The State Fair of Texas has revealed 36 entries of novel culinary delights that might be available to fairgoers in September.
The 19th annual Big Tex Choice Awards started out with 57 submissions from 37 concessionaires in June. The field was reduced to a lineup of 19 savory entries and 17 sweet ones.
In the semifinals in August, the 36 dishes will be narrowed down to 10 finalists. However, even those not selected to compete in the finals will have the opportunity to sell their dishes at the fair. The judges will grade each semifinalist’s entry based on uniqueness, presentation, creativity, and taste.
A cursory glance at the list of 36 semifinalists suggests that fairgoers are in for a treat this year.
Several reimagined classics figure among the savory entries, which are listed below.
- Butcher’s Block
Anyone’s inner carnivore will appreciate this dish of 15-hour smoked brisket, crispy fried chicken, candied bacon bits, and sausage paired with mac and cheese and jalapeño peppers.
- Cornbread Sausage Bombs
Hitting hard with the winning combination of cornbread, smoked sausage, pimento cheese, and jalapeño, this dish is a fried delight served with jalapeño ranch dipping sauce.
- Creole Etouffee Beignets
The creole classic etouffee fills a beignet in this creative dish. Extra etouffee sauce of shrimp, smoked sausage, and steamed rice is served alongside this concoction.
- Deep Fried Birria Bomb
Combining Mexican and South American flavors, this large fritter is stuffed with birria, Oaxaca cheese, and mashed potatoes before being fried to a golden brown. A drizzle of fire-roasted poblano ranch dressing brings some heat to this flavor bomb.
- Deep Fried Pho
The aromatic Vietnamese soup is infused with Texas cuisine in this deep-fried rollup of noodles, slices of beef, bean sprouts, and fresh herbs. A side of pho broth comes as a dipping sauce for another powerful kick of flavor.
- Deep Fried Surf & Turf Empanada
Lobster and crab meet Palacio Chorizo in this corn masa pastry flavored with sweet corn, heavy cream, cilantro, paprika, and a bit of lime juice.
- Deep Fried Sushi Bombs
Sushi rice topped with imitation crab meat and seasoned salmon gets rolled in panko breadcrumbs and deep-fried in this dish. A flavorful Yum Yum dipping sauce and a side of seaweed accompany this golden bite.
- Deep Fried Cheesy Crab Tater Bites
This twist on a tater tot sees minced crab meat, shredded potato, cheese, and creole spices mixed together and fried before being topped with a cheesy crawfish sauce.
- Fried Monte Qristo
In this dish, a classic sandwich gets leveled up with layers of brisket, smoked turkey breast, and Swiss and American cheese. Dunked in the fryer until golden brown, this sandwich comes with a raspberry chipotle BBQ sauce.
- Fried Texas BBQ Shotgun Shells
Served on a stick, this rollup sees shredded brisket, Velveeta, and cream cheese seasoned with a special Meat Church Texas Sugar Rub and wrapped into a pasta sheet and strips of bacon. A roll in some jalapeño breadcrumbs before it hits the fryer gives this treat a nice crunch.
- Loaded Fries Pizza
A handmade 16″ pizza gets topped with buttermilk ranch dressing, freshly grated mozzarella, salted French fries, a cheddar cheese sauce, and chopped bacon in this mind-blowing dish.
- Ox’cellent Soul Roll
A twist on Southern cuisine, this dish is a crispy spring roll filled with slow-roasted beef oxtail, cornbread, butter, celery, and sweet onions.
- Raspberry Chipotle Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese
This specialty grilled cheese kicks up the flavor of the classic sandwich with a filling of bacon-wrapped jalapeños filled with cream cheese and raspberry chipotle jam.
- Taki Ramen Tostada
This dish is a Mexican-Asian fusion with a ramen noodle cake serving as a bed for taco meat, a sesame seed slaw, garlic lime aioli, queso blanco, and crumbled Takis.
- Texas Thai Up
Pork and beef are rolled up in pad thai noodles and fried to a golden brown in this Thai-Texas twist. A pad thai dipping sauce and a sprinkling of cashews and chopped green onions add yet another dimension.
- The Balboa
This pizza sandwich nestles layers of pepperoni, capicola, soppressata, smoked provolone cheese, tomatoes, banana peppers, artichokes, onions, black olives, mushrooms, and arugula greens on two pieces of pillowy bread smeared with garlic aioli.
- The Tomato-Tomahto Potato-Potatho Slyder
Fried green tomatoes serve as buns in this mini beef burger topped with provolone cheese, sautéed bell peppers, pickles, and lettuce. Seasoned potatoes and a cup of queso are accompaniments in this dish.
- The Triple C
A waffle cone is filled with Nashville Hot Jumbo Tenders and mac and cheese in this dish. Toppings include homemade breadcrumbs and a secret sauce available in mild, hot, and no spice.
