REVIEW: Jack in the Box Mini Corn Dogs

Thanks to Jack in the Box’s new Mini Corn Dogs, I can now enjoy county fair food without having to deal with county fair crowds, county fair parking, county fair wait lines, and county fair vomit from county fair visitors riding county fair rides after eating county fair grub.

Of course, Jack in the Box picked one of the least exciting deep fried foods county fairs have to offer. A sausage dipped in cornmeal batter and then deep fried may have been a crazy idea in the 1950s, but, today, it’s overshadowed by dozens of foods you can’t believe have been dunked in hot oil, all of which Jack in the Box should’ve introduced instead. And here are 50 of them in no particular order:

Deep-Fried Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
Deep-Fried Pineapple Rings
Deep-Fried Oreos
Deep-Fried Cereal Bars
Deep-Fried Spam
Deep-Fried Trix Cereal
Deep-Fried Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal
Deep-Fried Brownies
Deep-Fried Fruity Pebbles
Deep-Fried Bubble Gum
Deep-Fried Salsa
Deep-Fried Avocado
Deep-Fried Twinkies
Deep-Fried Coke
Deep-Fried Cheese Curds
Deep-Fried Dill Pickles
Deep-Fried Ice Cream
Deep-Fried Snickers
Deep-Fried Mac & Cheese
Deep-Fried Latte
Deep-Fried Cookie Dough
Deep-Fried Guacamole
Deep-Fried Beer

…

Oh, I’m sorry. I just threw up in my mouth a little. Back to the list.

Deep-Fried Cheeseburger
Deep-Fried Cinnamon Rolls
Deep-Fried Red Velvet Cake
Deep-Fried Skittles
Deep-Fried Jolly Ranchers
Deep-Fried Gravy
Deep-Fried Watermelon
Deep-Fried Cap’n Crunch
Deep-Fried Pudding
Deep-Fried Caramel Apples
Deep-Fried Energy Drink
Deep-Fried Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Deep-Fried Girl Scout Thin Mints
Deep-Fried Girl Scout Samoas
Deep-Fried Butter
Deep-Fried Kool-Aid Balls
Deep-Fried Klondike Bar
Deep-Fried S’mores
Deep-Fried Corn on the Cob
Deep-Fried Cheesecake
Deep-Fried Bacon
Deep-Fried Lasagna
Deep-Fried PB&J & Banana Sandwich
Deep-Fried Milky Way
Deep-Fried Hostess Ho Ho
Deep-Fried Hostess Cupcake
Deep-Fried Pop-Tarts

An order of Jack’s Mini Corn Dogs came with five pieces that weren’t on sticks like county fair corn dogs. Each bite-sized corn dog was about two inches long and an inch wide. All looked like they were lovingly dipped in scalding oil, which created a crispy, golden brown crust.

The sausage inside wasn’t good enough to make me yell out the easily misinterpreted words, “I WANT MORE SAUSAGE IN MY MOUTH!” However, its savoriness went well with the sweetness of the Mini Corn Dogs’ crispy exterior. The snack comes with either ketchup or mustard. I prefer mine with mustard, but they were good with ketchup.

Jack in the Box’s Mini Corn Dogs are a nice addition to Jack’s snack lineup, which also includes stuffed jalapeños, egg rolls, and mozzarella cheese sticks. Unfortunately, they’ll also be an unpleasant deletion from Jack’s snack lineup since they’re available for a limited time.

I hope these Mini Corn Dogs sell well enough that Jack in the Box decides to bring them back again or makes them a permanent menu item. Or I hope they sell enough of them that Jack decides to give their other products the county fair food treatment and perhaps make a deep-fried Sourdough Jack.

(Nutrition Facts – Not on website yet.)

Item: Jack in the Box Mini Corn Dogs
Purchased Price: $1.99
Size: 5 pieces
Purchased at: Jack in the Box
Rating: 8 out of 10
Pros: Wonderful combination of sweet and savory. Inexpensive. Great with mustard; good with ketchup. Crispy exterior. No sticks. Deep-fried Sourdough Jack.
Cons: Available for a limited time. One of the most boring county fair foods. Sausage isn’t memorable. County fair vomit. Creating a bucket list that includes the list of deep-fried foods in this review.