New, decadent foods abound at state fair

Take ultra-cold liquid nitrogen, blend it with dairy mix, add a little showmanship and you have Sub Zero ice cream, a frozen concoction made in 30 seconds in front of the customer.

It’s one of many new and unique items being offered this year at the Illinois State Fair.

“It freezes so fast, it doesn’t allow ice crystals to form,” Ron Spann said as he furiously stirred the mixture in a bowl until it transformed into chunky, orange-flavored ice cream. The nitrogen is 230 degrees below zero, he said.

“Put your hand in it. Do it quick and it won’t burn you,” he said about the liquid nitrogen. He was right. The crew at the stand, on Pat Henry Drive next to Food-A-Rama, invites customers to interact with their food.

“I let people touch it and play with it. It’s a fun product,” said Spann, a Pleasant Plains native who lives in Provo, Utah. The finished ice cream is somewhat chunky and very cold.
Sub Zero flavors include cheesecake, chocolate, raspberry, citrus, vanilla, bubble gum and mint; a bowl is $5. Mix-ins such as marshmallows, Heath bars and Butterfingers, are available.

The metal tanks at the stand each hold 230 liters of liquid nitrogen, Spann said, and he’s hoping to go through 30 tanks during the 10-day run of the fair.

* What’s not to love about a vendor who sells pork parfaits, fried macaroni and cheese and deep-fried Pepsi?

Porky’s, in the Heartland area of the fairgrounds near Gate 2, is three side-by-side tents that also offers pork chops, rib tips, beef brisket, rib slabs, turkey legs and pork tenderloin.

New to the Illinois fair this year, the business — which has shaded seating — is run by Jean-Ann and Kurt Miller of Lafayette, Ind.

“If you like meat and potatoes, this will hit the spot. Some people say it looks like a sundae,” Jean-Ann Miller said of the pork parfait.

In a clear glass, it’s six layers of pulled pork, mashed potatoes and barbecue sauce. Eat it with a spoon; the flavors blend surprisingly well. Price: $5 and $7.

The fried macaroni and cheese comes in nuggets that are battered and deep-fried to a golden brown. An order includes several nuggets in a tray.

The deep-fried Pepsi is a phyllo dough stuffed with cream filling made with Pepsi syrup. The whole thing is fried and dusted with powdered sugar. (Pepsi has the soft drink contract for the Illinois fair; Porky’s uses Coke at fairs where Coke has the contract.) The stand also makes fried orange soda, Mountain Dew and Dr Pepper.

“It’s sweet, it’s flaky, it’s buttery, with a soda flavor,” Jean-Ann said.

* The Texas proprietors of the Fried What! stand on Main Street somehow manage to come up with a new deep-fried goodie every year. This time around, it’s deep-fried hot fudge sundaes.

They start with a banana on a skewer and dip it into hot fudge. Then it’s battered and fried. The warm banana is served in a dish alongside vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, a drizzle of chocolate syrup and, if desired, chopped nuts. Price: $6. It’s rich and surprisingly good.

Also at the stand are deep-fried peanuts, still in the shell.

“People are leery about the first one. By the fifth one, you’re hooked,” said vendor Norma Bowers of Dallas. “You eat the shell and all. It’s the best fiber in the world.” A bag is $5; flavors are salted and Cajun.

* Jamaican Taste is a 2 1/2-year-old restaurant in Springfield, at 2232 E. Cook St. This year, the owners — Jamaican natives Omege and Vanburn James, who have lived in Springfield six years — are taking over the Jamaican stand in Ethnic Village.

“Jerk chicken is the best seller,” Vanburn James said. “They go for the steamed cabbage, too.”

On the menu: Jerk chicken dinner, $7.50; curry chicken dinner, $7; steamed cabbage, $3.50; fried plantains, $3; rice and cabbage, $5; rice and peas, $3; jerk chicken only, $5. Jamaican sodas (grape, ginger beer, mango carrot, kola champagne, pineapple) are $3 and $3.75.

Besides Jamaican, other cuisines represented in Ethic Village are Filipino, Greek, German, Indian, Korean, Mexican, Dutch, French, Polish, Venezuelan and Italian. The Tropical Sweet Spot booth sells snow cones and shake-ups, and there are beer stands as well.

* It’s hard to miss the Crab Shack on Main Street, with its grass awning, tin roof and wood siding.

Across from the entrance to Ethnic Village, the new food stand — run by Josh and Jessica Corcoran of Racine, Wis. — is bringing the ocean to the fair, with its crab cakes, shrimp and fish.

“We’ve done vending on the West Coast and wanted to come here because it’s a good fair,” Josh Corcoran said.

On the menu: Alaska King crab cakes, coconut crab cakes and fried shrimp: all $7.95 and $9.95; beer-battered cod: $6.95 and $8.95; shore lunch (2 pieces breaded lake perch, fries, slaw): $9.95; key lime pie, $4.95; triple chocolate cake, $3.95.

* The Lemonade Factory on Grandstand Avenue across from the horse barns has nine flavors of lemon shake-ups: regular, strawberry, raspberry, orange, cherry, peach, tropical, passion fruit and strawberry-orange. All can be made in a diet version.

“It’s just sugar, water, lemons and flavor. The key is to add enough sugar,” said vendor Anthony Crifasi of Springfield. The drinks are $3, $4 and $5.

* Corn-on-the-cob is usually served with butter. Missey’s Mexican Corn, in the Heartland area near the Sky Glider, goes a little further.

The boiled sweet corn on a stick is slathered in mayonnaise, rolled in grated parmesan cheese, sprinkled with chili powder and then drizzled with margarine.

“It’s nutritious and delicious,” said Janice Evans of Chicago, a first-time vendor, as she stood in front of the stand showing off an ear. Cost: $5.

* You can get an Indian taco at Kropp’s, across from the Grandstand. It’s a piece of Indian fry bread piled with taco meat, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, black olives, onion, salsa and sour cream. A new offering this year, it sells for $7.

* A single item is sold at the stand called Viva la Fajita. Can you guess what it is?

The fajitas, with either skirt steak or marinated chicken breast, are made with a flour tortilla and dressed with pico de gallo (onion, tomatoes, cilantro, garlic, salt), which is made fresh on site. Sour cream and fresh jalapenos are optional. Price: $5.75.

Owner Ward Deal, who grew up in Champaign but now lives in Miami, has been in the food business 25 years. He owned a restaurant in Montreal and helped open other restaurants in Las Vegas, California and Washington, D.C. This is his first year as a vendor at the Illinois State Fair.

“Everything is fresh off the grill, made to order,” Deal said. “You can’t eat just one.” He sells twice as many steak fajitas as chicken.

The stand is on Grandstand Avenue, next to the horse barns.

* Looking for a treat that is not battered, fried, slathered in sour cream, dipped in chocolate or topped with whipped cream? Go to the Farmers Market tent run by the Illinois Specialty Growers Association.

In the Heartland area, it offers fresh, nutritious food and plenty of seating. The produce comes from farms in central Illinois.

On the menu: apple cider slush, $2 and $3; peaches, $1 each; cooked sweet corn, $2 each; ice cream, $2 and $3; garden salad, $5; hard-cooked-egg-on-a-stick, $1; popcorn, $1.50; watermelon, $2-$6; cantaloupe, $1.50-$5.

Kathryn Rem can be reached at 788-1520.