Hot dogs haven't quite had the gourmet make-over that hamburgers have undergone in recent years - and that's just fine with us! A good summer hot dog is simply an all-beef frank, a squishy bun, and a few basic condiments. Nothing more. Nothing less. How do you like your hot dog?
Let's break it down into parts:
The Frank: Brats and sausages are well and good, but for a real cook-out hot dog, we've got to go with an all-beef frank. The skinny, pinkish-red kind that bursts slightly when you bite into it. That's just the best!
The Bun: We'll argue here that soft white buns are really the only option. You can make them at home or buy them at the store or add some whole wheat of you must, but they've definitely got to be soft, pillowy, and not much bigger than the frank itself. In fact, if the frank is hanging out the ends a little, even better! Other kinds of hoagies, gourmet rolls, or baguettes are just too much bread and the hot dog gets lost.
The Condiments: And here's where we can really have some fun! Growing up, we were all about the ketchup and eschewed anything else. Now we've done an about face and like ketchup on one side, mustard on the other, and some relish down the middle.
What's your idea of a perfect hot dog?
Related: The Good, Bad, and Ugly: Nitrates and Their Role in Preserving Meats
(Image: Flickr member TheBusyBrain licensed under Creative Commons)
Magic One-Ingredient Ice Cream 5 Ways: Peanut Butter, Nutella, and More
Make Chocolate Magic Shell Ice Cream Topping with Only 2 Ingredients
Our reading list
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Candy Stripe Teaspo...
30 DIY Projects for the 3-Day Weekend
Tina Wilson's Striking Style 
Comments (31)
Hot dog, bun, french's mustard down the middle. Period.
In Tucson they've got something called a sonoran dog which is perhaps my favorite. It's a hot dog with a strip of bacon wrapped around it. Then it's put on the bun with some mayo, a spicy relish (salsa?) and a bit of tomato. Here's a link to a site that describes the making of a sonoran dog: http://www.azstarnet.com/business/171839 All I can say is YUM.
Mmm. Hot dog, bun, ketchup.
Hoffman Hotdogs (Central New York) are no question the best. Now that Wegmans is taking over the Mid-atlantic region, I can finally get them around DC and Baltimore. With relish please! And a side of salt potatoes.
August's food&wine featured something called a "Kogi Dog". It's an all-beef hot dog w/cabbage slaw and kimchi, topped with Sriracha to taste! It sounds super good!
Here's a link:http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/kogi-dogs
If I am out buying a dog, Chicago style all the way.
Grilling at home, quality local dogs (MI = Koegel's, Chicago= Vienna Beef, Milwaukee = Usinger's) cooked to a char on the grill and topped with mustard and onion (maybe one with ketchup added).
If you buy a hot dog at a stand in northern mexico( i live in Cd. Juarez) it will most likely come wrapped in bacon. They fry the frank with the bacon, and for topings they have beans, onion, tomato, nacho cheese(!) relish, mayo, and of course mustard and ketchup, you can add salsa if you want it spicy (i always do). It's one of the best things to eat after going out.
burnt, all-beef dog (i prefer hebrew national); fluffy, toasted bun; spicy mustard, ketchup and DILL relish.
speaking of dogs, does anyone out there have a recipe for the gray's papaya red onion-y relish stuff? is it just ketchup and thin sliced onion?
A simple dog, I like just a little mustard.
But if it's all the way - chili, coleslaw, and cheese.
I have a weakness for the massive Hebrew National dogs at the Costco food counter. Add ketchup, mustard and you have an awesome meal for $1.50.
My real favorite, though, are the "Fransk Hotdogs" sold all over Copenhagen- like nothing you can get in the US!
We get excellent grass fed all beef hotdogs from a local producer. I like one of those with mustard, onions and sauerkraut.
Bun, beef dog and a good mustard or chopped onions and ketchup. Mmmmm. Though I'm not a hog dog purist and like unusual toppings too (am very curious about the kim chee hot dog).
If I could have a hot dog right now it would be with mustard and onions. Unfortunately here in Durham, England where we currently live, the only hot dogs around come floating in a jar. Ick.
Just had a Nathan's dog last Sunday at Coney Island. Plain, savoring the flavor of the frank, along with a tall lemonade, as we walked the boardwalk. Later in the day, we got home to rootbear floats. A perfect July 4th weekend!
I unabashedly love hot dogs! I grew up in Litchfield, CT--my favorite brand is definitely Muckes and a really good Saturday included a stop at Shiek's in Torrington (they only do hot dogs on Saturdays).
Hot dog, mustard, relish and a not too toasted (still needs to be on the soft side) bun. Nothing overly fancy or over the top on the condiments.
A nice mild-flavored dog, lightly buttered and grilled bun, with crispy bacon down one side and a cheese with kick down the other (I like pepper jack). After the first two bites, add ketchup.
The first two bites you want the plain, unadulterated taste, but after that I need a little lubrication.
We always bring home packages of hot dogs from Marin Sun Farms and Prather Ranch when we visit SF. Both are terrific.
Definitely a Hummel's dog (made in New Haven). Burnt, with mustard. I really can't eat any other dog!
Maine Franco-style dog: fried then grilled pork dog (none of that all-beef snobbishness) american cheese, grilled onions, mustard, relish, and crispy bits of salt pork. Mmmmm.
Mmm, yes. Hot dog with bun just toasted on the grill, mustard, ketchup, relish and melted cheese. This time of year I really miss the little, tiny, but awesome hot dog stand that was open when I was a kid.
TJ's has some pretty darn good non-cured all beef hot dogs. I ♡ hot dogs of all
regions - Chicago might be my favorite right now.
Sweet, spicy, crunchy, salty - everything yummy all
at once.
OMG, I'm hungry now.
Guilty pleasure! I like mine simple with mustard, but maybe I'll try that Sonoran hotdog stand around the corner, finally.
Hotdogs are a guilty pleasure that I must indulge in occasionally. Sometimes I just NEED one.
Traditionally, I'd just go with mustard, ketchup and relish. And sometimes just mustard does the trick.
In my family sometimes we split the hotdog longways (you don't have to cut all the way thru) and fry it in a pan. Cut it in 1/2 lengthwise, stack it up on a toasted hamburger bun (yes I said hamburger bun) with mustard, a slice of tomato and a slice of red onion. So delicious! I wan't one right now!
Hot dogs are something that I can't really bring myself to eat unless I'm at a ballpark...for some reason that smell is intoxicating and entices me to grab a dog and a beer and go watch the Cubs.
It's got to be on a grilled New England style (split top) bun!
And I like ketchup, pickle relish and chopped onions.
oh man i looooove hot dogs.
On camping trips, we're always on the lookout for the perfect local hot dogs. It's a bit of a family obsession--all beef, with natural casings...no celulose here!
ahem. Cellulose.
The only way I like hot dogs is with chili, cheese, and onion.
I've been getting Nathan's hot dogs and I like them better with canned chili than the homemade stuff I spent hours on.
I usually go with just a bit of mustard, but if we're feeling fancy we'll add cream cheese and grilled onions. Yum.
Chicago style. Which is probably shocking coming from a New Yorker.
I don't care. Chicago-style hot dogs were a revelation when I first visited Chicago two summers ago. I actually went through an entire 36-hour period where I ate nothing BUT hot dogs, I loved them so much.