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    You Are Here Home » Entree Recipes

    Published: Jun 30, 2023 Updated: Jun 30, 2023 by Hilda Sterner | This post may contain affiliate links 4 Comments

    Authentic Chicago Style Hot Dogs

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    chicago style dog with fries and fixings

    Chicago style hot dogs are legendary! From the Vienna frankfurters and neon green relish, to the squishy steamed poppy seed buns and pickled green tomatoes, they're absolutely unique and delicious! I'll show you how to easily make authentic Chicago dogs at home!

    2 chicago style hot d dogs with fixings and a red, white, and blue dish cloth

    This 4th of July, skip the grill and make these boiled Chicago dogs instead! They are guaranteed to put a smile on the face of any hot dog fan you may know!

    Often described as "dragged through the garden," these hot dogs are loaded with goodness! What makes Chicago dogs the best hot dogs ever? It's so many things! From the boiled Vienna beef frankfurters nestled in poppy seed buns, to the bright green relish. It's mustard (NEVER ketchup), sliced tomatoes, and diced onions.

    And let's not forget the finishing touches, a pickle spear, spicy sport peppers, and a sprinkle of celery salt! Chicago style hot dogs are an edible work of art and I'm about to share all the juicy details!

    Jump to:
    • 🧐Why This Recipe Works
    • 🛒What You Need For This Recipe
    • 🔖Recipe Ingredients
    • 🔪Helpful Tools
    • 🌭How To Make Chicago Style Hot Dogs
    • 🍟Serving Suggestions
    • 🥖How to Make Poppy Seed Hot Dog Buns
    • 🤷🏻‍♀️Recipe FAQs
    • 👩🏼‍🍳Pro Tips
    • 🍔Related Recipes
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    🧐Why This Recipe Works

    • For those of us who are Chicago transplants, this recipe hits the spot whenever we're in the mood for a "Chicago dawg" but don't want to get on an airplane and head to Chicago to get one!
    • Making Chicago style hot dogs is fun, easy, and so delicious! Plan a party around it, then don't let your guests pick what they want on their hot dog, everyone gets the same 9 ingredients. Trust me, it'll be a hit! 😀
    • Once you have the fixings, you can make these hot dogs anytime you want to elevate your hot dog experience in under 30 minutes!

    🛒What You Need For This Recipe

    🔖Recipe Ingredients

    Although I usually offer ingredient substitutions, don't expect that in this recipe. After all, you're here for AUTHENTIC Chicago-style hot dogs recipe, aren't you? You will need the following 9 ingredients:

    • Hot Dog Buns: Poppy seed buns to be exact. You can make your own with plain hot dog buns, an egg, and poppy seeds (see detailed instructions in the post).
    • Hot Dogs: Vienna beef frankfurters or Hebrew National Beef Franks
    • Onion: Diced white onion
    • Relish: Neon green relish
    • Mustard: Plain yellow mustard
    • Pickles: Dill pickle spears
    • Tomatoes: Pickled tomato wedges or ripe Roma tomatoes
    • Chili Peppers: Pickled sport peppers. No, you can't substitute pepperoncini peppers!
    • Celery Salt: A dash of celery salt to top off your perfect Chicago hot dog!

    If you can't find Chicago style relish and sport peppers, you can buy them as a set here.

    🔪Helpful Tools

    • Pot with steamer basket
    • Sharp knife
    • Cutting board

    🌭How To Make Chicago Style Hot Dogs

    Step 1: Fill a 6 quart pot half way with water. Bring to a boil over high heat then turn down to low. Add hot dogs and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

    a pot of boiling water
    4 hot dogs in a pot of water
    4 hot dogs being boiled

    Step 2: Chop white onion and slice tomato into thin wedges. If using pickled green tomatoes, slice each tomato into 4 wedges.

    chopped onion on a green cutting board
    sliced tomato on a blue cutting board

    Step 3: During the last 5 minutes of cooking time, line the steamer basket with a paper towel and top with hot dog buns. Place steamer basket over hot dogs and cover with the lid. Steam for 3 to 5 minutes or until buns are soft and squishy.

