The Perfect Dog – From My Area That Is

I’ve mentioned this before, but I grew up in a small WV town that is crazy about hot dogs and has at least a half dozen stand-alone hot dog shops.  For that area of the world, the dog only had sauce (chili), mustard, and onion and the wiener was usually simmered in water.  I ordered 2 hot dogs at a local convenience store the other day and the lady making them made my two in more time than a WV hot dog shop would have made three dozen – but they are pros.

Bev made a batch of sauce the other day and for supper it was grilled hot dogs and baked sweet potatoes ala Roz for the second time in three days – as I said Bev really likes them as do I.

Bev has been making our hot dog sauce for several years, but I’ve always thought it was a little too sweet for my taste, even though she has cut way back on the ketchup from the WV recipe she started with - she'd been using about a cup.  For this batch, she totally omitted it and after tasting, we both thought it needed a little so she added 2 tbsp – I thought it was her best ever and decided to post her recipe – this is for a double batch. 

Ingredients

3 lb  ground beef – 93% lean

3 large onions, chopped very fine in the food processor

2 heaping tbsp chili powder (my homemade so it depends on what you use)

12 oz tomato paste

2 heaping tbsp ketchup (more if you want sweeter sauce)

Cayenne pepper to taste

Salt to taste

Directions

• Don’t break the meat apart and cover meat with water in an 8 qt pot.  Bring to a boil and simmer until no longer, or just barely, pink in the middle. 
• Remove meat from water and allow it to cool enough to handle. 
• Slice the chunk of meat as thin as possible across the grain it has from the meat grinder.
• After slicing, chop the slices into small pieces (this allows for the very small final pieces of meat in most hot dog sauces).  Change the process if you want larger pieces of meat.
• Remove about half the liquid from the pot and reserve it.
• Whisk tomato paste, ketchup, chili powder, and ½ tsp cayenne into water and return meat and add onions. 
• After stirring everything together add back some reserved water to achieve the desired consistency.
• Bring to a boil then simmer 15 minutes, taste and add cayenne and more chili powder as needed.
• After 10 more minutes, taste and adjust cayenne. 
• After about 10 more minutes, taste and make final adjustment of cayenne and add salt to taste and cook a final 10 minutes (45 minutes total).

It freezes very well so we store in pint and quart containers.

For supper, I deviated from the WV dog by grilling the wieners and by using larger ones – Angus Bun Size, but otherwise they were the same. 

For years, I thought this was the way all hot dogs were made and all of the others were not the real thing.  Now that I’ve seen a little more of the world, I realize that most places do them differently and my little area was the minority.  I’ve even grown to enjoy them other ways and would like to go to Chicago some time for one of their unique ones – “steamed all beef frankfurter, topped with yellow mustard, bright green relish, onions, tomato wedges, pickle spear or slice, sport peppers and a dash of celery salt served in a steamed poppy seed bun” – no sauce at all. 

While I still prefer my Marion County, WV dog, I will occasionally add cheese, or dill pickle, or yes even slaw, but however you like yours, if they include chili (sauce), you may want to give this recipe a try and adjust it to suit your taste.

If I ever open "Big Dude’s Que, Dogs, and Pepperoni Rolls", this is the sauce I’d use on the dogs.

All photos can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.

One year ago: One Pan Potatoes and Eggs & My Bloody Mary

Two years ago: Bacon Cheddar Meatloaf Ala Katherine

Larry

3/26/12  meal date