Freshly grilled hot dogs are a summertime favorite. What's better than grilling out
by the pool? But if you want to recreate those perfectly grilled hot dogs of your dreams,
you're going to want to avoid these top mistakes people make when grilling hot dogs.
First up, if you're not buying the right kinds of hot dogs, you're just not going to have
a stellar experience. Yes, it's tempting to buy the budget-brand hot dogs that are on
sale, but you'll regret it. The bare minimum measure of quality when it comes to hot dogs?
An all-beef center.
"Hashtag unbreakable beef bond."
If the packaging says that the hot dog is made up of some strange mixture of chicken,
beef, and pork, you probably ought to stay away. After all, you don't really want to
mix up all of those proteins in any other dish you make, so why would you want to do
that for your hot dog?
Another sign of sure quality? If the hot dog has a natural casing made from pork or lamb,
you're likely in good hands. You want something that's going to snap when you bite into it.
When a hot dog snaps, that means it's fresh.
Along these lines, you want to pay attention to what your hot dogs' packaging says about
its casings, or "skin." Natural pork and lamb casings are the most desirable, as they not
only provide that snap, but they also hold in all of the hot dogs' natural juices. But
don't be fooled if you see a hot dog that claims it's made with a cellulose casing,
because that's not a real casing at all, and you don't want it. What's the difference?
In the instance of a natural casing, the casing is retained through cooking and then when
eating. If a hot dog uses a cellulose casing, though, that means the maker simply fills
the casing with their hot dog meat, smokes it, and then peels the casing off before packaging
and selling the hot dog. That means the hot dog doesn't come with an intact casing and
it is, essentially, "skinless." That means no snap and nothing to hold in those juices.
So, when you're shopping for some hot dogs, look for the natural casings only.
According to the USDA, hot dogs last about two weeks in the fridge, unopened. Then, after
opening, they last a week. However, if you pop them in the freezer, they'll last one
to two months at top quality and indefinitely at subpar quality. But just because you can
do something doesn't mean you should.
The problem isn't with the freezing itself, though — it's in the defrosting. According
to TODAY's experts, if you don't thoroughly ensure that your dogs have completely come
up to room temperature all the way through, they just won't cook evenly, and you'll have
a difficult time. You might even find that your hot dog is burnt to a crisp on the outside
before it even becomes remotely warm on the inside.
So, to play it safe, don't freeze your hot dogs. Just purchase the hot dogs within two
weeks of when you plan to eat them.
"Hot dogs — it's what's good in life."
Once you're ready to start cooking those hot dogs, you need to take a look at your grill.
Just like you wouldn't cook with a grime-encrusted, dirty pan in your kitchen, you don't want
to cook on a grime-encrusted, dirty grill in your backyard. So, give it a clean with
a grill brush, first and foremost.
Then, you want to oil up your grill ahead of turning on the heat. This is vital to your
hot dog-cooking experience, because if you skip this step, you're very likely to end
up with hot dogs that simply won't rotate easily or that altogether stick to your grates.
And no one wants to spend their grill session ripping hot dogs off a grate. For oil, you
can either spray your grill grates with a non-stick spray from the kitchen or use a
paper towel with a bit of high-heat oil and manually wipe down the grates.
It's happened to us all before. You start up the grill and really get it going, you
throw on some hot dogs, and then the distraction happens. Whether it's your thirst for another
frosty beer from the fridge, a friend or family member who's just arrived at the barbecue,
or shooing a hungry pup from beneath your feet, whatever that distraction is, it effectively
gets you away from the grill. Then when you return, your hot dogs are worse for wear.
You might not even notice it at first — but once you start really paying attention to
how your hot dogs turn out, you'll definitely realize that the more attention and love you
give them, the better they'll be. That's because hot dogs take very little time to cook — and
if you're cooking grass-fed beef hot dogs, they'll take even less time to cook.
According to a Men's Health article, your average hot dog only takes about two to three
minutes to char on each side, which means your hot dog will cook in six minutes or less.
If you're cooking grass-fed beef hot dogs, they'll take about one minute per side, or
two minutes total, due to the lower fat content. In other words, walking away for even a few
seconds could spell disaster for your hot dogs.
We've already talked about how a high-quality hot dog is apt to have that tasty all-natural
casing that just snaps when you bite into it, releasing all of those tasty spices and
juices. But what if your hot dog snaps prematurely? That's exactly what can happen if you put
the hot dogs over too high a heat, allowing the casing to burst and leaving you with a
hot dog that's less than ideal.
According to the Hofmann Sausage Company, which has been making German-style hot dogs
since the late 1800s, high grill flames are your enemy when it comes to cooking hot dogs.
