Hot dog

A selection of gourmet hot dogs.

A hot dog is a type of fully-cooked, cured and/or smoked moist sausage of soft, even texture and flavor. It is the sausage most commonly eaten as finger food in the United States . It is usually placed hot in a soft, sliced bun of approximately the same length as the sausage, and optionally garnished with condiments and toppings. The resulting sandwich is also called a hot dog.

The flavor of hot dog sausages varies widely by region and by personal preference, as do the toppings on the sandwich. The flavor of the sausage itself can resemble a range of similar meat products from bologna on the bland side to Hungarian Debrecener in the spicier varieties.

Hot dogs are traditionally made from beef, pork, or a combination of both meats. Unlike many other sausages (which may be sold cooked or uncooked), hot dogs are always cooked before being offered commercially. Unless they have spoiled, hot dogs may be safely eaten without further cooking though they are usually warmed before serving. Vegetarian hot dogs and sausages which are made completely from meat analogue are also widely available in most areas where hot dogs are popular.

Hot dogs are also called frankfurters, or franks for short (named after the city of Frankfurt, Germany, the original frankfurters are made of pork only), or wieners or weenies (named after the city of Vienna, Austria, whose German name is "Wien", the original wieners are made of a mixture of pork and beef). In Australia, the term frankfurt is used rather than frankfurter. Tiny frankfurts, called cocktail franks or cheerios, are sometimes served at parties and eaten on the end of a toothpick. In the German speaking countries, except Austria, hot dog sausages are generally called Wiener or Wiener Würstchen. (Würstchen means "little sausage") In Swiss German, it is called Wienerli; but, in Austria, the terms Frankfurter or Frankfurter Würstchen are used.

History

A "home-cooked" hot dog with mayonnaise, onion, and pickle-relish

Claims of "invention" of the hot dog are difficult to assess, because different stories assert the creation of the sausage itself, the placing of the sausage (or another kind of sausage) on bread or a bun as finger food, the mass popularization of the existing dish, or the application of the name "hot dog" to a sausage and bun combination.

The city of Vienna traces the lineage of the hot dog to the wienerwurst or Viennese sausage, the city of Frankfurt to the frankfurter wurst, which it claims was invented in the 1480s; the hot dog has also been attributed to Johann Georghehner, a 17th century butcher from the Bavarian city of Coburg who is said to have invented the "dachshund" or "little-dog" sausage and brought it to Frankfurt.

Around 1870 on Coney Island, a German immigrant named Charles Feltman began selling sausages in rolls.

Others have also been acknowledged for supposedly having "invented" the hot dog, including Anton Ludwig Feuchtwanger, a Bavarian sausage seller who is said to have started serving sausages in rolls at the World's Fair—either the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago or the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St Louis—because the white gloves he gave to customers so that they could eat his hot sausages in comfort began to disappear as souvenirs.

The association between hot dogs and baseball may have began as early as 1893 with Chris von der Ahe, a German immigrant who owned not only the St. Louis Browns, but also an amusement park, beer garden and brewery near Sportsman's Park, where he sold his beer.

In 1916, an employee of Feltman's named Nathan Handwerker was encouraged by celebrity clients Eddie Cantor and Jimmy Durante to go into business in competition with his former employer. Handwerker undercut Feltman's by charging five cents for a hot dog when his former employer was charging ten. At a time when food regulation was in its infancy, and the pedigree of the hot dog particularly suspect, Handwerker made sure that men wearing surgeon's smocks were seen eating at Nathan's Famous in order to reassure potential customers.

Etymology

The term "dog" has been used as a synonym for sausage since at least 1884 ('A sausage-maker...is continually dunning us for a motto. The following, we hope, will suit him to a hair: "Love me, love my dog."') and accusations that sausage-makers used dog meat date to at least 1845 ("Dogs...they retails the latter, tails and all, as sassenger meat.")

