Every once in a while I’ll get a craving for a hot dog and when I do I most often keep things simple, topping it with mustard, relish and not much else. But, on some occasions, when I have the time and my taste buds desire something more, I’ll go in the opposite direction.
The latter was definitely the case last week, when I came home with some jumbo beef hot dogs and a plan to flavour them Japanese in style. To make them, the hot dogs were grilled and set in buns adorned with mayonnaise that was flavoured with teriyaki sauce and wasabi paste, and a sweet-and-sour slaw, made with shredded cabbage, carrots, green onion and grated fresh ginger.
The hot dogs were then drizzled with tonkatsu sauce, a seasoned ketchup mixture, and sprinkled with roasted seeds, creating hot dogs that were umami-rich flavour bombs.
You can make the flavoured mayonnaise, slaw and tonkatsu sauce hours in advance and keep them refrigerated until needed for the hot dogs.
If you don’t care for beef hot dogs you could, of course, replace them with another type, such as pork, chicken or veggie hot dogs. Make a summer meal of the hot dogs by serving with local corn on the cob and a cool drink, such as iced green tea, beer or lemonade garnished with some summer berries.
Japanese-style Hot Dogs
Jumbo beef hot dogs are grilled and stuffed in buns, Japanese-style, with teriyaki/wasabi-flavoured mayonnaise, a sweet and tangy slaw, tonkatsu sauce and roasted sesame seeds.
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: five minutes
Makes: four hot dogs
For the teriyaki wasabi mayonnaise
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp teriyaki sauce
2 tsp wasabi paste
Combine ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
For the tonkatsu sauce
3 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp granulated sugar or honey
Combine ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
For the slaw
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp rice vinegar or cider vinegar
1 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
1 1/2 cups thinly shredded green cabbage or Napa (Chinese) cabbage
1/2 cup grated carrot
1 medium green onion, halved lengthwise, then very thinly sliced, widthwise
• salt and ground white pepper, to taste
Combine ingredients in a medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
For the hot dogs and to serve
4 jumbo beef hot dogs
4 hot dog buns, split and warmed
• roasted sesame seeds, to taste (see Note)
Preheat your barbecue or indoor grill to medium-high. Grill hot dogs, turning occasionally, until nicely coloured and heated through, about five minutes. Turn heat to low and keep hot dogs warm on the grill while you prepare the buns.
Generously spread the inside of each bun with the teriyaki wasabi mayonnaise. Set some of the slaw in each bun. Now set a hot dog in each bun. Top the hot dogs with some of the tonkatsu sauce and sesame seeds, and serve.
Note: Roasted sesame seeds are sold in jars in the Asian foods aisle of grocery stores. If you want to toast your own sesame seeds, place a single layer of regular sesame seeds in a non-stick skillet set over medium heat. Cook the seeds, swirling the pan from time to time, until lightly toasted, about three to four minutes.
Eric Akis is the author of eight cookbooks. His columns appear in the Life section Wednesday and Sunday.