The company, which is based out of Syracuse, New York, told Syracuse.com,
"The trick is to not put the hot dogs over a high flame, otherwise they're apt to split
and burst open and leak juices and fat, which can lead to flare-ups."
"I fought a grill and the grill won."
But on the other side of things, while you don't want to cook your hot dogs over high
heat, due to the risk of your hot dogs bursting open, you also don't want to cook your hot
dogs over too low of a grill heat. If you start your grill and don't allow it to heat
up and just toss your hot dogs right on, you could end up with a tough, dry hot dog that's
just been sitting over low heat for too long. The same thing could happen if you let your
grill die down too much before adding your hot dogs. The key is striking just the right
balance.
According to the experts interviewed at Business Insider, the ideal grill temperature for cooking
hot dogs is about 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Not sure how to check your grill's temperature?
Use the hand test. If you can hold your palm roughly three inches above the grill gate
and hold it there for four seconds before pulling it away, your grill is somewhere between
400 and 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
I know what you're thinking — even more rules about hot dogs and heat? Well, it turns
out that incorrect heat, whether it's too low or too high, can really ruin your hot
dog experience. Additionally, according to TODAY's "meat experts," you shouldn't cook
your hot dogs over direct heat, either. Avoid direct sources of heat and open flames, regardless
of whether you're cooking with charcoal or gas.
And, if you are cooking with charcoal, the experts recommend, wait until the coals are
completely white before you add any of your food, hot dogs included, to your grill. This
will ensure your temperature isn't too high. Charcoal brand Kingsford further recommends
that, when cooking hot dogs over charcoal, only stack your charcoal on one side of your
grill, so you can move your hot dogs around the grate if you find that the heat is too
low or high in one spot after you start cooking.
Okay, this is the last heat-related mistake people commonly make when grilling hot dogs:
It's grilling all of their hot dogs on the same heat. Not all hot dogs should be grilled
at the same temperature, just like, as mentioned before, not all hot dogs can be grilled for
the same amount of time, due to varying fat content.
Grilling expert and condiment creator Julie Busha told Business Insider that grill masters
at home should consider the fat content in the hot dogs to determine the appropriate
level of heat to grill them at. Busha went on to say,
"Higher-fat dogs should be cooked at a medium heat whereas leaner dogs should be grilling
on a medium-low setting."
Look at your hot dogs' fat content before you plop them on the grill, and if you know
you specifically bought low-fat hot dogs, like some of the fat-free options on the market,
or even turkey or chicken hot dogs, turn down that flame.
Once you get your hot dogs on the grill and you're confident that you have the best heat
level for your particular hot dogs, you can't just walk away. You have to rotate those dogs.
Based on the fat content of your hot dogs, you'll want to rotate them every minute or
every few minutes. You'll get a feel for how often you need to rotate by how quickly the
hot dog casings develop grill marks. It's better to err on the side of rotating too
quickly than it is to err on the side of rotating too slowly.
And once you have grill marks all the way around, you're not done. As Good Housekeeping
points out, you want to roll those dogs all the way to the coolest side of your grill
so that you can use your gas or charcoal heat for the next step in the necessary process
for grilling a perfect hot dog.
And that next step in the process? Grilling your bun, of course! Why would you put all
this effort into lovingly creating a deliciously cooked, ideal hot dog, only to put it in a
cold, tough, lackluster bun? Regardless of what kind of hot dog buns you buy, you can
upgrade them with a little time on the grill. Just use the same heat you were using for
your hot dogs, and once the dogs are done, toast up your buns for a minute or two.
An NYC hot dog expert told NPR that adding a little bit of butter to the bun ahead of
grilling helps, too:
"Mom's grilled-cheese sandwich when you were a kid was always kind of made in a frying
pan with butter — and was always delicious. Anything with butter on it is great."
And if you're just plain bored with your average hot dog bun? Nathan's Famous has a few ideas
for you to shake things up a little by adding your grilled dog to a baguette, pretzel bun,
or even a tortilla.
Oh, you thought once your hot dog was done and your bun was toasted that you were finished
creating the perfect hot dog? Not so fast! You're going to want to pay close attention
to your condiments, too. While you could go with plain mustard and ketchup, if you really
want to take your grilled hot dogs to the next level, you're going to want to get creative
with your toppings.
"Hey, hot dog guy can I get six hot dogs down here please?"
"Right away."
"And make it right, you know, with the mustard and the ketchup and the relish and the…
don't, don't make me hit you up for more."
Don't be scared! Your hot dogs are a blank canvas on which you can paint an endless array
of gourmet flavors. And if you're not exactly sure where to start, try some of Oscar Mayer's
out-of-the-box recommendations, like mango salsa or melted cheese. From diced tomatoes
to basil, plum sauce to jalapenos, if you like it, chances are it'll probably taste
pretty good on a hot dog.
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