According to a popular myth, the use of the complete phrase "hot dog" in reference to sausage was coined by the newspaper cartoonist Thomas Aloysius "TAD" Dorgan ca. 1900 in a cartoon recording the sale of hot dogs during a New York Giants baseball game at the Polo Grounds. However, TAD's earliest usage of "hot dog" was not in reference to a baseball game at the Polo Grounds, but to a bicycle race at Madison Square Garden, in the December 12 and December 13, 1906 editions of The New York Evening Journal dated December 12, 1906, by which time the term "hot dog" in reference to sausage was already in use.

The earliest usage of "hot dog" in clear reference to sausage found by Barry Popik appeared in the 28 September 1893 edition of The Knoxville Journal.

It was so cool last night that the appearance of overcoats was common, and stoves and grates were again brought into comfortable use. Even the weinerwurst men began preparing to get the "hot dogs" ready for sale Saturday night.

— 28 September 1893, Knoxville (TN) Journal, "The [sic] Wore Overcoats," pg. 5

Another early use of the complete phrase "hot dog" in reference to sausage appeared on page 4 of the October 19, 1895 issue of The Yale Record: "they contentedly munched hot dogs during the whole service."

General description

Grilled hot dogs

A hot dog is typically distinguishable from other sausages by its smaller size and relative lack of spicing. A regular hot dog of the kind popular at sporting events and readily available in supermarkets is roughly 6 inches in length (15 cm), though thickness and length can vary. The mild seasoning and smaller size allows children to eat hot dogs more easily than other sausages. There are many nationally distributed brands that tend to market similar products to all geographical areas, but many local brands still survive, mostly due to wide variations in regional hot dog preferences. Twelve-inch (30-cm) or "footlong" hot dogs are popular in some regions, for example.

Ingredients

There is no fixed specification for hot dog meat, with pork and beef being the most popular. Less expensive hot dogs typically contain chicken, due to the low cost and availability of mechanically separated chicken, and some pork. Hot dogs are generally regarded as unhealthy insofar as most have high sodium, fat and nitrate content. In recent years, due to changing dietary preferences in the U.S., manufacturers have turned to turkey, chicken, or vegetarian meat substitutes as well as lowering the salt content.

In general, if a manufacturer produces two different hot dog-type sausages, "wieners" tend to contain pork, and to be the blander of the two, while "franks" tend to be all-beef, and more strongly seasoned. This is particularly true of Oscar Mayer products.

Condiments

File:Hot dog mural.jpg

This wall painting shows some of the more common hot dog condiments: mustard, ketchup and relish.

A Detroit Coney Island hot dog with chili, onion and mustard.

Throughout the world, there are numerous variations in hot dog condiments from region to region. The most common are mustard, ketchup, chili, sauerkraut, cole slaw, pickle relish and chopped onion . Others include mayonnaise, chopped lettuce, tomato (chopped, sliced, or in wedges), pickle spear, celery salt, cheese, avocado, canned corn, deep-fried potato sticks, and hot peppers, and usually served in a bun.

In the United States, the National Sausage and Hot Dog Council conducted a poll in 2005, which found mustard the most popular condiment (32 percent). "Twenty-three percent of Americans said they preferred ketchup. [...] Chili came in third at 17 percent, followed by relish (9 percent) and onions (7 percent). Southerners showed the strongest preference for Chili, while Midwesterners showed the greatest affinity for ketchup. Nationwide, however, mustard prevailed."

Some Americans believe that a properly made hot dog should never be topped with ketchup. Often these people believe the flavor of ketchup overpowers and destroys the taste of the hot dog instead of complementing it. In Chicago, some restaurants and hot dog stands that consider themselves to be "true" Chicago hot dog grills do not, as a rule, carry ketchup in stock, even if they serve other food items that use this condiment, such as French fries. The National Hot Dog & Sausage Council, in its tongue-in-cheek recommendations for proper Hot Dog Etiquette capitulate only slightly to the public's general regard for ketchup, saying, "Don't use ketchup on your hot dog after the age of 18." (This alludes to the fact that many children like ketchup on their hot dogs due to the sweet taste, but adults are expected to have a more sophisticated palate).

