Bacon-wrapped hot dogs

[Chris Hennes]

I just got yet another random newsletter touting some bacon-wrapped hot dog, which set me to thinking that I'd never actually had a good one. Colleagues tell me they exist, though: how do you make them so the bacon gets properly cooked at the same time the hot dog is?

[Chris Amirault]

I believe that the secret is an ungodly amount of bacon fat at a low temperature in which the bacon fat renders and the hot dog cooks, then a finish on a hotter griddle to crisp up the bacon. At least that's what they do at El Guero Canelo in Tucson, where one of the finest hot dogs in the world can be had:

[ambra]

I had one on every corner in Austria. So good. They also do them with cheese. Also delicious. I have no recipe for you

[therippa]

I've had delicious ones made on the street in San Francisco (mayo is the secret ingredient), and have have them at home with great success. Since the hotdog is already cooked, you really only have to worry about cooking it until the bacon gets crisp...the hotdog will be warm at that point.

Using cold bacon and a cold, dry hotdog, wrap the bacon around so the first wrap kind of overlaps the where it starts...and when you do the last wrap kind of tuck it into the previous wrap. Hold it with both hands and give it a twist with one hand in following the direction you twisted, tightening the bacon. If the bacon and hotdog were both cold and you tucked the ends of the bacon into itself, then you usually won't have a problem with it staying wrapped.

Sautee over medium heat until crispy. One enough fat has rendered off, add sliced onions and sautee those to your liking. Once all the stuff is out of the pan, toast your bun in the bacon dripping and onion fond.

edit: typo and added method

Edited February 9, 2011 by therippa (log)

[therippa]

Another thought for the modernists out there...it might be interesting to glue the bacon to the hotdog using transglutaminase and deep frying the whole thing!

[heidih]

The ones from the carts around here are wrapped such that you see dog in between the turns. They are cooked on what I consider a low to medium griddle. The onions and serranos cooking alongside are not spattering much, but are absorbing the bacon fat

[ScottyBoy]

Another thought for the modernists out there...it might be interesting to glue the bacon to the hotdog using transglutaminase and deep frying the whole thing!

Haha, I just had come into the thread to recommend that. Pounding the bacon out a little, dusting of transglutaminase, wrapping tight in plastic with a quick dip in boiling water and ice bath to bond. Then, sauté, grill or fry!

[IndyRob]

I was playing with this a few months ago and got the best results by wrapping a strip of bacon around the dog in a spiral fashion, securing the ends with toothpicks and throwing in the oven. I don't remember the time or temp, but you're really just cooking the bacon to the stage you want. The hot dog can stand some over cooking (as evidenced by grill charred dogs, and deep fried 'rippers' that people seem to like).

One thing I found was that using a hot dog that's good by itself results in overkill when you add the strong bacon flavor/texture. The bland, whitish dogs used in Detroit under mounds of Greek Coney sauce would probably be good.

From there it's just looking for the right flavors which led me close to condimentia.

[karlos]

That Tucson dog looks delicious. Chris, what is on it? I can see tomato, onion, mustard. Is the white stuff mayo? Any chilies? I want.

[Chris Amirault]

The white stuff is, indeed, mayo. There are grilled items that you can add, and the chiles are essential; scallions are tough to bite through, though. Also salsas, cheeses.... Sky's the limit.

[lesliec]

I bow to the far greater knowledge of them as has hot dogs as part of their local food culture (not big here at all, so I have no idea what constitutes a good one), but I'm reminded of recent discussion in the sous vide topic about SV-assisted Beef Wellington. The principle, we agreed, was to cook the meat first in order to only have to worry about getting the pastry nicely brown and puffy. Same thing might apply here; if the internal sausage-thingy is already more or less how you want it, then wrap it and cook it fast and hot to crisp up the bacon.

[kathryn]

Crif Dogs in Manhattan has deep fried bacon wrapped hot dogs for years now:

http://newyork.seriouseats.com/2008/12/bacon-wrapped-hot-dogs-crif-dogs-east-village-nyc.html

I believe it's a take on a New Jersey style and many other hot dog places in NJ do similarly.

