Make Room For A Mountain Of Toppings With This Hot Dog Prep Trick

Every hot dog lover knows the score when it comes to balancing good taste with all the toppings. It's all fun and games when you're piling on the onions and sauerkraut while you're standing at the street cart, but when it comes time to lift the dog to your mouth, things can quite literally fall apart with the first bite. While it may seem like a losing battle and a big waste of napkins, there's no need to give up on hot dog toppings entirely. In fact, you can pile on as much chili, shredded cheese, or coleslaw as you want if you just do one easy prep trick: slice the dog down the middle. 

With just one easy cut, either before the dog is cooked or after, you can change the center of gravity of your hot dog to your advantage, and maybe even save a few bucks on dry cleaning your shirt. That's great news for everyone whose taste buds benefit from the United States hot dog market, which is really taking off.

Splitting a hot dog down the middle not only keeps things stable and opens up room for more toppings to nestle inside it, the extra slice will also help the meat cook faster and give it more surface area, which tastes better when it's all crisp and brown. You also won't have to worry about the dogs bursting while they're cooking, and you'll get more of an even distribution of toppings and hot dog in every bite.

Splitting a hot dog is easy; however, you need to slice it down the center without cutting it in half. This job takes a steady hand and a sharp paring knife; simply pierce the top of your knife into the hot dog about ¼ of an inch and slice it from end to end. You can do this either before or after you cook the dog, but it's best to slice before grilling or griddle cooking (the best way to cook hot dogs, in our opinion), as you can flay them open and achieve that quicker cook time. Slice them after cooking if the dog is boiled or steamed. This will help retain juiciness and shape.

If you plan to split the dogs before they're cooked, don't forget that faster cook time. Once you place it on the hot surface, let it sear on the split side for one to two minutes, or until the surface starts to look golden brown. Once you get some good caramelization, flip it onto the round side and cook it for another minute or so or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. 

For hot dogs that are already cooked, all you have to do is pop them in the bun, then use the bread as a handle to hold on to the dog as you slice it down the middle. Once you have the splitting technique down pat, pair it with a stress-free hot dog bar, and you've got summertime entertaining locked in.