GET YOUR HOT DOGS HERE!
Let’s be frank. Summertime’s synonymous with baseball, barbecues, beach days… swimming, sandals, sunshine… heat, humidity and hot diggity dogs. Fire up that grill! July’s National Hot Dog Month, and today’s National Hot Dog Day.
“It’s a full meal in your hand. It’s just delicious,” said Ed Forbes of Dog Bites Hot Dogs cart in Lansdale. “It brings you back to when you were a kid. A hot summer day - you’re at a carnival or fair.”
From Memorial Day to Labor Day, aka “peak hot dog season,” Americans will eat an estimated 7 billion (with a B!) of them. That’s 818 hot dogs a second, according to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council.
“I’m a cheese, chili and bacon guy,” revealed Roger Steward, owner of Jimmy John’s Pipin’ Hot Sandwiches in West Chester. “We have a hot dog like no other. It is specially made for us, and it has a natural casing, so it has the crunch to it.”
Opened in 1940 along Route 202, the restaurant remains “famous for frankfurters,” selling 5,000 “in any given week,” including 8-packs and 5-pound boxes.
“It’s grown over the years from a little hot dog stand on a two-lane road,” he said. “Every community has a favorite hot dog spot, and I think we’re fortunate enough to hold that title around here.”
Another top dog: Costa Deli in Ambler. Grab a stool at the counter, “give a little spin” and relish the nostalgia.
“We’ve been in the same family, the same location” since 1950, explained owner David Costa. “We still do it the way we always have without taking the shortcuts.”
Try a Texas Tommy with crispy bacon and melted cheese. Better yet, pair it with a hand-dipped milkshake for a “sweet and salty combination.”
“It’s just enough to fill them up,” he said. “If they got a milkshake and an Italian hoagie, they couldn’t finish it.”
Test your hot dog IQ
What were Mickey Mouse’s first on-screen words? You guessed it. “Hot dog!”
That’s one of 25 fun facts the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council’s sharing in honor of its 25th anniversary. Here’s another: A hot dog is not a sandwich. And did you know? … In 2018, shoppers spent more than $3 billion on hot dogs in U.S. supermarkets.
Los Angeles residents eat more hot dogs than people in any other city.
Vendors first sold hot dogs at baseball games in 1893.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt served hot dogs to King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (the “Queen Mum”). The king ate two.
Hot dogs were among the first foods astronauts enjoyed on the moon.
In 1987, Frankfurt, Germany celebrated the hot dog’s 500th birthday.
Express Jerked Caribbean Dogs
There’s no need for a family-on-the-go to sacrifice flavor. This twist on the Jamaican favorite can be prepared in less than 15 minutes and is a fun dish for people of any age.
Ingredients
1 teaspoon canola oil
1 pound hot dogs, cut on the diagonal into 3/4-inch slices
2/3 cup Caribbean jerk marinade or sauce
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
3 cups cooked long-grain rice, hot
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
Instructions
Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add hot dog pieces and stirfry for 2 minutes or until hot. Stir in jerk marinade/ sauce, lime juice and hot pepper sauce. Turn heat to low and let mixture slowly simmer, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Meanwhile, stir hot rice and allspice together. Serve hot dogs with sauce over rice.
Reverse Stuffed Hot Dog Hoagie (aka Turkdogen)
First runner-up in the 2015 National Hot Dog and Sausage Council National Sausage Month recipe contest. A truly creative way to enjoy a variety of meats all together!
Ingredients
1/2 pound fresh ground turkey
1/2 pound fresh ground chicken
2 strips of cooked bacon, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon sage 2 tablespoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon pepper 2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon garlic powder 2 tablespoons milk
6 hot dogs (links can be substituted), cooked (grilled over charcoal preferred)
6 hoagie sub rolls
4 1/2 tablespoons butter Favorite condiments (e.g. mustard, mayonnaise, ketchup, salsa, guacamole, etc.)
Instructions
Split rolls in half. Pull out the soft middle and put the insides in a bowl. Mix in milk, then turkey and chicken meat along with bacon crumbles and spices. Take a handful of meat mixture and flatten out in your hands. Put hot dog on meat and wrap around hot dog until it’s completely covered.
Melt 3 tablespoons butter in hot frying pan. Place stuffed hot dogs in frying pan and cook, turning periodically, until each side is browned. Melt 1/2 tablespoon butter in a frying pan and place two rolls, cut-end-down to lightly brown. Repeat with remaining rolls. Place stuffed hotdog in bottom bun. Place condiments on top and finish by placing bun top on the top.
“It’s a full meal in your hand. It’s just delicious. It brings you back to when you were a kid. A hot summer day - you’re at a carnival or fair.”
—Ed Forbes of Dog Bites Hot Dogs cart in Lansdale
“It’s grown over the years from a little hot dog stand on a two-lane road. Every community has a favorite hot dog spot, and I think we’re fortunate enough to hold that title around here.”
_Roger Steward, owner of Jimmy John’s Pipin’ Hot Sandwiches in West Chester
“We’ve been in the same family, the same location (since 1950). We still do it the way we always have without taking the shortcuts.”
— David Costa, Costa Deli in Ambler