- Turkey Ribs
The ribs of this seasonal bird are fried and served with a playful mashup of stuffing-seasoned fries, giblet gravy, and salsa.
- Sweet Surprises
For fairgoers with a sweet tooth, a range of sugary treats hitting a range of flavor notes are on offer, as can be seen below.
- Biscoff Delight
This dish highlights the caramel-flavored Biscoff cookie, which is crumbled to coat a New York-style cheesecake dipped in Belgian chocolate.
- Bourbon Banana Caramel Sopapillas
Fried sopapillas are topped with vanilla-caramel-infused bananas in this dish. A sweet bourbon syrup, candied pecans, sweetened mascarpone cheese, crumbled Nilla Wafers, and a dusting of powdered make this a mouth-watering treat.
- Churreos
Deep-fried churros are given a cookies-and-cream twist in this dish. Mini churros coated in cinnamon and sugar are doused in chocolate syrup and cream cheese icing before being topped with crushed Oreos cookies.
- Cotton Candyrita
This dish inspired by the Texas margarita features the fair food icon of cotton candy. A cotton candy-infused margarita topped with a dollop of cotton candy is served in a pink sugar-rimmed cup.
- Deep Fried Honey Butter Brisket Swirls
A twist on spinwheels and cinnamon rolls, this dish makes deep-fried rolls out of layers of flaky pastry and slices of brisket. Glazed with a honey butter sauce, this sweet-savory mashup will surely please.
- Deep Fried Texas Oatmeal Pie
A Dr. Pepper batter and a Big Red reduction sauce take this fried oatmeal cream pie to another level. A pour of marshmallow sauce over the top makes this dish even more decadent.
- Deep Fried Vietnamese Coffee
Coffee lovers will rejoice over this coffee-infused cake that is battered, deep-fried, and topped with a sweet condensed milk sauce.
- Deep Fried Candy Pecan Bacon Bread Pudding
Bite-size morsels of bread pudding get jazzed up with a dunk in the fryer and a toss in some cinnamon sugar and candied pecans. The addition of chopped bacon and a New Orleans praline sauce make this dish an unforgettable treat.
- Fried Cherry Pie in the Sky
In this dish, sweet cherries, buttery shortbread crumbles, and a shortbread paste are layered in pastry dough before being crimped into a pie and fried. It is then accompanied by a butter almond shortbread crumble topping, Blue Bell vanilla ice cream, cherry preserves, whipped cream, and sugared cherries.
- Fried Fireball Shot
The lightness of angel food cake pairs with the fiery cinnamon flavor of Fireball in this dish, which serves the fried and infused morsel in a shot glass.
- Island Delight Deep Fried Piña Colada
This piña colada-inspired treat crumbles up rum cake and mixes it with pineapple, creme de coconut, and lime. After being rolled into small balls, they are fried and topped with a piña colada buttercream, golden sprinkles, and sugar glitter.
- Not’cho Average Nachos
Wonton wrappers filled with a cherry or apple filling and then fried replaces the nacho chip in this dish. Topped with cinnamon sugar, whipped topping, brownie crumbs, citrus glaze, and chocolate sauce, this dish is also garnished with fresh strawberries, blueberries, and peaches.
- Rest in Heavenly Peach
Two pieces of angel food cake are grilled and then served with sweet whipped cream and peach pie filling in this out-of-this-world dish.
- Strawberry Chicks-on-the-Stick
This dish sees four chicken wings dunked in funnel cake mix and then fried to a golden brown. After glazed with a honey and garlic sauce, the fried wings are set on a stick infused with strawberries and dusted with powdered sugar and lemon rub. This stick is then placed on a generous portion of whipped cream and topped with strawberry syrup.
- Sweet Encanto
Inspired by Latin American flavors, this dish features a round waffle sweetened with caramel dulce de leche. A cream topping with slices of strawberry, kiwi, peach, and shredded coconut is added, with some drizzles of raspberry jam and sweetened condensed milk to finish it off.
- The Fruity Pebble Pickle
A whole dill pickle serves as the base in this playful dessert. It is wrapped in a Fruit Roll-Up and some Fruit by the Foot before being drizzled in sugar syrup and coated in Fruity Pebbles cereal. A touch of strawberry snow cone syrup finishes this unique concoction off.
- Trail-Ade
This cowboy-inspired nonalcoholic cocktail takes lemonade to the next level by adding a blend of summer fruits, cucumbers, and fresh mint.
As The Dallas Express previously reported, the 2022 State Fair of Texas saw over 2.5 million fairgoers coming to the Lone Star State — an increase of over 15% from the year prior.
The high attendance topped all other fairs in the country, begging the question of whether Texas can rank No.1 again this year.
The 2023 Texas State Fair will run from September 29 to October 22 at Fair Park in Dallas.