"Hot Dogs Around the World" news and stories

I've been on a tear lately for hot dogs. I started asking around and doing some Internet research about hot dogs here in Maine. One place that came to my notice was Bolleys Famous Franks in Hallowell, ME; near the state capitol Augusta. I hopped in my car and drove the 80 miles to Hallowell to see what the fuss was all about.

I finally arrived at my destination and perused the menu. I asked a few questions of the counter girl and decided to order a dog with mustard and fried onions, a chili cheese dog with mustard, small orders of both fries and onion rings, and a large chocolate milk. My order was packed up nicely in a few styrofoam clam-shells and I headed outside to plant myself at a picnic table.

The fried onion dog was mighty tasty with a nice snap to it from the natural casing. The mustard was the typical boring yellow stuff, but the onions had a nice caramelized sweetness to them. The chili cheese dog was very good, with some of the best hot dog chili I've had. It was real chili with a nice bit of cumin and a little heat. Meat, beans, maybe some onions, in a dark red sauce. Instead of that faux cheese sauce squirted on top, there were some slices of white American cheese layered under the dog and starting to melt nicely.

What'll ya have? those are the words I heard many a time when I approached the counter at the Georgia institution of hot doggery, The Varsity Drive-In. I lived in rural, middle "Joe-Ja" out on a hidden cove on Lake Sinclair near Milledgeville for two years of grad school. Broke, working on two masters degrees at the same time, my entertainment budget was nill. Cheap eats were the norm and my roommates (two pretty gals, a blonde and a redhead) raised a lot of our own food and hunted, fished, and bartered for the rest. Every now and then we'd take a road trip and go shopping and partying in Atlanta or Athens. On the way home it was almost mandatory to make a visit to The Varsity to fortify ourselves for the long drive home.

The default choice is a chili dog, if you ask for a hot dog that's what you'll get. A frank on a soft bun with mildly interesting chili meat sauce and a streak of yellar mustard along its back. Two of those, plus an order of the fries or the fantastic onion rings, a peach fried pie for dessert (I dream of those at times), and you were good to go. To wash down your chow it is a must to have an FO, a Frosted Orange, which is a super tasty and refreshing creamy orange drink that tastes sort of like a creamsicle.

There are six locations of The Varsity. The Mother Ship, which is the worlds largest drive-in at "more than two acres and can accommodate 600 cars and over 800 people inside," serves around 10,000 people a day, double or triple that on game days at Georgia Tech, handing over "two miles of hot dogs, a ton of onions, 2500 pounds of potatoes, 5000 fried pies and 300 gallons of chili... daily."

Today for lunch I'm having a local, Maine made dog, W. A. Bean & Sons Red Hot, that I'm cooking up myself for a change. Beans meats have been made in Maine since 1860. Red dyed, natural casing dogs are big up here, but this was the first time I have seen Red Hot's. Meaty pork franks, very mildly spicy at first, then with a bit of back of the mouth heat later. I wouldn't call them very spicy, but they're pretty tasty, especially with some of my spicy onion sauce. So far they are some of the best dogs I've ever had.

For those of you who can't get Sabrett's onions for your dogs at home, or want a tastier version of the sauce, here's my recipe that I've been making since I was a teen.

Foresters Spicy Hot Dog Onion Sauce
This is a spicy version of the sauce. You can leave out some or all of the hot sauce if you like it milder, or add more for some real heat

1 large yellow or sweet onion, sliced and chopped
4 tbs of Heinz Ketchup or tomato sauce
1/4 cup of water
1-2 tbs of sugar
1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of Sriracha sauce or chili garlic paste. I like the brand with the green rooster logo best.
2 tbs of vinegar
1/4 tsp of Worchestershire sauce
1/4 tsp of salt
1/4 tsp of black pepper
1/4 tsp of oregano

Place all ingredients in a saucepan, bring to a boil and lower to a simmer and reduce until a medium thick sauce. Remove from heat and let cool. The sauce will thicken more as it cools. Serve warm on hot dogs. You can keep it in the fridge for a week.

Here's a gallery of photos of making the sauce.

I'm a big fan of Peruvian cuisine. It's considered one of the most varied in the world, with more dishes than French or any other. The reason for this is the cultural medley of Native Indians, Spanish, German, Italian, and other Europeans, African and Moors, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, and more. One dish that I first tried in a Peruvian restaurant, but is common throughout much of Central and South America is salchipapas.

Salchipapas is a relatively simple dish of cut up fried hot dogs and French fries. Simple, until you add a few condiments like chopped pickled onions, aji hot pepper sauce, etc. Then this dish becomes one of the comfort foods of the region.

Here's a gallery of photos of salchipapas.



But for some really great photos of the dish, plus recipes, visit Laylita.com where Layla, an American who spent much of her life in Ecuador, has done salchipapas proud. You won't belive how hungry you'll get or how often you'll visit her site for the great recipes, photos, and stories. If only she wasn't married...