito. Deep-fry it then garnish with cranberry sauce. Serve with fried pecan pie nuggets.