Why do we love State Fair food so much? Is it because we're fascinated by food on a stick?

Let's not pretend. Many of us may think of ourselves as some kind of gourmand and make varying degrees of attempts at healthful eating much of the time. But when the State Fair comes to town?

All bets are off.

There's something about the nostalgia of eating fried foods at the fair. And every year, the Kentucky State Fair seemingly offers ever more mind-bending concoctions to keep us coming back. No longer is it enough to have "traditional" favorites like donut burgers, corn dogs, and fried cheesecake on a stick. Nope, this year they’re upping the ante with new dishes including a Flamin’ Hot Cheeto Corn Dog, Philly Cheesesteak Fries, something called a BBQ Sundae (no ice cream involved!), a Chicken Bacon Donut Sandwich, and even a Mountain Dew mocktail called Bluegrass Breeze.

Holy wow. While we might not agree on a lot, it seems we all can get behind a State Fair-inspired combination of junk foods.

"People aren’t really going to the State Fair for health reasons but like I always say: Everything in moderation, even excess," says Sondra Powell, who will be at the 2023 State Fair selling Red Hot Roasters coffee treats. Powell gravitates toward some low-key local favorites at the fair including Pat’s foot-long corn dogs, Newton’s Homemade Ice Cream Farm to Table burger with fried green tomato and Kentucky Proud roasted corn.

Chef, farmer, and restaurateur Kristin Smith of The Wrigley Taproom in Corbin may make some of the best food I’ve had in Kentucky (or anywhere), but at the State Fair, she goes all in on deep-fried Oreos.

"What I like is that the fried Oreos are street food-sized bites," she explained, "not the massive overly sweet funnel cakes. Similar to a fresh warm donut with a contrast of a crunchy exterior and then a soft melty interior that tastes like your childhood. It's my one guilty pleasure fair food."

In fact, she says, "I love them so much I decided to do a festival dessert feature inspired by the deep-fried Oreos on our menu at The Wrigley." (Side note, it’s worth the drive to her restaurant, fried Oreos or no).

I wanted to know what other State Fair foods people gravitated toward, and why, so I made an informal poll (OK, a social media post) and it pulled in a cornucopia of replies. Here is a sampling of what people said is so appealing about the Kentucky State Fair and its food:

Horticulturist Stephanie Tittle has missed "only a few Kentucky State Fairs," she says. "We unintentionally groom each generation to love it, too. We start the day eating once the car is parked and leave eating something as we walk to the car. It’s an all-day affair."

“Corn dogs! Dippin' Dots and fried Twinkies! Funnel cakes are always a great idea," says Mary Krol, a bourbon industry professional.

Justin Reid, a content creator who isn't shy about proclaiming his love of fried chicken, said "Fairs are supposed to be about care-free fun. And care-free, for me, means … diet restrictions go out the window. ... I want funnel cakes, corn dogs, and everything fried."

He went on to say that "We deserve to treat ourselves and enjoy life. I can follow a healthy lifestyle 90% of the time. But the other 10% … give me fair food. All of it."

The response to my informal poll was swift and definitive. People really like State Fair food. But, why? And how did this cultural oddity become such a thing?

To dig in, I chatted with Aaron Schorsch, a student of food with a background in cultural anthropology, agriculture, cooking, and food activism (you may recall him as the guide of my culinary adventures in the French Alps). When I posed the question, he undertook the mission to talk with fellow food anthropology types in academia and came back with some insights.

One possibility for fairs developing as the "hotbeds of food on a stick," Schorsch says, boils down to function. Stick foods are portable. People can eat and stroll and move about the fair. The more they move and see, the more they may spend.

Fair enough (heh). But why do we like this stuff?

Normally, I don't eat a lot of fried foods or sugar, but something came over me recently at the St. Agnes carnival, and amid the cacophony of sounds and flashing lights, I found myself plowing through deep fried onion rings and almost an entire cotton candy cloud on a stick that was the size of my head. Watching the candy swirl around the stick I was transfixed.

And I thoroughly enjoyed every bite!

Is it my primal brain taking over, seeking a fast supply of calories? Maybe. There’s also the whimsy factor, Schorsch says. As children, we eat lollipops. As adults, we’re often following proscribed nutritional requirements or trying to decipher the latest fad diet.

"When you're at the fair, subconsciously, whether you know it or not, you might be … reliving those times as a kid where you were just walking around eating food on a stick, eating lollipops or whatever," he says.

Except as adults, maybe it’s a corndog (patented in 1929 by German immigrants in case you wondered). The sheer fun “is a big part of that,” he says. “…because eating on a stick has so much less attached to it than sitting down to a meal. You're not that committed. You can just move wherever you want. You have all this freedom with it."

Then there’s the visual impact. Every year vendors try to outdo themselves and one another. If you’re sitting at a table eating from a plate, who’s going to notice, Schorsch said. Whereas when you’re carrying an outlandish or outsized treat, of course people are going to ask where you got it, he says.

And I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t at least partly for Instagram. If you don’t post about your Barbie-Themed Funnel Cake, did you even go to the fair?

Tell Dana! Send your restaurant “Dish” to Dana McMahan at thecjdish@gmail.com and follow @ElleFeraFera on Instagram.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: The psychology behind why we love State Fair food so much