The Coney Island hot dog, which is topped with a special "coney sauce" (generally a beanless chili), is also a favorite in the US Midwest. Several restaurants in Michigan claim to have invented the Coney dog, which is virtually unknown in its namesake Coney Island, New York.

Commercial preparation

Hot dogs are typically prepared commercially by mixing all of the ingredients (meats, spices, binders and fillers, if any) in large vats where rapidly moving blades grind and mix the ingredients in the same operation, assuring a homogeneous product. This mixture is then forced through tubes into casings for cooking. Most hot dogs sold in the US are called "skinless" as opposed to more expensive "natural casing" hot dogs.

Natural casing hot dogs

As with virtually all sausages, hot dogs must be in a casing in order to be cooked. Traditionally this casing is made from the thoroughly cleaned small intestines of sheep, and are known as "natural casing" hot dogs or frankfurters. These kinds of hot dogs are preferred by some for their firmer texture and the "snap" that releases juices and flavor when the product is bitten into.

Kosher hot dogs are not permitted natural casings and are therefore either skinless or have artificial collagen casings.

Skinless hot dogs

One of the more recent developments in hot dog preparation: The hot dog toaster.

"Skinless" hot dogs also must use a casing in the cooking process when the product is manufactured, but here the casing is usually a long tube of thin cooking plastic that is completely removed after cooking and before packaging. Skinless hot dogs vary in the texture of the product surface but have a softer "bite" than natural casing hot dogs. Skinless hot dogs are more uniform in shape and size than natural casing hot dogs and less expensive to produce.

Final preparation

For a full list of regional differences in hot dog preparation and condiments, see Hot dog variations.

Hot dogs may be grilled, steamed, boiled, barbecued, pan fried, deep fried, broiled, microwaved, or eaten cold (most of the sausages themselves are cooked before packaging).

Availability in the United States

A roadside hot dog stand located near Huntington, West Virginia.

In the U.S., along with ballparks, regional restaurants offer hot dogs.

A few chains in the U.S. that offer hot dogs include Sonic Drive-In and Dog n Suds, who call it a coney; Hardee's (but not their counterpart Carl's Jr. on the west coast of the United States, which is ironic due to founder Carl Karcher having started the Carl's Jr. empire with a hot dog stand); Dairy Queen; Wienerschnitzel (originally Der Wienerschnitzel), whose menu focuses on hot dogs; The Frankfurter in Seattle, Washington; Woody's Chicago Style; Nathan's Famous, which sponsors the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest; A&W and Spike's Junkyard Dogs located in Rhode Island and Boston. Krystal restaurants in the southeast offer a small hot dog called a Krystal Pup, and Fatburger, located mostly on the west coast of the U.S., offers hot dogs and chili dogs. In Cincinnati, Ohio Skyline and Gold Star Chilli sell hot dogs and spaghetti with their signature Cincinnati Chilli.

Yocco's Hot Dogs, founded in 1922, maintains six restaurants in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania and is known for its long-standing specialty on hot dogs and various toppings. Given Yocco's strong global popularity, the restaurant also has a mail-order business, providing frozen hot dog bags to customers around the U.S. and the world. A map of the world in each of their six restaurants marks the thousands of locations in the U.S. and internationally that have ordered Yocco's hot dogs.

File:Fenway Frank.jpg

A Fenway Frank sold at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts.

Casual dining restaurants often have a hot dog on their children's menu, but not on the regular menu. Hot dog stands and trucks sell hot dogs and accompaniments, as well as similar products, at street and highway locations. Convenience stores such as Seven-Eleven often sell hot dogs that are kept heated on rotating grills; a selection of flavors and sizes is sometimes offered.

Walter's Hot Dog in Mamaroneck, New York, is one of the nation's oldest independent roadside stands.

