Some of dishes that may come to the fair vary from twists on traditionally fried dishes to fried whiskey or Vietnamese coffee. Others include a few alternative sandwich options and different takes on popular desserts.
The following entries are for the savory category:
- Butcher’s Block
- Cornbread Sausage Bombs
- Creole Etouffee Beignets
- Deep Fried Birria Bomb
- Deep Fried Pho
- Deep Fried Surf & Turf Empanada
- Deep Fried Sushi Bombs
- Deep Fried Cheesy Crab Tater Bites
- Fried Monte Qristo
- Fried Texas BBQ Shotgun Shells
- Loaded Fries Pizza
- Ox’cellent Soul Roll
- Raspberry Chipotle Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese
- Taki Ramen Tostada
- Texas Thai Up
- The Balboa
- The Tomato-Tomahto Potato-Potatho Slyder
- The Triple C
- Turkey Ribs
The following entries are for the sweet category:
- Biscoff Delight
- Bourbon Banana Caramel Sopapillas
- Churreos
- Cotton Candyrita
- Deep Fried Honey Butter Brisket Swirls
- Deep Fried Texas Oatmeal Pie
- Deep Fried Vietnamese Coffee
- Deep Fried Candy Pecan Bacon Bread Pudding
- Fried Cherry Pie in the Sky
- Fried Fireball Shot
- Island Delight Deep Fried Pina Colada
- Not’cho Average Nachos
- Rest in Heavenly Peach
- Strawberry Chicks-on-the-Stick
- Sweet Encanto
- The Fruity Pebble Pickle
- Trail-Ade
Entrants must have at least one year’s experience as a concessionaire at the state fair to be eligible to participate. During the semifinal round, dishes will be judged in a tasting round based on the likelihood of a fairgoer purchasing the item in addition to four criteria: uniqueness, presentation, creativity and taste.
The 36 semifinalists in the 19th annual Big Tex Choice Awards will be trimmed to 10 finalists in August with winners announced a few weeks later.
