You know what I’m thinking about doing this weekend? That’s right, setting up a goddamn hot dog bar in the dining room. Yes, I’m a very ambitious man. But I have visions of having ALL the toppings available. That includes melted-down cheese “food,” sauerkraut, cole slaw (to satisfy the WV in me), chili, all the normal shit, and maybe even some crumbled bacon. Hell yeah.
However, I don’t want to grill the dogs. I want to attempt to recreate the fantastic hot dogs o’ my youth. I’m talking about the Dunbar Dairy Queen and bowling alley dogs that were (in my mind) the best ever. I assume they were boiled? I don’t know for sure. But they also did something to the buns. Steamed ’em? This could require some experimentation. It would be a whole lot easier if I had more knowledge and wasn’t so stupid on the subject. And many, many other subjects.
But that’s my weekend project, boys and girls. I’ll report back on Monday and let you know how it went. Again: I’m not looking to create some kind of fancy gourmet hot dog. I’m attempting to recreate something from my kidhood. PLUS, have a shitload of crazy toppin’s just for fun. If you can provide some tips or hints on how to create a perfect hot dog stand-style dog, please let me know. I know nothing.
And by the way, in my hometown, back in the day, there was an ongoing debate about which was better: Dairy Queen or bowling alley. It was almost like a Beatles/Stones thing. Most people took a side and were passionate about it. I never took a side, ’cause both were great! Just like the Beatles and Stones. Why limit yourself to just one or the other? It made and makes no sense to me.
What do you like on your hot dog? I’m not stuck on any one combination. I like many combos. And that’s where the big spread of topping will come in. I’ll mix it up and just roll with it. But here are a few of my standard go-to’s:
sauerkraut and mustard
mustard and onion
chili and cheese
chili and slaw (when in the motherland)
Help me out, won’t you? Any tips on the kind of normal everyday hotdog to buy… and what to do with the buns… I need lots of assistance.
And you know what’s the most bullshit of all hot dogs? That’s right, the Chicago style. What the hell is that? Are they just screwing with us out of towners? People who live in Chicago don’t eat those, do they? I think they’re having a laugh at our expense. Right? It’s the only explanation I can come up with.
Please let me know your thoughts on the whole… hot dog thing. Use the comments section.
And I released a new episode of the world-famous Jeff Kay Show podcast today. Right here. It turned out pretty well, I think. Here’s your summary:
In this one, I celebrate the arrival of fall and talk about my need for all four seasons. And I tell you about a book I’m re-reading ’cause I love it so much, and how my snobbery nearly caused me to miss it. And I have a couple of questionable stories to share from my ridiculous past, inspired by a man I spoke with recently who’s having trouble with his “ass.” Thank you guys for the support! I hope you enjoy this one.
I hope you guys have a great weekend!
I’ll be back on Monday.
Now playing in the bunker
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True WV dog is chili, slaw, mustard, onions, boiled dog, steamed bun.
And if you put beans in the chili take that ish back to Ohio
Don’t stress yourself, just go the the Ranch Wagon in Shavertown instead. Absolute best hot dogs in NEPA!
That dog in the photo is nasty. NO KETCHUP! Also no mayo on any phallic shaped meat objects.
If I have to boil a dog, I prefer to use one with a natural casing. Boar’s Head makes some nice frankfurters with a natural casing. Everyone in our family prefers if I grill them but they will eat them boiled if we are in a hurry. I have a friend who has a mini-roller grill like at many stadiums. It also puts out a pretty decent dog.
https://www.amazon.com/Olde-Midway-Electric-Machine-900-Watt/dp/B01MS1L0H9/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1539879896&sr=8-5&keywords=hot+dog+roller+grill
Sauce – not chili
I only like sauce, mustard, ketchup and maybe some onions. I have not a hot dog in a long time since I stopped eating bread.
Boil that bastard in beer. Hang a splatter screen over it and steam yer buns.
Also, mustard, onions and sauerkraut.
Just go to Yanns Hotdogs in Fairmont to get the ultimate formula. Spicy sauce, steamed bun, forgettable weenie, mustard applied with a stick and fresh chopped onions. Follow with a chocolate milk to get the full effect. Marion County is above the slaw line and surrounded on all sides by a slaw border wall so keep that in your car if you must.
I was a regular at the Yanns Morgantown location in South Park during the mid-90s. Debbie served a great dog and the sauce was amazing! Annndddd….we had the Yup Yup Man if anybody out there knows what I’m talking about!
I walk by there everyday. That woman was a trip. There’s been about a ton of bars in there since.
We don’t get to eat hotdogs very often due to piss poor nutritional values. When we do, got to be exceptional. I prefer my wieners to have a good snap when bitten, thus a good, hot roast in the oven until little fat globules bubble out is preferred cooking method. A makeshift bun steamer made up of boiling saucepan of water and a metal colander covered with a pot lid works just fine. Mustard, onions, chili (no beans!) or mustard, onions & slightly sweet slaw. No ketchup. Ever. We like Kroger’s Private Selection Beef Dogs best. Perfection.
