Foodographer Fun on a Bun Top to bottom: An assortment of hot dogs cooking over lump charcoal on a Weber grill. Cheddar cheese pretzel dogs ... Kunzler bacon and Beef Franks, diced onion, melted Honey Brook Smoked Cheddar from September Farm on a warm pretzel bun. They're served with a side of homemade Yukon Gold potatoes fried in peanut oil and a sprinkling of Maldon salt. Reuben inspired ... aged Swiss cheese, Dietz & Watson corned beef (California style), sauerkraut, Russian dressing and Hebrew National Jumbo Beef Franks on Hot Diggity Dog! toasted rye bread. COPY AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY JORDAN BUSH Banh mi inspired ... Chinese radish, carrot, cucumber, onion, Applegate Organics' The Great Organic Uncured Beef Hot Dog on a French brioche roll. Sometimes, you just gotta have a hot dog! Especially on the Fourth of July. After all, they’re as American as baseball or Don McLean and his “American Pie.” To quote my friend, Jamie Weaver, “I swear, a baby bald eagle is born every time a hot dog is roasted.” olks often assume that being a questioning that stat. But, think about are low-sodium hot dogs. There are tradition is alive and well. Just make sure Ffoodie, hot dogs are probably not it – hot dogs are a staple for cookouts, probably gluten-free hot dogs. you save room for ice cream. my thing. Frankly (no pun intended), that camping trips, beach bonfires, fairs, couldn’t be further from the truth. I’ll eat picnics and sporting events. I mean, ‘Tis the Season The Windy City Way a hot dog or two on occasion as long as who goes to a baseball game and doesn’t In my food calendar, hot dog season Simple foods aren’t necessarily the quality is there. The general notion indulge in an obscenely expensive hot dog? kicks off in early spring with a trip to boring. I had my first Chicago dog in the that any sort of food is unsuitable for any Hot dogs also probably qualify as Boehringer’s Drive-In in Adamstown. city for which it is named. I remember given level of culture is, to me, egregious. America’s first fast food. How many Without fail, when Boehringer's reopens it like it was yesterday. It was a brisk, Food unites us across cultures, and by no harried moms haven’t thrown hot dogs each spring, I’m chomping at the bit windy night and after a long day of travel means should be a tool to separate. Sure, in the oven and called it dinner? For to enjoy a meal outside. Sitting by the and photography, for some reason I was you wouldn’t bring foie gras to a vegan pot some reason, children who are otherwise stream on a picnic bench with a hot craving a hot dog. A quick Google search luck dinner, but pretense ignores a key, finicky eaters will devour a hot dog. dog is as simple, but yet gratifying, as it revealed that a restaurant called The fundamental question: Is the food good? For those who dismiss hot dogs as gets. Boehringer’s also evokes memories. Weiner’s Circle was only a few blocks being alien to healthy living, have you I remember going there as a kid with away. I walked in and was immediately The Skinny checked out the selection at your favorite my grandparents after visiting Shupp’s berated for what felt like eternity on all According to Phillybite.com, the grocery store lately? Hot dogs are now Grove early on Saturdays. manner of subjects that I’ll refrain from average American consumes 70 hot made from grass-fed cows. There are hot Judging by the deep lines at mentioning here. I was cluelessly at the dogs per year. I know, you’re probably dogs made of chicken and turkey. There Boehringer’s, the road-side stand mercy of the staff until the next customer 44 LANCASTER COUNTY | JULY 2019 LANCASTER COUNTY | JULY 2019 45 French onion Chicago-style ... neon-green soup inspired ... relish, yellow mustard, caramelized yellow Folks often tomato wedges, dill pickle onion, imported spear and Kunzler Beef Swiss gruyère Franks on a poppyseed bun. cheese, John F. assume Martin & Sons Beef Franks on a toasted French brioche hot that being a dog bun. foodie, hot dogs are probably not my thing. Frankly, that couldn’t be further from the truth. came in, thereby saving me from further shame, relinquishing me to join the previously