Monday, May 4, 2015

Recreating the Chicago Style Hot Dog of My Youth


I admit that there are hundreds of recipes for Chicago style hot dogs.  Having grown up in Chi-Town, it was not uncommon for me to buy Chicago style hot dogs in local restaurants and from any number of street vendors. The Chicago Style Hot Dog was and still is a daily part of native Chicagoans life. 
 
Now that I have been away from my hometown for decades, I have found it hard to capture the exact taste of a true Chicago style hot dog. However, I could be just more than a little bias on the subject. 

Therefore, searching my memory for what I have been missing, I have pulled together these ingredients to recreate what I believe is the closest I will come to a true Chicago Style Hot Dog.
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Chicago Style Hot Dog 

Ingredients:

Large Vienna Beef Hot Dogs in their natural skins
Steamed Poppy Seed Bun/ Wheat Buns
Mustard
Diced Spanish Sweet Onions
Sweet Pickle Relish
Tomato wedges
Celery Salt or Gumbo File
Kosher Dill Pickle
Serrano Sport Peppers
Cucumber, sliced
Ketchup, If Desired

Directions:

There are four methods for cooking a Chicago Style Hot Dog.
  1. Use an Old Fashioned Hot Dog Roller 
  2. Deep fried hot at 375 degrees for 2 to 3 minutes, no more than that amount of time,
  3. Steam it, or 
  4. Grill it.
The way in which you cook it is up to you. However, a Chicago Style Hot Dog is not perfect without the above ingredients.


Chow!