by Steven Doyle
It’s that time of year again when the State Fair food vendors roll out their deep fryers from storage in an attempt to win the top prize for the wackiest fried food imaginable. Last week we listed the finalists which consisted of eight out of over forty new items being introduced this year. Winning the competition is said to be worth an extra $200,000 in sales to the winner, so the stakes are high and the competition is fierce.
Abel Gonzalez was back and won the top award with his fried jambalaya ball. Abel’s offering had a crispy outer shell filled with a spicy rice, sausage and shrimp mélange with a side of his own kicked up ranch dressing. This is the very same gent who concocted fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches, fried coca cola, fried cookie dough and more recently a win for his fried butter.
The category for most creative went to Butch Benevidas for his fried bacon cinnamon roll, which was especially good and extreme on the bacon.
Other very tasty dishes this year includes divine chocolate tres leches cake, and from the gentleman that won the 2011 competition with his Buffalo Chicken in a Flapjack, Allen Weiss. You might know Weiss better from his much older invention, the Pink Thing which is sold excusively at Six Flags. Weiss will be selling his picnic on a stick this year which is basically a shish kabob of chicken, pickles and tater tots battered and deep fried.
One especially savory entry was the fried pork wing that is lightly battered and fried. This is a four ounce chunk of pork that is on the bone and is actually the fibula in a pig’s hind shank. It is meant for easy eating that is moist and very tender. The item is especially good, but not al that original as you can find this appetizer offered at numerous restaurants including The Libertine in Dallas and Eno’s in Oak Cliff.
Items that didn’t make it to the finals but will still be sold at the 2012 State Fair of Texas includes a fried cotton candy, fried red velvet cupcake, fried chicken and waffle, fried sugar cubes and fried Kit Kat candy bars.
Update your gym membership and mark your calendar for September 28, 2012 when Big Tex will ring in opening day at the fair. We will, of course, have constant fair updates this year, featuring the highlights and hidden thrills found on the midway.