    2 buns in a steamer basket over a paper towel
    hot dog buns being steamed in a pot

    Pro Tip: Another option is to steam the buns in the microwave. Add a damp paper towel with the hot dog buns in the bag and microwave them in the unsealed bag for 30 to 60 seconds.

    🍽 How to Assemble Chicago Style Hot Dogs

    Step 4: Add one hot dog in each hot dog bun and top with diced onion, relish, mustard, pickled green tomato wedges or ripe tomato slices, 1 dill pickle spear, and 3 sport peppers. Sprinkle with a dash of celery salt.

    2 Chicago style hot dogs on a wooden cutting board
    2 chicago style hot dogs with tomatoes and peppers on a wooden cutting
    sprinkling celery salt on 2 chicago style dogs
    2 chicago style hot dogs on a wooden cutting board

    🍟Serving Suggestions

    Chicago style hot dogs are always served with a generous helping of either crinkle fries or hand cut fries.

    Yes, you may dip your french fries in ketchup, but don't even think about adding it to your Chicago style hot dog! I got my eyes on you! 👀

    chicago dog on a blue paper plate with fries and fixings

    🥖How to Make Poppy Seed Hot Dog Buns

    If you can't find poppy seed buns, don't worry, they're really easy to make! Just follow the instructions below to make DIY poppy seed buns.

    Step 1: Place plain hot dog buns on a baking sheet. Next, brush the tops with an egg wash made with one egg whisked with one tablespoons of water. Finally, sprinkle with poppy seeds and bake in a preheated 325°F oven for 5 minutes.

    hot dog buns being brushed with egg wash
    poppy seed buns on a tray
    poppy seed buns in the oven
    homemade poppy seed buns on a rack

    Pro Tip: Steam poppy seed buns before filling with hot dogs and adding the toppings!

    chicago dogs with diced onion, relish, mustard, and tomatoes

    🤷🏻‍♀️Recipe FAQs

    What makes a Chicago hot dog different?

    What makes a Chicago hot dog unique is the unique blend of ingredients, 9 to be exact! Every Chicago dog includes poppy seed buns, all beef (kosher) hot dogs, neon green relish, diced onion, mustard, tomato wedges, dill pickle spear, pickled sport peppers, and a sprinkling of celery salt!

    What are the rules for Chicago style hot dogs?

    There are just a few rules you need to follow to make an authentic Chicago style hot dog. A poppy seed bun, beef franks, celery salt, sport peppers, lots of mustard, and absolutely NO KETCHUP!

    What brand of hot dog is used in a Chicago dog?

    The most popular Chicago hot dog brand is Vienna all beef frankfurters. If you can't find them locally, Hebrew National hot dogs are a great substitute.

    How many carbs are in a Chicago style hot dog?

    There are approximately 278 calories in one Chicago style hot dog and 31 grams of carbs. This does not include the fries or any other sides but does include the typical Chicago dog toppings!

    👩🏼‍🍳Pro Tips

    • Serve your Chicago dogs in these adorable baskets lined with red and white checkered paper for the full restaurant experience!
    • Chicago style dogs are best fresh, so I don't recommend making them ahead of time or storing them as leftovers.
    • If you can't round up all the ingredients, you can purchase a hot dog kit with almost everything you need at TasteofChicago.com!

    If you're ever in Chicago, be sure to plan a trip to Superdawg for the full Chicago style hot dog experience. They're my personal favorite!

    superdag characters on the superdawg restaurant
    superdawg in a blue box with a drink next to it
    superdawg hot dog and fries

    A few other popular restaurants and hot dog stands that Chicagoans frequent include Wiener's Circle (where verbal abuse and insults come with every hot dog), Wolfy's, Gene & Jude's, Poochie's Hot Dogs, and Portillo's!

