Photo from Jarrod Charsky / The Oaks
Move over, falafel balls–deep fried matzah balls are the next big thing!
At the New York State Fair this year, you’ll find a number of your Jewish Deli favorites, deep-fried and on a stick…and kosher! Deep-fried cheese-filled knishes, fried matzah balls with ranch dressing, and deep-fried apple blintzes are sure to be a big hit among kosher and non-kosher fairgoers alike.
Finding a certified kosher vendor in central New York was no easy task. According to Syracuse.com, the fair had been trying for years to locate a kosher fair vendor to accommodate diverse dietary needs. Reportedly, The Oaks, an independent senior center at Menorah Park in Syracuse, was the only certified kosher restaurant in Central New York that was up for the task.
The fair goes from August 25-September 5 this year. The Oaks will offer plenty of non-fried foods, too, like Israeli salad, lox, and bagels for lighter fare.
Why stop at matzah balls and knish? Almost anything can be fried. If you can’t make it to the State Fair, have fun with these recipes below:
Sweet Fried Noodle Kugel Balls from Kveller.com
Deep Fried Matzo, Mushroom and Veggies Balls from Food 52
“Gabila’s” Style Fried Potato Knish from The Center for Kosher Culinary Arts
Fried Cheese Blintz from Smitten Kitchen
(note: the last step is to lightly fry the entire blintz, but you could deep fry them by securing the blintz with toothpicks and adding more oil.)
Crispy Deep Fried Chicken Livers from Serious Eats
Falafel Scotch Egg from BBC Food
Deep Fried Beets with Horseradish, from Bon Apetit
Deep Fried Dill Pickles (pictured above) from The Food Network
Deep Fried Rugelach from What Jew Wanna Eat
Peanut Butter and Jelly Donuts from The Nosher
kosher
Pronounced: KOH-sher, Origin: Hebrew, adhering to kashrut, the traditional Jewish dietary laws.
