What is more iconic in American culture than a traditional fall festival? And none may be more celebrated than the State Fair of Texas, held every year at historic Fair Park in Dallas. Since its inception in 1886, the annual event has commemorated our history, agriculture, education and, of course, food.
A time-honored favorite of the State Fair is the Competition Kitchen, where cooks and aspiring chefs from all corners of the state enter treasured family recipes and special creations, vying for a coveted blue ribbon in categories ranging from biscuits and barbecue to jams, jellies and gingerbread.
But when it comes to food, most fairgoers rush headlong to their favorite concession stand for an annual fair food fix. There are more than 200 food stands on the fairgrounds, and for many concessionaires the State Fair is a family tradition, some having been around the business since childhood. There are classic favorites like cotton candy, ice cream, turkey legs and candied apples, but undoubtedly the granddaddy of all fair food is that batter-dipped sausage, impaled on a stick and deep-fried to golden brown perfection — the Fletcher’s Original State Fair Corny Dog.
Brothers Carl and Neil Fletcher first sold their corny dogs from a single stand on the fairgrounds in 1942. Today multiple stands dot the 277-acre park, where Neil’s sons Skip and Bill carry on the family business, selling nearly 630,000 corny dogs in an average season.
The fair is well known for unique food creations, but in 2005 the selections reached unprecedented originality with the intro duction of the Big Tex Choice Awards, an annual competition among concessionaires to create traditional dishes with a not-so-traditional Texas twist. Contestants are judged in two categories, Best Taste and Most Creative, and deep-fried creations seem to be the most popular, and winningest, entries.
Winners have fried up everything from butter — yes, deep-fried butter — to bubblegum, and 2016 is shaping up to be just as tasty and creative as ever before with semifinal entries such as crunchy fried oinkers and fried Jell-O. You can view a list of all this year’s semifinalists at bigtex.com/food/choiceawards, with winners to be announced Labor Day weekend.
A portion of the annual concession sales go to the State Fair Youth Scholarship Fund, so plan to visit the State Fair of Texas Sept. 30 – Oct. 23, and fill up on your favorite fair food.