Pink's Hot Dogs is another famous independent stand and is located in Hollywood, California.

Ballparks such as Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts have signature hot dogs called Fenway Franks. The signature is that the hot dog is boiled and grilled Fenway-style, and then Fenway Frank is served on a New England-style bun and covered with mustard and relish. Often times during Red Sox games, vendors travel throughout the stadium selling the hot dogs plain, giving you the choice of adding the condiments.

Hot dogs variations

Main article: Hot dog variations

Competitions

File:60m Hot Dog Akasaka Aug4 06.jpg

The World's Longest Hot Dog at the Akasaka Prince Hotel

Hot dogs are used in many competitions, including eating competitions and attempts to create world record sized hot dogs. On July 4, 2007, Joey Chestnut set a new record when he ate 66 hotdogs in 12 minutes at Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2007 event at Coney Island, breaking the previous record that he set on June 2, 2007 when he ate 59½ hotdogs in 12 minutes at a Nathan's qualifier event in Tempe, AZ. In Arizona, Chestnut had broken the record at the time of 53¾ by Takeru Kobayashi.

The World's Longest Hot Dog created was 60m (196.85 ft), and rested within a 60.3m bun. The hot dog was prepared by Shizuoka Meat Producers for the All-Japan Bread Association who baked the bun, and coordinated the event, which included the official measurement for the World Record. The hot dog and bun were the center of a media event in celebration of the Association's 50th anniversary on August 4, 2006, at the Akasaka Prince Hotel, Tokyo, Japan.

In popular media

Mickey Mouse's first spoken words were "Hot Dogs!".

Festivals

The city of Huntington, West Virginia, hosts the annual West Virginia Hot Dog Festival. Each year Suffolk Downs in Boston, Massachusetts, thousands of people come to the Hot Dog Safari to contribute money to help people with cystic fibrosis. Another future festival possibility comes from a meat market owner in DuBois, Pennsylvania, created a peanut butter hot dog recipe at the suggestion of the mother of a seven-year-old customer. The popularity of this invention spread around via the internet, and now the town of DuBois is discussing a "peanut butter hot dog" festival.

Cultural taboos

In Discordianism, hot dog buns are considered taboo because of the "Original Snub" as depicted in the Principia Discordia.

See also

• Sausage sandwich
• Mechanically separated meat
• Advanced meat recovery
• Chicago-style hot dog
• Coney Island hot dog
• Dodger Dog
• Hot dog variations
• Cheese dog
• Sausage bun

References

• Immerso, Michael (2002), Coney Island: The People's Playground, New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, ISBN 0813531381
• Jakle, John A.; Sculle, Keith A. (1999), Fast Food, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, ISBN 0-8018-6109-8
• Levine, Ed (2005-05-25), "It's All in How the Dog Is Served", The New York Times
• McCollough, J. Brady (2006-04-02), "Frankfurter, she wrote: Hot dog shrouded in mystery", The Kansas City Star
• McCullough, Edo (2000) [1957]. Good Old Coney Island: A Sentimental Journey into the Past. New York: Fordham University Press. ISBN 0823219976.
• Popik, Barry (2004-07-15). "Hot Dog (Polo Grounds myth & original monograph)". The Big Apple. Retrieved 2007-05-27.
• Schmidt, Gretchen (2003), German Pride: 101 Reasons to Be Proud You're German, New York: Citadel Press, ISBN 0806524812
• Sterngass, Jon (2001), First Resorts: Pursuing Pleasure at Saratoga Springs, Newport & Coney Island, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, ISBN 0801865867
• Wilton, David (2004), Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends, Oxford: Oxford University Press, ISBN 0195172841

External links

• Hot dog history, legends and trivia
• National Hot Dog & Sausage Council
• Home page for a PBS documentary about hot dogs
• The Evolution of Hot Dogs
• USDA Fact Sheet focusing on Hot Dogs