Just mustard
Mustard and ketchup (don’t yell at me for ketchup, did it as a child, still like it)
Mustard, ketchup, cheese, pickles…like a burger
Chili and cheese
No kraut, slaw, relish, or onions for me, and I only eat all beef dogs, none of those hot pink mystery meat dogs for me. And none of that famous “snap”…ewww.
The best is grilled, with a little bit of bubbling and burnt. Rolled on one of those racks, like at a stadium, is good too. I don’t like my buns steamed or heated…they get too mushy. Buns should be room temperature.
If we are having hot dogs for a meal, it’s because I’m desperate to feed the family something in 10 minutes or less, so most often at home its microwaved because I am busy and don’t have much time.
I wish I could find a real coney dog around here. They try to pass off a hot dog with chili on it as a coney! Grrrr….
Ohmygod, I am right there with you! Really miss coney dogs…
When I was a kid there was a little place in my town with the best hot dogs I’ve ever had. Recently I visited that town and ordered some from that place, (which hadn’t changed in fifty years!), thinking that the chances were slim that they were still as good, or maybe they hadn’t been all that good to begin with. Well, to my surprise, they were just as great as I remembered, my memory was accurate.
Later I was talking to my older brother about this, because, while he was in high school, he had worked nights at that place. I asked him, what’s the secret? Are they special hot dogs made of something that I don’t even want to know about? He said, no, they’re just regular old hot dogs, but they cook them by putting them in a deep fryer. I haven’t seen anyone else do that, is it more common than I think? Highly recommended!
They also steamed the buns perfectly, and served with slaw and chopped onions. I would almost drive the three hours to get one right now.
Zweigle’s Red hotdogs with sport peppers. You’re welcome.
What a fun idea! I’ve been craving good hot dog, myself, so this was tough to read. You need to get one of those steamer inserts that go into a pot. It’s got some kind of a spring in it s it folds up but reminds me of a flower when you pop it open. Fill the bottom of the pan with water – when you put the insert in, the water level should be below. Put in your dogs (Boars Head natural casing, or, if in Rhode Island – Saugy Dogs) and steam for about 5 – 8 minutes. You can steam the buns, too.
Toppings – MUSTARD. Maybe chili and MUSTARD.
But your grand buffet style of toppings sounds so much more festive. I just like MUSTARD! Yellow OR brown spicy.
Outside the bars and sports stadiums here in Seattle they have the Seattle dog. It’s a grilled hotdog with grilled onions and cream cheese. I know it sounds weird, but they’re so damn good.
Hey Jeff – can we come over? I like baked beans on mine.
Deep fryer hot dogs are the best! My other choice is grilled til crisp, but not burned. Topping choices vary. I really like, in this order, bottom to top, nacho cheese, sauerkraut, bacon, hot dog, ketchup, mustard, sauce. Also good, dog, ketchup, mustard, bacon, baked beans. Dog, ketchup, mustard, cheddar cheese, sauce. Dog, ketchup, mustard, sauce. When I add onion to any of these, they must be grilled, can’t eat raw onions. Any of these separately or together, except for the sauerkraut and baked beans, they don’t do well together.
Great, now I’m wanting a hog dog or three.
I like ’em multiple ways. No-bean chili, mustard and onions is a fave. Also, sauerkraut and mustard. Also, mustard and slaw. Also, mustard and cheddar cheese. Sometimes hot dog relish and mustard is good. Just plain Mister Mustard hot mustard is good, too.
Do you like mustard?
Whatever gave you that idea?
I too, think MUSTARD is great on any meat. Try it on a grilled ham and cheese with Cole slaw on the sandwich. Preferably Dijon.
For the hot dog stand experience, I’d think you would keep the dogs in simmering water and fish them out as needed. Keep the buns at room temperature.
Preferred dogs: Zweigle’s White Hots. Or Sabrett’s. Natural casing, anyway.
Preferred toppings: mustard (yellow or Dijon) and raw onions, chopped (yellow or Spanish).
We bought my father-in-law one of these a few years ago. It works pretty good if you’re making hot dogs for just yourself:
https://www.amazon.com/Nostalgia-HDT600RETRORED-Retro-Pop-Up-Toaster/dp/B005Q8X6IO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1539896113&sr=8-3&keywords=hot+dog+cooker+with+bun+warmer
My grandfather told me stories of working at lunch counter during the Depression. They’d keep hot dogs in warm, not hot, water then sear them on the flattop grill (not open flame grill, but flat metal griddle) to get the casing to the proper non-boiled “crispiness”(?). By request you could get it split down the middle and grilled on the “inside”, too.
I’d bet that’s how DQ and the bowing alley did them (past-tense, probably not anymore at DQ anyway): Out of the water, on to the griddle next to the burgers and/or caramelizing onions, then on to the bun fresh out of the steamer/warmer.
