"deep fried" news and stories

The Indiana State Fair, which has been going strong for 150 years now, is a huge event in Indianapolis, where it is held every year. While some traditions, like games, animals and bake-offs are still drawing crowds, the food that is for sale - particularly the fried food - is even more of a draw. The specialty of the Indiana State Fair happens to be deep-fried chocolate-covered strawberries, though some of the other offerings included deep fried sauerkraut and the ubiquitous deep fried Twinkies.

The fried strawberries are pictured above, kindly captured before consumption by a Flickr user and looking at the pile of fried berries, topped with even more berries, chocolate and whipped cream makes it easy to see why it's a popular fair food. But is it better than funnel cake? Better than deep fried snickers bars? What about a deep fried bacon double quarter pounder?

We all know that these foods aren't exactly health foods, but you have to admit that they are hard to resist at a fair. So tell us, what is your favorite fair food? And where can we get some?

It seems like onion rings sell based on smell alone in steakhouses and other restaurants. Too often, they are served in unattractive bricks of onion shreds or have at least three times as much batter than onion per ring. A good onion ring has to - first and foremost - be a ring, and it should be one with a good ratio of onion to batter. Anne, of Anne's Food, has captured what appear to be perfect onion rings. She notes that she would have liked a thicker coating of batter, but the batch in this particular photo looks just right. Another tip for making good onion rings is to use sweet onions, which add a milder flavor and are especially good if you like to add spices to your batter.

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Clearly, there are some people who will deep fry anything. Mars bars, Twinkies, chocolate truffles, fruits and vegetables are all fair game for the fryer, but this deep fried bacon double quarter pounder is the first of its kind that I have seen. Bacon was fried and added to two, stacked quarter-pounders (with cheese) and coated in batter before being fried. Click here to see a step-by-step photo essay. The chef says that he ended up eating the whole thing and wasn't hungry again for more than 24 hours.

And what is that beside the burger? It looks like a pile of crispy, fried batter - the savory version of funnel cake - not french fries. This meal could only get greasier if the plate was fried, too.

For the health conscious, a regular double quarter pounder (with cheese) has 731 calories and 45 grams of fat (91% of the RDA of saturated fat). Add in the bacon (3 pieces) at 120 calories and 9 grams of fat. Add in the deep frying and the batter and, though I won't hazard an exact guess, you can bet that's a lot of extra fat.

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Nabisco makes more than a dozen varieties of Oreo cookies, not including the ones that have their fillings dyed for each holiday, in addition to 4 Oreo ice creams and 8 other Oreo-related products. They do not sell what is rapidly becoming one of the most popular types of Oreo, albeit the unhealthiest: deep fried Oreo's.

A popular fair and carnival food, just like the deep fried Snickers bars, it involves dipping an Oreo into a thick batter and popping it into a sizzling hot pot of oil. When pulled out, hot and crispy, they are topped with powdered sugar and served. According to many, they are delicious and more easily justifiable than a Snicker's due to their relatively small size. One blogger described them : "The Oreo loses it's hard crunchy texture and becomes a warm chocolately cake delight. The creamy center melts and creates an inner glaze." Should you want to risk the health hazards of deep-fried foods for the delights of one of these treats, you can find instructions both here and here.

[Image the farmers wife]

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It's a testament to a truly consistent and excellent chef when foods that are nearly always disappointing at your run-of-the-mill restaurants are, instead, perfectly prepared, texturally impeccable, the promise realized. So it was with Tani's fried oysters, a special that my husband often orders but (at any other establishment) I always find greasy, improperly cooked, gritty and fishy tasting. But these oysters, these were enough to make me fall in love all over again with the mollusk. The breading was crisp but not fat-laden, light but flavorful, the dish an amazing juxtaposition of fleshy oyster, delicate coating.