🌭 Hot Dogs/French Hot Dogs 🌭

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Introduction

Universal Taco holder perfect for serving hot dogs. Placed this way it holds 3 pcs. with a stable stand foot.

Left: A Danish red sausage only 18cm served in a large 15cm bun with traditional pickled cucumbers.

Middle: A 20cm grill sausage also served in a large bun with pickled crinkle-cut gherkins (drueagurker).

Right: A large Brioche bun tasting so delicious that any condiments overtone its flavor.

'Kæmpegriller' with Cheddar cheese.
Medium-sized in-between thin Wiener sausage and thick Frankfurter.

Surprisingly fits into a large brioche hot dog bun making them Whopper-sized.

Flipped upside/down it can hold

4 pcs. with a practical handle but might wobble a bit on the table.

Small vs. Large hot dog buns

The choice between small and large hot dog buns depends primarily on the type of sausage and hot dog you want to serve.

Here are the main differences based on use and size:

Small hot dog buns (Classic)

Use: Perfect for classic red sausages (Wiener sausages) or regular-sized barbecue sausages (18cm)
Characteristics: They are often soft and typically stick together in the package so they can be pulled apart.
Goes with: Traditional hot dog with the whole thing (ketchup, mustard, remoulade, pickles, roasted onions, raw onions).

Large hot dog buns (Larger in length only, not Frankfurter-size)

Application: Designed for larger in length sausages (20cm), but not such as Frankfurters or Bratwurst (bun served on the side).
Characteristics: They are longer, often slightly wider and more robust to be able to hold a heavier sausage and more accessories without breaking.
Suitable for: Gourmet hot dogs or when the sausage is the main character.

What should a traditional hot dog look like?

On a classic Danish hotdog "with everything", both the raw onions and the roasted onions come on top of the sausage and dressing.

Here is the traditional order from the bottom:

Small or large hot dog bun (potato, pretzel or brioche)
Mustard (often at the bottom under the sausage)
Sausage (roasted grill sausage or boiled red sausage)
Ketchup and remoulade (1 lane on each side on top of the sausage)
Raw onion (chopped)
Roasted onions (crispy)
Pickled cucumbers (cucumber salad or gherkins) on top

So, it is the "farveladen" (the dressings) and the sausage that form the base, after which the two types of onions and pickles are placed as a topping on top of the hotdog.

The main thing here is to experiment with, what hits the palate first, and the tongue afterwards.

So, far I concur with the mustard going below, but the palate is made of thin, soft and fragile skin. So, I'm not so sure about that the crunchy toasted onions so go on top.

LCARS Retrieval

Sesame Street - Grover, The Count and the hot dogs (American version)

Sesamstrasse - Graf Zahl zählt Hot Dogs (German version)

German origin, originally meaning a 'Dachshund'.

Hot dog vs. Hotdog

Both "hot dog" (two words) and "hotdog" (one word) are used, but "hot dog" is generally considered the standard spelling for the food item, according to Merriam-Webster and the Oxford English Dictionary. While "hotdog" is occasionally accepted as an alternative noun, it is primarily used as a verb meaning to perform stunts.

It's quite a challenge to find a classic hot dog recipe, since a variety has come along since its origin.

For gourmet style hot dogs and burgers, you're on your own from here on (idiosyncrasy).

Stuffings & Toppings

American style: Ketchup/mustard only

(Each city has their own streetfood style)

Danish style with remoulade

French style with mayonnaise

International Cuisine

Polish dog and Polish dog Chicago style

Icelandic hot dog

Amsterdam style - Hearing with pickles

Hot dogs with Danish red sausages - Danish style

Kradser - A vegetarian Danish style

Vegan hot dogs

In Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela, hard-boiled quail eggs is a common topping on hot dogs and hamburgers.

French hot dog vs. Hapsdog

A French hot dog and a hapsdog are basically the same thing, a sausage placed in a hollowed-out bun with dressing.

While French hot dog is the term for the baguette-like bread, "hapsdog" specifically refers to a version with a softer sausage bun

that was introduced in the 1980s.

