Classic Coney Island Hot Dog

The classic coney island hot dog is a snappy hot dog with a beanless chili sauce and onions. We serve ours with a homemade cheese sauce.

When I think of the boardwalk or the State Fair, I always imagine biting into a snappy hot dog covered in chili sauce and onions. Of course, it’s dripping down my chin with the first big bite. OK – pinch me and wake me up so I can tell you about this game-day favorite hot dog and stop daydreaming.

You might be wondering what I mean by a snappy hot dog? It’s a hot dog that has a good snap to the outer casing when you bite into it. Because the classic coney island hot dog is covered in the deep delicious chili sauce, you have to have a hot dog that will stand up to it and give it that perfect snap.

You can’t have a classic coney island hot dog unless it’s drowning in a deep, read, meat-only chili sauce. In fact, you might even catch yourself eating it right out of the skillet while it simmers. I know this for a fact because I caught my son eating it out of the pan when I stepped away from the oven. Now that’s a testimonial that I’ll take any day.

I also made a classic cheddar cheese sauce because you can’t have a chili cheese dog without cheese and a classic coney island hot dog is a chili cheese dog. There is a method to how you build the ingredients on this Classic Coney Island Hot Dog…your start with a top split bun which is untraditional bun but I find that it works better to hold all of the ingredients. It also lets you really load the hot dog full of the good stuff.

After the bun, add the grilled hot dog. Next layer with a good heaping of the cheese sauce followed by an equally large heaping of the chili. Top it with diced onions and pickled jalapeno. And there you have it – a fantastic hot dog that puts a smile on everyone’s face.

Here’s my latest video:

Classic Coney Island Hot Dog

★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

The classic coney island hot dog is a snappy hot dog with a beanless chili sauce and onions. It’s a classic boardwalk tradition. 

• Author: krazykitchenmom
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 35 minutes
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 8-10 servings 1x
• Category: Sandwich
• Method: Stove-top
• Cuisine: All American

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

For the Chili:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 onion – diced
• 3/4 cup ketchup
• 2 TBS brown sugar
• 2 TBS apple cider vinegar
• 2–4 TBS chili powder (depending on how hot you like your chili; you can always start with 2 and add more after tasting the final product).
• 2 TBS yellow mustard
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper

For the Cheese Sauce:

• 8-ounces of shredded medium cheddar cheese
• 1 cup half-n-half
• 1 TBS cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

For the Hot Dog:

• 8–10 premium hot dogs
• 8–10 hot dog buns (I use top-sliced buns)
• 30 slices of pickled jalapenos

Instructions

1. In a large pot, brown the ground beef (strain off any grease).
2. Add three-quarters of the diced onion and cook for 5 minutes. (The remaining onion is for the topping.)
3. Add all of the remaining ingredients.
4.  Reduce the mixture to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

For the Cheese Sauce:

1. Add mild to a stove-top pan and warm on medium heat.
2. Whisk in the cornstarch.
3. Add 4-ounces of the cheese and whisk until it melts.
4. Add the remaining 4-ounces of cheese and continue to whisk until fully melted

For the hot dogs

1. Boil or grill the hot dog.
2. Gill the buns – just until they start to crisp.
3. Add the hot dog to the bun.
4. Top the hot dog with cheese sauce, the chili, diced onions, and pickled jalapenos