Hot Dogs Around the World

No doubt lots of hot dogs, hamburgers and brats were consumed in honor of the Super Bowl on Sunday (we stuck to chicken wings at my house). I was doing some research for another article when I came across something called 'Hot Dog Variations'. I guess I had really never considered Hot Dog Variations before. I mean, sure, there's the chili dog and the Chicago dog, but other than that?

Yeah. Apparently there's a whole world of hot dogs out there I haven't even considered.


Picture from Dan Leveille on Wikipedia


When I was soliciting ideas for my upcoming trip to L.A. on mentalfloss, more than one Flosser suggested that I try out Pink's. I fully intend to, because the Martha Stewart dog sounds delicious - mustard, relish, bacon, tomato, sauerkraut and sour cream. My husband will probably enjoy the Ozzy dog, named after the Prince of Darkness himself. It's a polish sausage with nacho cheese, American cheese, onions, guacamole and chopped tomatoes.

In Venezuela, expect to be offered an incredibly wide variety of toppings for your dog. Just a few that might be found include carrot shreds, french fries, corn niblets, garlic sauce, chili sauce, mayo and tartar sauce.

In Columbia, you'll find the perro caliente comes with mashed potato chips, strings of ham or bacon, ketchup, mayo, mustard, onions and pineapple sauce.

West Virginia
likes to top their hot dogs with chili sauce - not so weird - and sweet cole slaw.


Picture from jslander on flickr


From what I understand, Sweden loves hot dogs. One of the most popular variations is the "tunnebrod rulleor", a dog wrapped in flatbread and stuffed with various toppings. Mashed potato is apparently a local favorite.

Georgians (especially those in the southern part of the state) enjoy scrambled dogs. You can find it in Columbus, Ga., at Dinglewood Pharmacy, where your dog is not complete without dill pickles, ketchup, mustard, chili, onions and oyster crackers. Lots of people also say your meal isn't complete unless you top it off with an icy Coca-Cola, since it also originiated in Georgia.

Guatemalans know there's nothing like topping your hot dog ("shucos") with more meat. In addition to toppings like boiled cabbage, mustard and mayo, you have the option to add bacon, pepperoni, salami, chorizo or longaniza to complete your shuco.


photo from Javier Aroche on flickr


The granddaddy of the shuco is sold in Antigua, Guatemala and is called "La Ballena" - the Whale. You get chorizo, longaniza, salchicha, ham, bacon, pepperoni, german ham and sausages, chicken breast, beef steak fajitas and polish sausages. It'll set you back between $5 and $7 depending on the toppings. I have a friend who might move to Guatemala after hearing this. His idea of a perfect meal is one which has a "meat trifecta", so this would be right up his alley.

Although 'hot dogs' can be found Down Under, a more popular option in Australia is called 'sausage sizzle'. It's a barbecued sausage on bread, optionally with condiments and onion. 'Sausage sizzle' is a versatile word, though - it's kind of like the word barbeque. It can be used to describe food, but it also describes a gathering of people, grills and adult beverages (at least that's what barbeques consist of in my world). Corn dogs have all kinds of aliases - battered sav, dagwood dog and pluto pup.

These are only a few examples - I'm sure there's strange toppings to be had on hot dogs all over the world. What's the speciality in your area?

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Best hot dogs on the planet are in Clifton, NJ at Rutt's Hut (amazing homemade relish) and at Hot Grill (Texas Weiner). I believe the Texas Weiner was invented here in NJ.
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Black people in the south like to have their hotdogs smothered in KFC with a side of watermelon. They wash it all down with some grape drank while singing old timey hymns. I've seen them do it on tv. I like my hotdogs without black people but that's just me. I get grossed out when I think about blacks while I'm trying to eat.
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Excellent post and comments. I echo the poster of the Aussie sausage sizzle. On the other side of the world, the Finnish hot dog is simplicity itself. Just the precooked sausage (makkara) with some mustard (sinappi). See it here on flickr.
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While there are many great hot dogs found around the world, one will never have to leave Chicago to get the world's greatest.

wwww.hotdogsaregoodforyou.wordpress.com
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