When foodie meets country-cooking: the Essential-Summer-Hotdog-Recipe
“You look like the 4th of July! Makes me want a hotdog real bad.” –Legally Blonde
And no one knows hotdogs like my home state, West Virginia.
We serve ‘em up crisp topped with homemade sauce, tangy coleslaw, and minced onion. This sauce and topping combo is so unique to our state, you literally cannot find it anywhere else. And the utter fact I’m sharing this recipe on the internet, may make my fellow Mountaineers question my loyalty to our state. 😂
If you are grilling this Independence Day, save this recipe and impress all your friends. It’s foodie meets country-cooking; your taste buds are gonna light up (like the 4th of July 💥 ). And I guarantee you will be booking your next Independence Day trip to the Mountain State.
West Virginia Dogs with Roasted Corn
Ingredients
WV Hotdogs with Sauce:
- 1 pound ground beef, extra lean 90%
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
- 1 jar dried onion flakes 2.35 oz// found in spices section of the store
- 1 15 oz can tomato Sauce (plain)
- 1 6 oz can tomato Paste
- 1 tsp chili Powder
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 tsp salt
- Hotdogs
- Hotdog Buns
- Coleslaw, for topping
- Minced Onion, for topping
Roasted Corn:
- Fresh corn on the cob
- 1 slab Butter, per ear of corn
- 1 pinch Kosher Salt, per ear of corn
Instructions
Hotdog Sauce
- Gather your ingredients for the Hotdog Sauce.
- Add the ground beef, ketchup, chopped onion, onion flakes, tomato sauce and paste, chili powder, and salt into a large pot. I use my 6 quart cast-iron dutch oven. A crockpot can be used for (an easier, forget it) slow-cooker method too!
- Create a slurry with cornstarch and water. I mix the two thoroughly in a pyrex measuring cup.
- Add the cornstarch slurry to the pot.
- Give all the ingredients a big stir, breaking up the ground beef. Begin to simmer the pot on low heat. If using a slow-cooker, cook on low heat, as well.
- Continue to simmer the hotdog sauce for 1-2 hours, stirring frequently. The longer you let it simmer, the more flavorful your sauce. Do not allow the sauce to scorch/burn. The sauce is done when the onions are translucent and the ground beef is cooked through. (Crockpot cooktime is 4-6 hours on low.)
- Serve the sauce warm on top of your favorite hotdogs with coleslaw and minced onion. We love Nathan's Famous hotdogs with Heiner's buns for local specific choices!
Oven-Method Hotdogs
- If grilling isn't an option, use this method for the best crisp dogs. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Grab a sheet pan and line it with foil. My favorites are the USA Pan brand. (Buy them once for life!)
- Place hotdogs in a single layer on foil. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until desired doneness. Turn the dogs a couple times during your baketime, for even browning.
- When done, remove the hotdogs from the sheetpan and place them on a paper-towel lined plate. I do this to try to absorb a little extra grease…but now may not be the time to be health-conscienous. haha
- Now put those dogs on a warm bun and top with plenty of sauce, coleslaw, and minced onion. I am literally salivating right now, at just the thought.
Roasted Corn
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Shuck and wash your corn on the cob.
- Create a foil packet for each ear of corn by cutting a sheet of foil per ear. Layer the ear of corn with one slab of butter and one pinch of salt.
- Fold the foil to make a packet, enclosing the ends. Make a single layer of packets on a large baking sheet.
- Bake for 25-35 minutes or until done, flipping once halfway through. Corn is done when you can "smell it." Is that too "old-timey" of a descriptor? Try it though… if you can smell the sweetness of the corn, it's ready to eat. Bake it a little longer if you wish to brown and char the kernels a bit.
- This corn recipe works just as easily on the grill if you have room!
Notes
Let’s celebrate America like the people of the Mountain state, one bite at a time.
And when everyone asks how you made such an amazing dog, answer back: “What, like it’s hard?” (Also, from Legally Blonde 😂 …Totally unrelated, but man, that was a good movie 👱♀️💕)
Feel free to save images for later on Pinterest, and follow me on Instagram and Facebook! Happy Fourth of July! xoxo
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Ohhh yum, don’t mind if I do! This reminded me that I wanted to have hot dogs this weekend -perfect, thank you!
Love the Legally Blonde quotes such a good movie! I live up in New England so I’ve never heard of this hot dog topping before. I think my family would love it! Also thank you for sharing how to cook corn and hot dogs in the oven…super simple and a great option. Never used the oven before always boiled or on the grill.
Not gonna lie! I don’t eat hot dogs often, but this looks delicious! So summery and fun!