The Iowa State Fair is one of the country’s oldest state fairs. This Midwestern classic runs each August for 11 days and has over one million visitors annually! The food competition at the Iowa State Fair is the largest state fair food competition in the nation, featuring over 240 divisions and 900 classes with an estimated 10,000 entries each year. Read below to learn about my competition experiences at the Iowa State Fair and see which recipes here on my blog have earned me a prized blue ribbon!
Iowa State Fair
The Iowa State Fair is like no other – it is one of the largest state fairs in the nation with over one million visitors annually. It has something fun for everyone! And I do mean literally everyone. From visiting the sculpted butter cow, eating favorite foods on a stick like fried candy bars or a pork chop on a stick, catching live music from a free music stage or seeing a famous artist at the Grandstand, or my favorite: competing at the Iowa State Fair. Competitions at the Iowa State Fair range anywhere from the traditional competitions like 4H, the fair queen, livestock and the food department competitions to quirky competitions like husband calling or rubber chicken throwing. There are so many competitions at the fair that you can catch multiple competitions to watch on any given day of the fair.
Food Competition at the Iowa State Fair
The food competition at the Iowa State Fair is the largest food fair competition in the nation – with 240 divisions, 900 classes and around 10,000 entries alone each year. The divisions range anywhere from breads, pies, cookies and cakes to preserved foods like jams, jellies and vegetables . There are divisions for main dishes, appetizers and even fun youth divisions like the “ugliest cake” youth contest. There is a division for any Iowan that likes to cook, bake or preserve foods.
I remember walking through the food competition hall when I was younger, admiring all of the prized breads, cookies, cakes and pies Iowa home bakers meticulously prepared just to earn a prized ribbon from the Iowa State Fair. In 2016, I finally decided to take the plunge and enter my first food competition at the fair. I won two ribbons in my first year and ended up taking 2nd place overall in a division. The next year, I won several more blue ribbons and ended up winning an overall division. I’ve loved competing ever since!
While this is only my 4th year competing, there is always something new to learn each year. I have really learned how to fine-tune my recipes, that quality ingredients really do matter and that the taste and texture of a food can be just as important as how it looks. I love trying both new recipes and making old classics throughout the year to prepare for the competition each August.
Blue Ribbon Recipes
In honor of this year’s fair, I’m sharing 3 recipes on my blog that have each earned a prized blue ribbon at the Iowa State Fair. Read below to learn a few facts about the food competition at the Iowa State Fair and stay tuned to see highlights from this year’s fair!
Food Competition Facts
- Competition can be really tough! There are some competitors who have been competing for decades!
- You must follow the rules as stated in the rulebook for that division and class. For example, there are three different classes of brownies in the cookie division – one for unfrosted, one for frosted and one for flavored. Your entry must be placed in the correct class or it can be rejected.
- Judges can also reject entries for reasons like not placing your items on the correct size or color of plate, for not including the recipe with your entry or not including a proof of purchase if the division has a sponsor.
- Judging of foods is based on several different factors – each division and class is different. Some divisions emphasize creativity over appearance; others emphasize taste over appearance.
- Judging can be really subjective. I’ve had some entries that I have loved and thought would do well and didn’t place and other entries did better than I thought it would. You never know what will happen!