Both typically contain sausage and either a French dressing or a curry ketchup.

German style bratwurst or curry wurst with Kraut

🥙 Greek style pita gyros (pronounced γύρος) - Kraut with tzatziki 🥙

🥙 Turkish style pita with Döner kebab - Kraut with tzatziki 🥙

Asian/China/Korean style with Kimchi - Kraut with spices

Sauerkraut can also be used for burgers like they do in Chile.

For gyros/döner kebab I recommend dry roasting it in a cast iron grill pan

with high temperature, but watch over it with a hawk eye,

within less than a minute it transforms from well done into charcoal.

Gyros - Wikipedia

For the difference between pickling and fermentation see the chemistry section.

Brioche Bun - Curry Wurst - Sauerkraut with Tzatziki

Palate

The roof of the mouth, separating the cavities of the nose and the mouth in vertebrates.

A person's appreciation of taste and flavor, especially when sophisticated and discriminating.

Chefs may have in mind that all the stuffings like ketchup, mustard, onions and pickles should go on top, so it meets the palate first.

So far, I've only seen professionals put all of the toppings on top, and nothing in the bottom between the bun and the sausage.

But I've heard one American saying the same as me. The mustard goes in the bottom of the bun, and right over it, the raw diced onions.

The dressings on top of the sausage will keep all the other toppings sticking like a glue.

Standard recipe

1 lane of ketchup

1 lane of mustard

1 lane of remoulade

I had it up to here with Danish design dressing bottles for ketchup, mustard, mayo, remoulade, etc. The nozzle in all of them are way too large for international cuisines, or like the mustard and also mustard with honey sold in glasses, impossible to dose probably with a teaspoon.

Worldwide it's known in international cuisine, that the Danes drown their food in accessories.

Sometimes less are more.

Dressingflasker, 2 stk, rød/gul | Lomax

In a sausage stand, they typically have all three layers on top of the sausages because it has to be quick, but I think the sausage bread becomes a little too dry without a layer of either ketchup, mustard or remoulade at the bottom of the hot dog bun.

Ketchup is often more splattered in its consistency, especially Heinz Ketchup with less sugar and corn starch to bind the water in it, and I strongly do not recommend that for neither a hot dog nor burger.

Crinkle-cut pickles are not that sour

Potato hot dog buns

Because potatoes contain potassium, the buns rise quicker than those breads with only wheat inside. The moist texture comes from the potato starch and its ability to absorb more water. The potato also gives it a longer shelf life, as the starch molecules protect it from going stale.

Soft vs. crunchy buns

Brioche buns

Small buns vs. large buns (match the length of the sausage)

Since the brioche and potato hot dog buns came along, you'll be surprised how good just a bun and sausage without any accessories at all tastes! We still continue to drown them in mustard, ketchup, etc.

Brioche Pretzel Style Hot dog Bun

Pretzel is more commonly used for gourmet hot dogs and not classic hot dogs.

These Pretzel buns are with sesame seeds and just like with burger buns these seeds have a nutty flavor meant for use with lettuce.

Read more about Pretzel in the burger bun section.

Just like burger buns in the oven:

2 min. in the oven for a soft bun

3 min. if you prefer them crisp.

Preheat the mini oven to 180° C (over/under heat, not hot air, microwave or grill, 11-12 min. to preheat)

Onions

Onions vs. toasted onions (med det hele)

What balance mix between raw and toasted onions?

Yellow onions (strong)

Red onions (medium)

White onions (mild for raw serving)

For more info about onions see the burger section.

Sausages

Roasting/Boiling

Pork vs. Beef Sausages

Straight vs. Curved Sausages (bend upwards)

Boiled vs. Roasted Sausages

Ecological Sausages

Wiener Sausages vs. Frankfurter Sausages

Red Sausages (Danish)

The classic red sausages (hotdog sausages) often have a slightly sweet taste.
Sweetness and balance: The sweetness comes from a combination of the spices used (typically a mild mixture) and a little sugar/sugars in the sausage stuffing.
Classic taste: They are often mild, finely chopped and have a familiar, slightly smoked taste that many associate with a classic Danish red sausage.
Not "dessert-sweet": The sweetness is balanced with salt, and it is this balance that gives the characteristic sausage taste, rather than a pronounced sugar taste.

