A good barbecue at my house typically consists of sausage, steaks, and chicken, but you certainly can’t go wrong with the classic hamburger and hot dog duo. Typically associated with America’s favorite pastime, hot dogs are a crowd favorite at barbecues, despite the fact that few people know what’s actually in a hot dog. According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, approximately 20 billion hot dogs are consumed by Americans every year, which breaks down to an insane 70 hot dogs per person.
I know hamburgers tend to steal the spotlight, but I’m declaring it the summer for one-of-a-kind hot dogs. Customize your dogs with these unique hot dog toppings, and prepare yourself for the best barbecue of the summer.
1. Cheese, cheese, cheese
For starters, cheese makes absolutely everything better. To one up that, melted cheese makes everything an entire world better. You can even ditch the basic hot dog style by turning it into a grilled cheese dog.
2. Ranch Dressing, Potato Chips, and Slaw
Most foods can be enhanced by ranch, and hot dogs are no exception. Ranch dressing has officially joined the world of condiments, and I’m totally on board with this. The creamy ranch will perfectly coat the hot dog, and the potato chips and slaw will add a great salty crunch.
3. Pickles, Tomatoes, Onions, and Mustard
Welcome to Chicago, the city of the deep dish pizza, cheese and caramel popcorn, and the Chicago dog. If you can make it out to Chicago, visiting the Guaranteed Rate Field (home of the White Sox) is a must, even if just for the wide variety of food.
4. Caramelized Onions
Channel the Alaska Dog by topping a caribou dog with some Coca Cola caramelized onions. Or you can get in the spirit of America and baseball by using some beer. Let the hot dogs soak and cook with the onions for even more flavor.
5. Bacon-wrapped
This is the ultimate meat-lovers dog. Bacon imparts its delicious flavor to most of any food, but it adds a particular smokiness to hot dogs on the grill.
6. Mac and Cheese and Bacon
Disney parks know what’s up with the mac and cheese dog. I love mac and cheese with sausage mixed in, and this creation is simply the portable, messier version. Let this fun hot dog topping take you back to your childhood.
7. Popcorn
Dorothy, we’re back in Kansas. To make this Kansas-inspired hot dog, throw some popcorn on top of your dog and enjoy. It’ll add some saltiness and much needed crunch, and I imagine you can use just about any type of popcorn – cheese, salted, or buttered all sounds good.
8. Baked Beans
Now we’re talking REAL barbecue. You can never put too much barbecue sauce in your baked beans, especially you’re using them as a hot dog topping. If you’re interested in going the extra mile and preparing it on your own, go for this classic southern baked beans recipe.
9. Sweet Relish
This is a more classic hot dog topping, but I still don’t know many people who jump on it. Hot dog relish is a pickled condiment that’s usually a combination of sweet pickle relish made from cucumbers and yellow mustard. Consider it a two-in-one shortcut for two typical hot dog toppings.
10. Frito Pie
Throw on chili, cheese, and Frito chips, and you’ve got yourself a Frito pie on a hot dog. It’s messy with the overload of chili and melted cheese, but the Frito chips add the perfect crispiness to go against everything else.
11. Mushrooms
I’m a big mushroom girl, so pretty much anything can be improved with some sautéed mushrooms. They’re the perfect amount of sweet and juicy. And you can even explore the different kinds of mushrooms for differences in flavors and experience.
12. Easy Cheese
I know I shouldn’t like cheese that comes from a can—or at least I shouldn’t admit it—but here I am doing it. I see why and how this would be delicious. Don’t knock it until you try it.
13. Chili and Jalapeños
Who doesn’t love a spicy chili? These brings up memories of baseball games with the family when I was younger. If you like a lot of heat, add extra jalapeños on top of your hot dog.
14. Ketchup and Mayo
You could use the technique from the picture, or you could make pink sauce (a mixture of ketchup and mayo). This condiment is the main ingredient in most burger joints’ “secret” sauces. Don’t tell anyone.
15. Cream Cheese and Sriracha
This is Washington state’s genius invention. A good compromise between spicy and sweet, it’s a trendy, “with the times” hot dog. So cultured, so flower crown ready.
I’ll warn my family and friends to be expect multiple rounds of taste tests at our first few summer cookouts so we can narrow down the true champion hot dog topping. But until then, I’m cool with just sticking to ketchup on my hot dogs to tide me over.