The State Fair of Texas is coming. And with that, fair food!
KXAN has a rundown of the 32 semifinalists for the “Big Tex Choice Awards”.
It seems like there’s not a lot on a stick this year. But out of 19 “savory” dishes, I see three “deep fried”, three “fried”, and seven that include “fried” in the description but not the title.
Our Deep Fried I-35 is a deep-fried Texas road trip on a plate! We start out in Parker County, Texas, which is famous for its peaches. Next, we move down I-35 to West, Texas, where we stop and pick up a dozen of our favorite kolaches. We can never decide which type of kolaches we like more – sweet or savory – always such a dilemma. The only solution? Sweet AND Savory. Next, we head south to Dublin, Texas…famous for, you guessed it, Dr Pepper®. After a few hours of driving and a few hours of snacking on I-35 treats, we finally arrive in Austin, Texas, home of some of the best smoked brisket in the world. We combine these ingredients into a sweet and savory decadent tribute to the Texas road trip…the Deep Fried I-35! First, we fry up our kolache dough, leaving a divot in the center for our filling. We top our fried kolache with smoked beef brisket. Our peach juice combines with the Dr Pepper® to make a sweet and tangy BBQ glaze which we drizzle over our brisket kolache. We garnish this roadworthy concoction with peach slices and a sprinkling of powdered sugar. Voila, y’all!
That does sort of invoke I-35 for me. Specifically, it invokes a multi-car pileup on I-35 during rush hour.
This new Fair food comes from an old recipe that was a Louisiana favorite and brings your taste buds to life after just the first bite. We begin with a tried-and-true favorite, a slow smoked extra-large turkey leg. This juicy, tender leg is smoked extra-long to allow the meat to fall off the bone. After the smoked turkey is at its most tender, we stuff the middle with savory crawfish etouffee. The crawfish étouffée is also cooked a long time to bring the flavors of the “Cajun Trinity” to its fullest flavor. We serve with a side of rice, so you do not miss out on any of the amazing flavors of the sauce. Turkey Legs have never been so amazingly savory. 2021 is going to be the best of the best at the State Fair of Texas, and stuffed turkey legs will be leading the way.
Out of 13 “sweet” dishes, I count six that contain the words “deep fried”, three more that are just “fried”, and two more that do not use the word “fried” in the name, but are fried as part of the prep.
Deep Fried Halloween
Our trick-or-treat experience starts with a delicious large chewy pretzel that is dropped in the fryer. As it becomes golden brown, we quickly bathe it in candy corn syrup, followed by some rainbow sprinkles and powdered sugar. Now the fun begins – piping in orange and white buttercream icing, then stacking some of our most favorite Halloween candies, like M&M’s®, Reese Pieces, Mini-Twix®, Oreo cookie crumbles, and candy corn just to name a few. Topped with a delicious marshmallow whip cream and a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup as the crown, we put the final touches of Hershey’s chocolate syrup caramel sauce and candy corn drizzle on this beautiful desert.