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Illinois Chicago Dog

Illinois is the next state up in our state food series – and we have The Chicago Dog! And there were certainly some good choices, Chicago deep dish pizza being the one mentioned most. But my husband was born and raised in Chicago – and he says Illnois is all about the Chicago dog!

chicago dog feature

Putting together the Chicago Dog:

In an effort to be authentic I did some research. First – cooking the dog. It seems the most popular ways to prepare the dog is steamed or water-simmered, although some vendors grill. Dennis (my husband), said boiled. Only boiled (I assumed he meant water-simmered). So, in the water they went.

boiling hot dogs

The next thing that makes this dog stand out is the poppy seed bun. Sorry – I bought the wrong bun. Dennis said it’s OK. It doesn’t really effect the flavor. Warm that bun up and drop in a dog.

The condiments are important. Very important I’m told. And of course, it’s the condiments that make it a Chicago dog.

condiments for hot dogs

The Food Network stated that there is no tomato and absolutely no ketchup. Dennis said that is half right. You MUST have tomato (I cut cherry tomatoes in half, but I was told beefsteak slices are better. OK dear. You head on over to farmer’s market and see if you can find them). Top that dog with pickle wedges, tomato slices sport peppers, sweet pickle relish, white onions and ballpark mustard (the yellow stuff). Finish it all off with a sprinkling of celery salt (a very necessary ingredient).

About those peppers. There really is no other pepper that tastes quite like sport peppers. It’s almost a cross between a pickled jalapeño and a pepperoncini. I bought the real deal on Amazon and I’m glad I did. I love this little pops of flavor!

So move on over deep-dish Chicago style pizza – you’ve been replaced with the Chicago dog!

chicago style hot dogs

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chicago style hot dogs
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Chicago Style Hot Dogs

An iconic sandwich that was born in the state of Illinois - and very specific on the toppings.

Course: Main Course, sandwich
Cuisine: Chicago, Illinois
Keyword: hot dogs, mustard, onion, pickle relish, sport peppers, tomatoes
Servings: 8 dogs
Author: HelenFern
Ingredients
  • 8 all beef, bun length hot dogs
  • 8 poppy seed hot dog buns (or just regular)
  • 1 - 2 large, sliced tomatoes
  • 16 pickle spears
  • 16 sport pepperes
  • 1/2 cup chopped onions
  • Sweet pickle relish
  • yellow, ballpark mustard
  • celery salt
Instructions
  1. Bring a pan of water to boil. Lower the hot dogs into the water then reduce to warm and simmer for about 10 minutes.

  2. Warm the buns in the oven until they are just lightly softened.

  3. Top each bun with one dog, 2 pickle spears, 2 sport peppers, tomatoes, onions, relish and mustard.

  4. Top the whole thing off with a sprinkling of celery salt.

  5. Take a bite and enjoy!

chicago hot dogs

Here are some things that are perfect to use for this recipe!

Disclosure: The items below are affiliate links through Amazon.com. If you purchase any of these products through the links, I receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support!