Hot Dogs, a history

All but one fact in the following two paragraphs were found in The Story Behind the Dish: Classic American Foods. The true origin of the American hot dog is unknown. There are many stories as to how it got started, but it is universally agreed upon that the hot dog started in New York and became famous in Coney Island. Because the American hot dog is derived from European influences such as the German Frankfurter, French Boudin, and Italian and Polish sausages, it would make sense that its American origin place is New York. Most likely these foods were brought over by immigrants and an American made some changes. The name “hot dog” was even started in Europe. According to Hot Dog a Global History it came from an old German joke about their sausages being made from stray dogs. The name became famous in America. The original American hot dog was made from finely ground beef encased in animal intestines. Hot dogs now are made with pork, turkey, beef, chicken, or vegetables. Instead of an intestine casing, today’s hot dogs have usually and artificial casing or no casing at all.

Condiments are very important to the American hot dog. They add flavor and uniqueness. Most regions have their own combination of condiments in order to create a specialty hot dog. Nathan’s hot dogs are the closest to the original because they are still made with beef. A typical Nathan’s hot dog is topped with mustard and sauerkraut. In New York City it is popular to get an all beef hot dog (grilled or boiled) topped with mustard, sauerkraut, grilled onions, cheddar cheese, and a vinegary tomato-flavored onion sauce. Upstate New York is the home of the “white dog” and the “red hot”. A white dog is made from pork and veal mixed together and topped with mustard and onions. Red hots are white dogs with beef added to the meat mixture. Chicago’s signature hot dog consists of an all beef hot dog (steamed or grilled) in a poppy seed bun topped with yellow mustard, sweet pickle relish, onions, tomatoes, sport peppers, a dill pickle spear, and celery salt. New England has “chows chows”, a hot dog topped with bacons, lettuce and cheese. New Jersey has two signature hot dogs. One is the “Italian”, a deep-fried beef hot dog served on pizza bread and topped with deep fried onions, bell peppers, and sometimes marinara sauce. The other one is the “Texas Weiner”, a deep-fried hot dog made of beef and pork and topped with spicy mustard, onions, and chili sauce. Washington D.C.’s signature hot dog was made famous at the famous Ben’s Chili Bowl. It is a half-smoke (a quarter pound spicy beef and pork hot dog lightly smoked) topped with chili, mustard, and onions. The “Coney” is now most popular in the Mid-West. It is a grilled pork and beef hot dog served with mustard and Coney sauce (thin tomato and meat sauce that can include ground up hot-dogs). The Southwest “Sonoran” is an interesting hot dog with some Mexican influence. It consists of a pork and beef hot dog wrapped in bacon, grilled over mesquite, and served in a Mexican bolillo (similar to a baguette). It is then topped with cheese, salsa, pinto beans, lettuce, tomato, mayo, onion, and ketchup. The beloved corndog is a hot dog wrapped in cornbread. Its origin is unclear, but it is believed to have started in either Texas or Illinois.

Today I went to a hot dog truck called “Dave’s Dogs” located in Woodbridge, VA. Dave had hot dogs of all kinds, including bratwursts and Italian sausage. The one hot dog that stood out to me the most was the “Memphis Dog”. It was an all beef, boiled hot dog topped with homemade pulled pork and coleslaw. As you can see from my picture below, I added some BBQ sauce on top. It was absolutely amazing. It was sweet, salty, and savory. I was very upset the experience had to come to an end. It was not a bad price either. For the hotdog, fries, onion ring, and drink it was $6.50. In addition to beef, Dave also had veggie dogs and turkey dogs. I look forward to returning and trying the other types of hot dogs Dave has.

Contributed by: Alexandra Gauthier