Cornbread funnel cakes? Shrimp-stuffed turkey legs? Prepare yourself, State Fair foodies
The last time there was a State Fair, a chicken sandwich had doughnuts for buns, corn on the cob was dusted with pumpkin spice and everyone in North Carolina tried to get their hands on a pineapple Dole Whip.
The chorus of deep fryers fell silent last year, as the NC State Fair was among the many events canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
After a two-year wait, North Carolina’s greatest gastronomic spectacle returns next week, and with it the latest fair food creations. More than 20 new foods join the smorgasbord of unholy delights, including barbecue stuffed eggrolls, savory funnel cakes, deep-fried cookie dough and a turkey leg stuffed with shrimp Alfredo.
Here’s what to look for at this year’s fair, running from Oct. 14-24.
▪ Atomic Tots by Chef’s D’Lites: Tater tots are no stranger to the State Fair, but these come with a spicy seasoning and are topped with cheese sauce, shredded chicken, spicy ranch dressing, sour cream and a fried chili pepper.
▪ Carolina Cowboy Roll by Fatboys BBQ: A Texas barbecue eggroll is certainly a first for a North Carolina fair. Here, an eggroll is made with smoked brisket, mac and cheese and barbecue sauce. A vegetarian eggroll will be offered with fake bacon bits in place of brisket.
▪ Cornbread & Chili Funnel Cake by The Gobblin’ Gourmet: This is a savory funnel cake made of cornbread and topped with chili and shredded cheese.
▪ Esquites by Douglas Farms: This fried corn off the cob dish isn’t new, but will make its NC State Fair debut. Imagine Mexican-style elote, but served in a bowl, topped with cheese, chili and lime.
▪ Fresh Creamy Lemonade by Bayshore Services: This lemonade is shaken instead of stirred, then topped with whipped cream.
▪ Fresh Fried Pork Rinds by Ragin Cajun: North Carolinians are no strangers to pork rinds. These come in flavors like Cajun, sweet cayenne with Cajun ranch and Sriracha.
▪ Jerk BBQ Chicken sliders by Cool Runnings Jamaican: Jerk barbecue chicken on smaller sized buns, topped with a pineapple coleslaw.
▪ Kora’s Cookie Dough: In the why-didn’t-this-exist-before category, deep fried cookie dough covered with powdered sugar and chocolate sauce.
▪ La Sureña, The Crazy Southerner by Arepa Loca: This is a southern arepa, made from corn and cheese and stuffed with pulled pork, plaintains, guacamole and “pink sauce.”
▪ Lobster Dogs: Seafood rolls, including lobster, shrimp and crab dogs, served on a New England-style split bun and topped with butter.
▪ Lobster Pop by Oak City Fish & Chips: If it had you at lobster, does it still have you at lobster on a stick? Lightly battered lobster tails served in the shell on a stick by a popular Raleigh food hall vendor.
▪ Nashville Style Chicken by Med Grill: One of the trendiest chicken sandwiches of the past five years will be at the fair, where deep fried marinated chicken will be fried in a special sauce and served with pickles and slaw on a bun.
▪ Oh My Churros: Look for sweet and savory churros.
▪ OMG Banana Pudding by OMG! Foods: A new take on the classic barbecue and potluck dessert.
▪ Que & Grits by Chick-N-Que: Barbecue chicken is served on top of a bowl of cheese grits, covered in more chedder cheese, chives and chicken skin cracklins.
▪ Sassy’s Sweet Potatoes: Loaded baked sweet potatoes with every topping you can imagine and many you’ve never dreamed of having near a sweet potato. Look for options like bacon, cheese, pulled pork, crispy onions, baked beans, craisins, mac and cheese, coconut flakes and lots more.
▪ Shrimp Alfredo stuffed turkey leg by Hickory Tree Turkey BBQ: Huge smoked turkey legs are a mainstay at the fair, but we haven’t seen anything like this one, stuffed with Cajun shrimp and Alfredo sauce.
▪ Shrimp and grits on a stick by Ezzell’s Something Good: Fried balls of cheese grits and shrimp are topped with a Cajun cream sauce, bacon and green onions.
▪ Shrimp Mac and Cheese Eggroll by Waypoint Oyster Bar: Here the familiar eggroll is stuffed with mac and cheese and North Carolina shrimp, deep fried and served with aioli.
▪ Specialty popcorn by Just Popping Around: No word on the flavors at this point, but it looks to be something beyond kettle and caramel.
▪ Strawberry Cheesecake Smoothie by Tropical Delights: This vendor introduced Dole Whip to the fair a few years ago and everyone went wild. This year it’s a strawberry cheesecake smoothie served in a 24-ounce martini cup.
▪ Tropical Icees by CocoCrissi: These are Italian Ice drinks as vibrant as rainbow sherbert.
▪ Twisted Chicken on Tots by Hot Chix Hotcakes & Chicken: While famous for its mini pancakes on a stick, this regular fair vendor is topping tater tots with white cheddar mac and cheese, fried chicken tenders and optional sauces like buffalo and garlic Parmesan.
▪ Waffle Chix: This new vendor specializes in chicken and waffles, but as a corndog. Breakfast sausage is dipped in waffle mix then cooked in a waffle iron.
This story was originally published October 5, 2021 at 10:00 AM.
