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Food / drink 🍗 The hot dog thread

Which toppings do you like on your hot dogs

  • Total voters
    15
  • Poll closed .
Maister

Maister

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We've had a hot dog thread before, but I can't find it and it's been several years at any rate, so time to begin anew.

Hot dogs wrote the book on cooking speed and simplicity: you typically either grill, microwave or boil them. Thanks to Mr. Sinclair Lewis, I'll pass on knowing how hot dogs are made, but I do know they're very tasty in a highly legit lowbrow kinda way. I like both chili dogs (that's Coney dogs to Michiganders) and 'regular' hot dogs.

As for toppings I like ketchup, mustard, onions, jalapenos, dill relish, or coney/chili sauce. I've become less of a fan of Chicago dogs over the years, and find the pickle spears and tomatoes a bit awkward and generally unwieldy to handle while eating.

How do you prefer your dogs. Take the poll

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sauerkraut and a little ketchup
just ketchup
ketchup and little relish

my dad used to beans or chili beans on his hot dog
 
luckless pedestrian said:
sauerkraut and a little ketchup
just ketchup
ketchup and little relish

my dad used to beans or chili beans on his hot dog
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Speaking of kraut (which I've just added to the poll). I seldom put it on hot dogs, but frequently put it on bratwurst. Brats are 'classier' than hot dogs, in my book. Maybe that's just German heritage bias talking.
 
BBQ sauce, brown mustard & cheese.

(I don't really like ketchup/catsup)



We kid The Girl that in her younger days this was one of the few foods she would eat. She went on a youth church trip & they stopped at a recommended hot dog place to eat. She, along with 2 others got pretty ill & she hasn't touched a hot dog since. That was probably 5 years ago.
 
My favorite way to top a hot dog is with sauerkraut and some brown mustard, but I also like chili dogs with onions and maybe a little bit of cheddar on top.

I also really like cole slaw on a dog if that's an option.

I love hot dogs and really enjoy basically any topping as long as it's not ketchup (I'll also eat a Chicago style dog once in a while but I won't really enjoy that).


Maybe this is worthy of another poll, but what's everybody's preferred method of preparing hot dogs?

Boiled briefly and then steamed is easiest in that it involves the least preparation of clean-up and it's hard to pass up a hot dog from the grill in the summer but I've come to really love heating them up in a skillet on the stove with a little bit of oil. Even better if you heat up some kraut or onions and peppers in the same skillet and maybe even add a little bit of beer and cover them with a lid and let them steam in that for a couple of minutes. I think heating them in the oil helps give the skin a bit of a crunch, like on the grill, but being able to cook them with the onions or the kraut just adds to their flavor.
 
WSU MUP Student said:
Maybe this is worthy of another poll, but what's everybody's preferred method of preparing hot dogs?

Boiled briefly and then steamed is easiest in that it involves the least preparation of clean-up and it's hard to pass up a hot dog from the grill in the summer but I've come to really love heating them up in a skillet on the stove with a little bit of oil. Even better if you heat up some kraut or onions and peppers in the same skillet and maybe even add a little bit of beer and cover them with a lid and let them steam in that for a couple of minutes. I think heating them in the oil helps give the skin a bit of a crunch, like on the grill, but being able to cook them with the onions or the kraut just adds to their flavor.
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My go-to is either boiled (if I'm in a hurry) or grilled over charcoal (preferred). You make an interesting point, however, about heating the ingredients in oil. I may have to try that some time.
 
Dan said:
Plain. Hot dog and bun, that's it. I'm weird that way.
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Me, too. I'd prefer the bun lightly toasted if that's possible, but am otherwise perfectly okay with the flavor as is.

I think I have an easily overwhelmed pallette, as I eat a lot of foods "plain" and eschew the condiments many people regularly use.
 
These are the ones I'll use, but not necessarily all time, every time:
  • Nice brown mustard
  • Mayo
  • Raw onions (white or red)
  • Dill pickle spears
  • A nice gouda or similar cheese
  • Celery salt
  • (edit) A good bean-free beef chili topping when available
I prefer grilled on my gas grill, but I'll do a quick stovetop pan sear/fry if necessary.
 
As far as hot dog brands go, I'm fairly agnostic. I've had the (relatively) pricey Hebrew Nationals and Nathan's, but I'm just as happy with Armour, Ball Park, or Ekrich, or even the grocery store off-brands (though rare). If I had to pick a favorite, though, I would probably go with Koegel's Viennas (a Flint, MI favorite)

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Hebrew Nationals for sure or any good quality all beef dog is generally acceptable.

With natural casings if you can get them...mmmm...
 
My current favorite way to eat a hotdog is a grilled Nathan's hotdog on a toasted bun with white onions, tangy slaw, and stoned ground mustard. If I have time, I'll score the hotdogs before I grill them.
 