I got that pop up sweetie maker for my dad decades ago. He loved it!
Sweetie??? I typed weenie. Sheesh.
Damn, for a moment I thought somebody was manufacturing a pop-up sweetie maker. Naturally, I’d prefer mine without the weenie.
jtb
I’m all about the Detroit Coney Island- High quality hot dog, bun from Browns Bakery, chili (thick, with a moderate amount of ground beef), cheese (melted down cheese food) mustard, and diced white onion. Served with Vernors ginger ale and a side of chili-cheese fries, also with mustard and onions. Pure Michigan.
That is the best way to eat a hot dog.
I will admit I was originally pretty repulsed by the idea of a Chicago style hot dog, but lately I’ve been mildly intrigued. I guess you could call me Chicago-curious.
Grilled dogs and buns and Tobasco to taste. Heaven!
I’m still a Frost Top guy. Always have been. But the little league park I played had my all time favorite hot dogs. Steamed bun, boiled (well, cooked) Cavalier frank, home made chili (sauce), mustard. It was perfect.
The lady who made the sauce was the grandmother of a friend of mine, but I still have yet to score the recipe. Apparently, its a closely guarded family secret.
Two outside of the box recommendations:
1. Seattle-style dog:
All beef weenie, cream cheese, and sautéd onions
2. All beef weenie, peanut butter, and bacon
Palumbo Meats, DuBois, PA actually makes Peanut Butter Hotdogs. This is the news story from a couple years ago: http://www.post-gazette.com/life/food/2006/06/11/Peanut-butter-hot-dog-craze-sweeping-Du-Bois/stories/200606110149. They still make them.
Hot dogs, with their 550 mg of sodium per, are not high on my dietary menu, but I occasionally eat one or two, wiping out 55% of my daily sodium allowance. With all the fancy preparation methods and all the –well, unlikely — fixins, on display here, there are a few references to place, which I think is key to enjoying a fine dog. The best dogs I can remember having were from a vendor at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, Washington in the early ’60s. While watching the Alou brothers, Juan Marichal, Willie McCovey, Satchel Paige, and others play a little baseball in the AAA stadium, I would spend a quarter and get a wiener from a dirty-water cistern carried around the guy’s neck, placed on a slightly soggy bun, carried in a perforated container over the water, with a brushing of mustard from a wooden spatula dipped in a jar of French’s Mustard attached to the side of the container.
I’ve had hundreds of hot dogs since the ’60s, but none better than those chilly Pacific Northwest night delicacies.
John
Yesterday I had to pick up some beer before going home from a really bad day. Hubster was talking delivery for supper. Walking the aisle at the Pig I had a strange hankering for dogs and sauerkraut, which I purchased and made. This morning I’m catching up on comments and Ta-Da I realize why my hankering hit like it did. Thanks Jeff. 2 dogs in a bowl with the kraut, squirt of mustard in one corner and ketchup in the other. Didn’t have any mashed potatoes, that would have made it perfect.
wonder why I lost Wilber? Does anyone else have to fill out name and email every time they post?
Kielbasa, not hot dogs, with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes and maybe some crumpled bacon was a childhood favorite.
Hot dogs – blech; never ate them.
Mom would have knockwurst on high holidays. They had a nice snappy skin. I can’t find them anywhere, brats are it. duuuh you have to put in the correct email to get an avatar.
Reva, I have to enter my name and email address each time I comment. That’s because I consistently practice good cookie hygiene. If I didn’t do that, Boris and Natasha would attempt to cajole me into voting for Tiny or his dwarfs, and we can’t have that; no, we can’t have that.
love,
John
ugg, John don’t get me started. Going to absentee vote next week. We will be viva Las Vegas on the 6th.
In Chicago my Dad was republican, but after he died, he votes Democrat, as does all the dead (and in alphabetical order).
As a borderline anal-retentive, I can really appreciate the alphabetization.
Dill pickle relish, onions, spicy mustard. Ketchup is an immediate death sentence.
Buns must be steamed, over the boiling beer (Natty light) that you are cooking your all beef franks in.
Fresh cut fries on top of everything.
Perfection: https://geneandjudes.com
How ’bout a nice greasy weiner served in a dirty ashtray?
Love Chicago dogs. My favorite of the regional dogs, though, are the Sonoran Dogs you can get in Southern AZ.
Generally prefer natural casing. Other than that, I like the standards: sauerkraut, mustard, onions, relish. Any one or any combination. Used to like ketchup on them but have weened off of that. Yes, steamed buns make a difference.
I cook mine in about 1/2″ of water for like 30 minutes. They cook perfectly. And get one of these for the bun. Gets them all steamy and soft.
https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_13?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=microwave+tortilla+warmer&sprefix=microwave+tor%2Caps%2C213&crid=HXEJQHZSJRWU
Boss Dogs hot dog carts here on the Ohio State campus had the best cheese (nacho) and jalapeno’ dogs. Boiled dogs, buns steamed. Yum.