10+ Hot Dog Recipes That You'll Relish, Quite Frankly

Sweet Heat Hot Dogs Recipe

Take hot dog toppings beyond traditional sauerkraut and mustard by dressing with sweet-hot pickles, shredded red cabbage and a creamy topping made of mayo, whole grain mustard, and hot chili sauce.

Cowboy Hot Dogs Recipe

With several toppings, including caramelized onions, bacon, and barbecue sauce, these can be customized for a range of diners, from those who like their dogs plain to those who want them fully loaded and hearty enough to fuel a day out on the range.

Confetti Corn Dog Hot Dog Topper Recipe

Despite its dubious nutritional reputation, the average frank actually beats a basic burger patty by about 100 calories (assuming you don't go the foot-long route; food shouldn't be measured in feet). Try organic, grass-fed, or uncured wieners, which tend to have less ­sodium. Then load up on fresh condiments like these. A whole-grain bun is another healthy upgrade, adding 3g of filling fiber.

Cold Hot Dog Pie Recipe

Happy April Fools' Day!

Hot Dog Hash Recipe

Chicago is the hog butcher to the world, the second-to-none city of broad shoulders and bigger appetites. Chicago doesn’t do small and dainty. (See: un-foldable deep-dish pizza so thick and packed with cheese and sausage it should come with a warning label from the surgeon general. Also: hot dogs with a whole damn salad piled on top.) Chicago takes its food seriously without taking itself too seriously, starting with breakfast. I’m a fifth-generation Chicagoan, cook, and eater, and I was raised to believe in the deep joy that comes from feeding and being fed—even when it isn’t gorgeous enough to Instagram. Especially when it isn’t gorgeous. Serve me spectacularly messy food on big plates with a big heart and big portions. 

But Chicago is also internationally renowned for super-fancy restaurants like Alinea, Grace, EL Ideas, and 42 Grams, with plates that are artful and meticulous. We cheer on those tweezer-wielding food art geniuses with the same passion that we use for our frequently heartbreaking sports teams. Chicago also has some of the most mind-blowing super-casual dining anywhere. You just have to dig into a steaming plate of succulent carnitas at Don Pedro, take a bite of the Tiger Cry at Opart, dig into the house made loukaniko sausage at Mythos, or experience the sublime nopales at Mas Alla Del Sol, and you will break out your own personal Bib Gourmand list and start handing out stars.

So when Extra Crispy asked me for recipes for Chicago-fied breakfast, I thought I’d fully embrace the dishes that you think we’re famous for. Because it is both possible and wonderful to dig into classic deep-dish pizza or Chicago hot dogs first thing in the morning, and in the true spirit of the city, you should do so with neither regret nor apology. 

These are not grab-and-go or recipes to fuel you for an energetic day. I want you to eat something yummy, then take a little nap before thinking about the next glorious thing you’re going to eat. You want nutrition? Grab a yogurt sprinkled with chia and head for spin class. When you’re ready to embrace your dark hedonistic desire for deeply sensual culinary pleasures, Chicago and I are ready to welcome you home.  

Chicago-Style Deep Dish Pizza Baked Eggs

This play on the classic Chicago Deep Dish Pizza honors the best of that indulgence, and lightens it up just enough to make breakfast satisfying, but not coma-inducing. The classic butter cornmeal crust is here, just a lot thinner. Cheese and sausage to be sure, but in rational amounts. Plus an egg, because it’s breakfast, after all. You can alter the fillings to your personal tastes.

Ingredients

Dragged Through the Garden Hot Dog Hash

Chicago is serious about hot dogs. There are rules. Vienna Beef, minimum 6 to the pound natural casing. Poppy-seed bun. The Seven Samurai of toppings: tomatoes, onion, neon green pickle relish, dill pickle spear, yellow mustard, sport peppers, celery salt. It’s a full meal: protein, starch, and vegetables in a quick to eat single package. Particularly good with crispy fries, crinkle cuts preferred. It is not required that you eat your Chicago Dogs with all of these, as long as anyone over the age of ten promises to eschew ketchup. 

The great thing about a classic Chicago Dog is that it is so balanced. Deep, beefy umami from the dog itself, brightness from the mustard, salt from the pickle, acid from the tomato, crunch from the onion, sweetness from the relish, heat from the peppers—it hits all of your mouth at once. This breakfast twist breaks the dog down into its component parts to reimagine it. I refuse to use the word "deconstructed" on principle. 

Ingredients

Stacey Ballis is a Chicago-based author and recipe developer.

The Tech Billionaire Hot Dog Recipe

This is the kind of hot dog that a tech giant might crave, right after cashing in on the IPO: a luxury combo of Kobe beef dogs, creamy cheese, and buttery brioche buns.

Pigs in an Everything Blanket with Cream Cheese Dip Recipe

Two finger food favorites collide as pigs in a blanket get an everything bagel makeover. Rather than the traditional canned biscuit or croissant dough, the "blanket" of this playful appetizer is made with fresh pizza dough that is first boiled, brushed with egg wash, and rolled in an "everything" seasoning blend (poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried minced onion, dried minced garlic, and coarse salt) before being baked. Using a yeasted dough and this double cooking method is what gives these tailgate-ready bites their bagel personality. Serve them up with a tangy cream cheese dip for a party-perfect snack platter. 

Mexican Hot Dog Recipe

This isn’t your average hot dog. Adding avocado, red cabbage, and green onion slices adds the crunchiness, creaminess, and zing you didn’t know your frank was missing. Best of all, these Mexican hot dogs feel special, but only take 20 minutes to come together, making them perfect for a hectic weeknight dinner.

Butterscotch Hot Dog Waffle  Recipe

Banh Mi Hot Dog Recipe

Try a vietnamese-inspired hot dog topped with carrots, red onion, vinegar, and jalapeño slices.