This is a hot dog recipe, but it’s not a hot dog recipe. I know I have a history of making foods from scratch that most sane people wouldn’t feel the need for, like cream cheese, fig Newtons, bagels, vanilla extract, and (coming soon) almond extract, but I usually leave the “grinding of the meat with spices, salt, and curing agents into a smooth, fine emulsion” to the experts at Hebrew National before “casing it and smoking it.”
So Smitten Kitchen’s first hot dog recipe isn’t a recipe for making hot dogs, but hey, it’s a recipe for how to make my favorite hot dogs. And on this, as on many other things, I have many opinions.
→ Butterfly is the best. I like to butterfly my hot dogs. That means splitting it down the middle, leaving the last piece hinged, and cooking it flat on the grill or in a skillet. This method ensures that the hot dogs are browned and crispy from the inside out. There are also structural advantages. It will be less likely to roll around during cooking, which is important, and will provide better support for your toppings.
→ Pickled Iceberg: I love the classic hot dog toppings: yellow mustard, ketchup, and chopped raw onions, but I have two other favorites. First of all, I like cold, crunchy iceberg lettuce, but I like to marinate it a little first and then eat it with vinegar. My mother-in-law makes iceberg pickles, and I won’t rest until I convince everyone there’s no better sandwich or frank topping. It adds exactly the coolness, crunch, and acidity you’re looking for all day long, not just on a hot day.
→ Potato Chips: If you don’t add crushed potato chips to your hot dogs, now is the perfect time to start. I first learned about it decades ago on a travel show about Venezuela* (until then, my only experience was eating potato chips in a PB&J sandwich in the school lunchroom. Don’t knock it until you try it), but I learned that it’s equally popular across Latin America. Ultra-thin “potato stick” type chips are often used at ballparks, but here I swear the crushed kettle chips are also excellent.
With the arrival of the heat dome in the Eastern United States, we can’t fail to mention that if you’re willing to ignore the great American tradition of cooking over metal grates heated to triple-digit temperatures and take advantage of a perfectly good kitchen kept indoors, you can actually make every part of this hot dog recipe there. See also: Oven Ribs, Dry Rub Oven Chicken, Crispy Oven Pulled Pork, and Everything About My Coleslaw and Potato Salad. Happy Cook = Happy Everyone.
– Venezuela was hit by twin earthquakes of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 over the weekend, and rescue teams are working around the clock to find survivors in devastating conditions. If you’d like to help from afar, one of Smitten Kitchen’s popular charities, World Central Kitchen, is providing hot meals to affected families and first responders on the ground and is asking for donations to help reach more people faster. You can contribute here.