[Holly Moore]

My father used to make them - sometimes stuffed with cheese. As I recall he par-grilled the bacon to a point where it got crisp. I remember him doing them under a broiler, turning a few times. Toothpicks to hold the bacon onto the dog.

The Texas Tommy is the Philadelphia version of a bacon hot dog. Tony Lukes and some other places simply place a grilled dog along side grilled bacon on a hot dog bun and then, because they can, top it with cheeze whiz. Bacon along side seems like an much simpler, though less aesthetic, approach to a bacon hot dog.

[Pierogi]

Bacon wrapped hot dogs are indeed very easy to do well. As others noted, the hot dog is cooked, so you're really just worried about getting it warm all the way through. I usually wrap the hot dog in bacon, overlapping only a bit (stuffing the dog with cheese is optional, but extremely yummy and decadent), and then put it on a rack in a broiler pan or roasting pan. That elevates the wrapped dog above the rendering grease. Then put in about a 400° oven for maybe 15-20 minutes. Check halfway through, you may want to rotate the dogs to ensure even bacon crispiness. Unless, of course you've done the cheese route, which will ooze out if flipped. Maybe a brief run under the broiler at the end, but these are a pretty darned good junk food fix however you dress them.

I *will* be trying them with mayo, chiles, salsa, etc. as described by Chris A. That sounds (and looks) awesome.

[annachan]

Another thought for the modernists out there...it might be interesting to glue the bacon to the hotdog using transglutaminase and deep frying the whole thing!

I imagine toothpicks will do just fine for frying.

[annachan]

Now I want one for dinner! Well, got something else planned so it'll have to be another day.

I usually just have mine with some grilled onion and maybe a little mustard. Now that Pierogi has mentioned cheese, I want mine topped with nacho cheese! And maybe some jalapenos....

[dcarch]

Very simple. Same problem as bacon wrapped anything. Just make the bacon separate.

dcarch

[OliverB]

how timely (again), I just bought some hot dogs and some cheese dogs today, and there's bacon in the freezer. I'll have to play with this in the next couple of days I think. Need to get some buns, which I for some reason forgot to buy today, LOL

[AAQuesada]

I've been told in Mexico, usually they Thin out a thick mayo with some crema for the white sauce. And Ketchup would get the fresca treatment, the flavor is up to you! They do taste best a at 230a though

If I was to make them I'd add some poblano to the onion griddles in bacon fat and call it a day!!

[toolprincess]

I was playing with this a few months ago and got the best results by wrapping a strip of bacon around the dog in a spiral fashion, securing the ends with toothpicks and throwing in the oven. I don't remember the time or temp, but you're really just cooking the bacon to the stage you want. The hot dog can stand some over cooking (as evidenced by grill charred dogs, and deep fried 'rippers' that people seem to like).

One thing I found was that using a hot dog that's good by itself results in overkill when you add the strong bacon flavor/texture. The bland, whitish dogs used in Detroit under mounds of Greek Coney sauce would probably be good.

From there it's just looking for the right flavors which led me close to condimentia.

Growing up this was my dad's version of a "pig in the blanket" - he slit the hotdog down the middle, added cheese, wrapped the hotdog in bacon and secured with toothpicks put in the oven under the broiler and cooked til the bacon was crispy.

[OliverB]

Just made some tonight, they came out great I think! I used cheese dogs, those that have some cheese something or other piped into the middle. Wrapped each into some nice center cut thin bacon and put them in a pan at med/low heat, browned them all over. Took a while, but the bacon got nice and crispy and they tasted great! I also used above idea to saute some onion once there was enough fat, moved the dogs to one side, onions on the other, and moved the pan around a bit to have low/high heat areas for what needed what temp at that time. Toasted some buns, fun stuff! I don't make hot dogs all that often, but I'll make these again.

[ScottyBoy]

Yum, you gotta get a camera on that action!