    Chicago dog with fries and fixings on a red and white checkered napkin

    🍔Related Recipes

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      Juicy Smoked Burgers
    • chopped cheese sandwich sliced in two
      The Ultimate Chopped Cheese Sandwich
    • Reuben Sandwiches
      Reuben Sandwich Recipe on sourdough
    • tri tip sandwiches featured image
      Tri-Tip Sandwiches with Caramelized Onions

    Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.

    Stay in touch with me through social media @ Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, and Facebook. Don't forget to tag me when you try one of my recipes!

    📖 Recipe

    2 chicago style hot dogs with fixings

    Authentic Chicago Style Hot Dogs

    If you've never had a Chicago style hot dog, you're in for a treat! Learn how to make authentic Chicago dogs at home in under 30 minutes!
    5 from 46 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: dinner, entree, lunch
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Servings: 4 servings
    Calories: 278kcal
    Author: Hilda Sterner

    Ingredients

    • 4 hot dogs
    • 4 poppy seed hot dog buns
    • ¼ cup diced white onion
    • ¼ cup yellow mustard
    • ¼ cup sweet pickle relish
    • 12 sport peppers
    • 4 dill pickle spears
    • 1 medium Roma tomato (or 8 green tomato wedges)

    Instructions

    • Fill a 6 quart pot half way with water. Bring to a boil over high heat then turn down to low. Add hot dogs and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.
    • Finely chop white onion and slice tomatoes into thin wedges. If using pickled green tomatoes, slice each tomato into 4 wedges.
    • During the last 5 minutes of cooking the hot dogs, line the steamer basket with a paper towel and add hot dog buns. Place steamer basket over hot dogs and cover with the lid. Steam for 3 to 5 minutes or until buns are soft and squishy.

    Assembly Instructions

    • Add one hot dog in each hot dog bun and top with diced onion, relish, mustard, pickled green tomato wedges or ripe tomato slices, 1 dill pickle spear, and 3 sport peppers. Sprinkle with a dash of celery salt.

    Notes

    • Another option is to steam the buns in the microwave. Add a damp paper towel with the hot dog buns in the bag and microwave them in the unsealed bag for 30 to 60 seconds.
    • Serve your Chicago dogs in these adorable baskets lined with red and white checkered paper for the full restaurant experience!
      Chicago style dogs are best fresh, so I don't recommend making them ahead of time or storing them as leftovers.
    • Check out the post to learn how to make poppy seed buns with plain buns, an egg wash, and poppy seeds!
    • If you can't round up all the ingredients, you can purchase a hot dog kit with almost everything you need at TasteofChicago.com!

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1hot dog | Calories: 278kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 1071mg | Potassium: 151mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 479IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 84mg | Iron: 3mg
    Tried this Recipe? Please leave A Star Rating!Mention @HildasKitchenBlog or tag #HildasKitchenBlog!

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    Comments

    1. jc says

      August 24, 2023 at 2:20 pm

      5 stars
      Catsup is perfectly ok. Modern Waahoo's try to make a thing about no catsup. They are fibbing.

      Reply
      • Hilda Sterner says

        August 24, 2023 at 8:52 pm

        JC, C'mon now, you don't sound like a Chicagoan, haha!

        Reply
    2. Terry Smith says

      July 05, 2023 at 8:07 pm

      Just made your wonderful dogs for dinner tonight. I didn’t have poppyseed buns so I topped them myself with egg white and poppyseeds and put them in the oven for a few minutes to warm.
      Loved your idea and served it with potato salad. Thanks Terry

      Reply
      • Hilda Sterner says

        July 05, 2023 at 8:36 pm

        Hey Terry, So happy that you guys enjoyed the Chicago dogs, thank you for coming back and letting me know your thoughts!

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Hilda! I'm the creator of Hilda's Kitchen Blog, author of Mom's Authentic Assyrian Recipes, and a recipe contributor to Brian Baumgartner's Seriously Good Chili Cookbook (AKA Kevin Malone, from The Office).

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