I like Nathan's and Hebrew - the Maine reds are good too as are Fenway franks

but nothing like a Hoffman's hot dog from Heid's - went every time I went to Syracuse

I married into a Rochester family so they are all about Zweigels which are good too, but secretly I prefer Hoffman's (preferably on the grill at Heid's)

Our office hot dog machine is the steam one with the bun warmer on the side - I'll post a picture
 
Grilled (but will broil)
Nathan's or BallPark BEEF hot dogs



I have a friend that worked in meat packing when he lived in the Midwest. He said to only buy all beef hot dogs as you don't want to know what's in the other kind.
 
My current preferred method is to split the dog lengthwise and grill it in the cast iron skillet. It's gets a bit crispy in spots and is so delicious with some spicy brown mustard and diced onions.
 
I use my Foreman grill to cook them up.

I also like Pepperidge Farms buns that are sliced on the top.

Ketchup, mustard, some grated cheese - good to go.

If a Bratwurst, then a little sauerkraut, and that's it. Or just mustard.
 
Then there's the age old dilemma of what to do with the odd matched number of 10 hot dogs in a package vs 8 buns in a package. Our usual solution is to cut the two remaining hot dogs into halves lengthwise and put them between two slices of bread with mustard and ketchup, thereby making a bona fide 'hot dog sandwich'

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Maister said:
Then there's the age old dilemma of what to do with the odd matched number of 10 hot dogs in a package vs 8 buns in a package. Our usual solution is to cut the two remaining hot dogs into halves lengthwise and put them between two slices of bread with mustard and ketchup, thereby making a bona fide 'hot dog sandwich'

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Or this.
Place my boys like to stop at on the way to our cabin in WA.
The Clayton Burger.
 

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^^^AIB Faust:
There's a local rural dive diner that serves "The North Brook Tornado" which is a hot dog, wrapped in bacon, deep fired and smothered with cheezwhiz. I had one on a dare several several years ago & it felt like I should've just shoved it into an artery & fell out of my chair with a heart attack. I wouldn't have had to do all that chewing.
 
A. Sweet relish only; or
B. Celery Salt only

New England style bun preferably.
 
I had a couple hot dogs for lunch on Saturday and really wanted to try them with celery salt but was disappointed to learn that's not something we have in the pantry.
 
TOFB said:
I'm not too picky, but CHEESE?
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I had a couple brats last night and by mistake bought cheese brats. Maybe because I was exhausted and starving (see Home Improvement thread), they were great (ketchup, dill slices and onion).
 
WSU MUP Student said:
I had a couple hot dogs for lunch on Saturday and really wanted to try them with celery salt but was disappointed to learn that's not something we have in the pantry.
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Celery salt is a must have! :)

I also put it on tuna (with mayo) for sandwiches...must include the celery salt or I won't eat tuna.
 
NHPlanner said:
Celery salt is a must have! :)

I also put it on tuna (with mayo) for sandwiches...must include the celery salt or I won't eat tuna.
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Oh I will try that next time I make tuna fish salad, thanks! I usually put celery in tuna salad - everyone else in my family puts capers so we have to make it separately lol
 
Celery salt is also good on a turkey sandwich made from Thanksgiving leftovers. I also add it to chicken salad as well as tuna.
 
A couple of observations after reading though this thread:

- I rarely eat hot dogs - nothing against them in general, I just generally don't decide to eat any. The exception to this is the one or two times a year I end up tailgating tailgating at the local dirt track. Just mustard, please.

- Celery salt - apparently I have a huge void in my life that could be filled by it...?
 
Bubba said:
A couple of observations after reading though this thread:

- I rarely eat hot dogs - nothing against them in general, I just generally don't decide to eat any. The exception to this is the one or two times a year I end up tailgating tailgating at the local dirt track. Just mustard, please.

- Celery salt - apparently I have a huge void in my life that could be filled by it...?
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yes, celery salt is a thing
 
Bubba said:
A couple of observations after reading though this thread:

- I rarely eat hot dogs - nothing against them in general, I just generally don't decide to eat any. The exception to this is the one or two times a year I end up tailgating tailgating at the local dirt track. Just mustard, please.

- Celery salt - apparently I have a huge void in my life that could be filled by it...?
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I'm curious -- is this a typo or are you participating in some hard-core tailgating that needs duplicate words to describe the activity?

There's tailgating; then there's tailgating tailgating!
 
RandomPlanner said:
I'm curious -- is this a typo or are you participating in some hard-core tailgating that needs duplicate words to describe the activity?

There's tailgating; then there's tailgating tailgating!
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Think of it in terms of SEC football games.

Tailgating is Georgia vs. Vanderbilt
Tailgating tailgating is Georgia vs. Florida
 
I like ketchup and mustard on my hotdog or chili and cheese. We don't typically eat hotdogs, though my wife did have a hotdog kick when she was last pregnant.
 
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