PrintThe Best Grilling Hot Dogs?
Sometimes, dare I say often in my experience, nothing tastes better than a grilled hot dog, on July 4th or any other day of the year for that matter. The key is buying the right hot dog, and as I pointed out a couple of weeks ago on Ed Levine Eats, you can't count on Consumer Reports to provide that info.. Regional tastes vary when it comes to hot dogs, but as someone who has had a hot dog in at least forty states, spread evenly through every region of the country, I feel comfortable (and confident) saying that garlicky all-beef hot dogs with natural casings are the best-tasting hot dogs you can buy. There are two widely available natural casing all-beef hot dog brands, Boar's Head and Vienna Beef, but both companies make many different kinds of hot dogs, so scour the label before you plunk down your hard-earned money. The natural casing seals in the flavor and the juices when you grill the dogs. Papaya King hot dogs also have natural casings, but they're harder to find except in select New York area stores. Beware of most Nathan's Hot Dog packages you see in supermarket. They are usually skinless, though they do make a natural-casing dog that you almost never see in supermarkets for some reason.
If you can't find an all-beef hot dog with a natural casing, Niman Ranch's Fearless Franks, Empire National Kosher Hot Dogs, and if you can't find any of the above, Hebrew National hot dogs (as a last resort) are all acceptable alternatives. I don't really understand why Bill Niman doesn't put a natural casing on his dogs, but he doesn't. The kosher rabbis in their inimitable wisdom decided some years ago that natural sheep casings are not kosher, so there is no such thing as a natural casing kosher hot dog. Kosher hot dog makers like Empire National sometimes offer a collagen casing instead, but collagen doesn't provide the same snap.
Are there other great grilling hot dogs I don't know about?
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10 Comments:
Here in Michigan, particularly in the Flint area, the Koegel Viennas at the bottom of http://www.koegelmeats.com/products/db.cgi?viennas have been long-time favorites. While they contain both beef and pork, it's a matter of pride for a restaurant here to display a sign indicating they serve these hot dogs.
LunaPierCook at 9:32AM on 07/02/07
Down my way (Washington DC) the only natural casing hot dogs I can find are Boar's Head, which do pretty well in taste tests, from what I've googled. They come either by the pound from the deli case, or vacuum sealed in packs of 10 in the high-end packages deli meats.
DaveFaris at 10:35AM on 07/02/07
There's a German-sounding brand that is sold by the box at Stop-n-Shop that I love. I can't for the life of me come up with the name, but it's on the meat section, the dogs are linked together, and come probably twenty to a box. Really yummy. I've bought them on Nantucket lots of times. Any one have any idea of the brand?
megnut at 10:47AM on 07/02/07
The only dog I can think of better than your reccommendations here, is the one you make at home in a sizzling skillet.
Now I have to run to Gray's Papaya!
ParisBreakfasts at 11:19AM on 07/02/07
Salen's from upstate NY are excellent. A charcoal grilled Salen's from Ted's is a thing of beauty.
rps at 12:05PM on 07/02/07
My local brand is Miller's; the "old-fashioned" have natural casings with good snap. Their audacious slogan is "The Best Tasting Hot Dogs in the World."
http://www.millerhotdogs.com
Oakland Aaron at 1:16PM on 07/02/07
i second the michigan koegel's - having moved to NYC i sure do miss them!
crafty at 1:52PM on 07/02/07
I used to buy a local stores hotdogs when I lived in new england, they were the best and i still crave them about this time of year, natural casings that you bought in this one store, all linked together like hot dogs were meant to be. I miss them so much i'm heading back next week just to have a cookout with a friend, including those hotdogs! In Alabama its hard to find anything but prepackaged flabby dogs. I've tried Boars Head when desperate, and they arent bad. But about the only hot dog I'll eat down here is the slaw dogs at a Muscle Shoals bbq place, hot and tangy! and oh so GOOD!
huney_bumper at 2:12PM on 07/02/07
Sahlen's, Thumann's, and the hot dogs at Kocher's butcher shop in Ridgefield, N.J. are, in my opinion, the best German style beef and pork dogs. But for the kosher style dogs, Nathan's, Boars Head, and Sabrett are very good. As is Hebrew National with the collagen casings. But 2 stand out. One is the natural casing Certified Angus Beef wiener made by Usinger's of Milwaukee. And my personal favorite, which I think you had Ed, is from Best's Provision in Newark. The 5 to a lb, footlong natural casing dog that was served at Syd'si n Union. In my opinion, there is no better hot dog.
hotdoglover at 8:44PM on 07/02/07
The results are in. Some surprises, some not so surprising:
http://offthebroiler.wordpress.com/2007/07/03/the-great-off-the-broiler-hot-dog-tasting-of-2007/
jperlow at 1:26PM on 07/03/07