The Texas State Fair has released its eight finalists for best fried food and this year’s junk food engineers have once again done their best to concoct more examples of the ridiculously unhealthy, cardiac-arresting cuisine that Texas has become world-famous for.
If the annual festival’s heart attack-inducing treats don’t set a new standard for American decadence each year, most of us tend to leave sorely disappointed.
My favorite of the new additions is easily the Fried Bacon Cinnamon Roll, which is, unsurprisingly, a cinnamon roll dipped in pancake batter, covered in bacon and then topped with powdered sugar.
I grew up in Texas, so I’ll be the first to ask the most obvious question about this one: Why didn’t they add Hershey’s Syrup?
As a child of the border, my second favorite contender is Chicken Fried Cactus Bites, which are chicken-battered prickly pear cactus deep-fried and served with two sauces: jalapeno ranch and agave nectar.
They and the other six finalists will compete on Monday. When the fair kicks off in late September, I know where I’ll be.
Here are all eight finalists:
-Chicken Fried Cactus Bites
-Deep-Fried Divine Chocolate Tres Leches Cake
-Deep Fried Jambalaya
-Deep Fried Mac-N-Cheese Slider
-Fried Bacon Cinnamon Roll
-Fried Mexican Fire Crackers
-Picnic on a Stick
-Fried Pork Wing