Red sausages are originally colored Vienna sausages, and they are most often eaten cooked, not roasted.

The red color of Danish red sausages comes primarily from the dye carmine (also known as E120 or cochineal). This dye is extracted from dried and crushed scale insects that live on cacti in Central and South America. The dye is used to color the sausage skin.

Key facts about the color:
Natural origin: Carmine is a natural dye extracted from the carapace of female scale insects.
Historical change: Previously, the synthetic dye erythrosine (E127) was used, but it was banned in 1981 because it was allergenic, after which they switched to carmine.
Distribution: Carmine is also used in many other foods, such as Aperol, Campari and red soda.

Tinfoil

Tinfoil inner matte side

If you want to wrap your food before putting it directly in the fridge, then the matte side should face downward.

Tinfoil left side matte - right side shiny

Left matte - Right shiny upwards

The one in the middle was the first to crack open. The one on the left side was second to crack. The one to the right did not crack.

-Never go above beyond low to medium-low heat!

Tinfoil outer shiny side

If you want to keep your meal hot, then the shiny side should face downward. It #reflects heat.

Roasting

To avoid that the sausages crack for roasting, buy those thin and straight shaped Wiener sausages branded as 'grill sausages', not the bended ones. Grill sausages have a thicker and more heat resistent skin, but are less suitable for boiling in water, unless you leave them, after being boiled to rest, at room temperature for 12-24 hours, then the skin becomes edible.

For the skin to become crisp roast the thin Wiener grill sausages for 30 min. on medium heat until they start to gain color for home usage.

For professional hot dog stands, turn the heat down to medium-low for another max. 40 min. Flip them every 5 min.

For thin sausages like a Wiener 30-60 min. total.

For medium-sized sausages like "Kæmpegriller" 45-50 min. (19 cm)

For thick sausages like a Frankfurter 60-90 min. total.

As long as they sweat on the outside, they're still juicy on the inside. After that the skin gets way too overdone.

Boiling

If the sausage package says, 'grill sausages', then I don't recommend boiling them,

the skin might become too chewy and inedible.

Put the sausages in a pot with water and bring it to boil.

Once it starts to boil, immediately remove the pot from the hotplate

to avoid that they crack open and let them rest in the hot water.

For thin sausages like a Wiener 10 min. rest time.

For thick sausages like a Frankfurter 20 min. rest time.

Ringrider Grillpølser

A specialty from the region South Jutland, Denmark.

Too low temp. won't give them the right color.

Middle temp. will do for a crisp skin.

Medium-high temp. will crack them open!

The one in the middle was unprepared for testing purposes but did not crack open.

The one to the left was prepared with traditional diagonal cuts to let the steam out, but modern research

suggests it just make it worse, letting the juicy meat dry out too fast.

The one to the right was prepared with 4-5 holes made with the tip of a knife.

Serving

Traditionally, thick sausages like

Frankfurter

Ringrider

Kålpølser

Are served with a hot dog bun on the side.

Mustard

Mind how strong the flavor of the sausage is and choose a mustard that matches it.

Thin Wiener sausages match a sweet French mustard, while

thick sausages like cabbage sausages or 'Ringrider' sausages tend to be spicier than the thinner ones

and are traditionally, served with a strong mustard.

Some would prefer Dijon mustard, but that's only sold on solid glas and not in plastic tubes, making it difficult to dose right and fast. It's also not a typical Danish style to use Dijon mustard for hot dogs.

Some chefs might have been taught in culinary school that the strongest flavors should hit the palate first.

When it comes to a strong mustard served in hot dogs I strongly disagree.

The mustard goes in the bottom of the hot dog bun disputing what you see professionals do.

For more info on mustard see the burger section.