seated guests enjoying the dinner show. It wasn’t until I was watching Conan O’Brien’s late-night comedy show Add your choice of mayonnaise, Chicken Hot Dogs are quite flavorful but, leftovers for breakfast the next morning years later that I discovered what had sriracha or peanut sauce for a Thai- without the fat content of beef franks, with bacon, cheddar, eggs over easy, fried transpired when I walked through the influenced hot dog. Of the lot, the they tend to stick to the grill, requiring potatoes and hot sauce. doors. The Weiner’s Circle is famous for Reuben-inspired hot dog was perhaps a delay for the meat to sear and release As for the toppings, the sky’s the being, shall we say, comedically critical my favorite spin: aged Swiss cheese, from the grates. limit. You could even create a toppings of its patrons. Looking back, I’ll have to corned beef, sauerkraut and Russian bar for your next barbeque. However, admit it was hilarious. dressing. Swapping in coleslaw for the Prep Options Brian Averna, who served as executive As for the makeup of a Chicago dog, sauerkraut would turn it into a Rachel- You can use just about any method chef for the Sara Lee Corporation for 13 it’s quite simple. An all-beef frank is inspired hot dog. to cook a hot dog – boiling, broiling, years, stresses that you need to “dress the accompanied by a crunchy dill pickle Seeded hot dog buns and pretzel rolls frying, roasting and grilling, which is dog and not the bun.” He suggests that spear, sliced tomato, onion, yellow are quick options to step up a hot dog. the manner 60% of Americans prefer you start with wet ingredients (mustard, mustard, neon-green relish, peppers, Auntie Anne’s sells a pretzel-wrapped hot according to the National Hot Dog and chili, ketchup), then move to chunky celery salt and served on a poppyseed dog at their stands. Martin’s Potato Rolls Sausage Council. ingredients (onions, peppers, relish), then bun. It offers tons of flavor, and the juicy from Chambersburg are aces, as they Cooking franks and toppings on add shredded ingredients (cheese) and vegetables provide a satisfying crunch. Its provide a perfect density-to-moisture a charcoal grill simply adds another finally add the finishing touch of spices. doctrine could swiftly be pushed to take ratio and a sweeter flavor. The famous dimension of flavor. Just make sure the on a Cubano spin with zesty mustard, burger and hot dog chain, Shake Shack, grill is properly heated. Add a few slits to buttered pickles and Swiss cheese. exclusively serves Martin’s Potato Rolls. the dogs, but don’t slice them down the middle, which causes them to dry out. Upgrade Your Dog Where’s The Beef? Cook them for no longer than six minutes I turned to soups and sandwiches For this month’s column, I taste- and use tongs to rotate them so that they JORDAN BUSH is a commercial as inspiration for upgrading my hot tested five varieties of hot dogs: beef to get the even char you’re after. Yes, you chicken, local to national. My favorite hot can use mesquite or other flavorful photographer. His work has dog experience. Caramelized onions allowed him to discover and are paired with melted, imported Swiss dogs are Hebrew National Beef Franks. wood/charcoal. document cultures and food across five continents. A graduate gruyère cheese and placed atop a toasted The snap of each bite is perfect, and the You can also lay bread or bacon right flavor is quintessential, beefy, a balanced on the grill or heat a cast iron griddle of Garden Spot High School and French brioche roll to create a French Millersville University, Jordan and sweet and salty flavor. Kunzler Beef to toast them without fear of losing any his fiancée, Jessica, reside and Chicken ... bleu onion-inspired hot dog. cook together in Ephrata. cheese, celery, A Vietnamese banh mi-style hot Franks took second and are my favorite accouterments to the ashes below. If any Crystal Hot Sauce local option. Wegman’s Organic Uncured franks curiously remain, dice up your and Wegman’s dog is comprised of deliciously crunchy Organic Uncured carrots, cilantro, onion, cucumber and Chicken Hot Dogs on a toasted split- Chinese radish. top bun. LANCASTER COUNTY | JULY 2019 47 .