Chicago-style hot dog

About 3 pages (822 words)

Questions on this topic? Just ask!

Maurie and Flaurie atop Superdawg in Chicago, Illinois.

A Chicago-style hot dog (sometimes referred to as a "Chicago Dog") is a steamed or boiled all-beef, natural-casing hot dog on a poppy seed bun which is thought to have originated in the U.S. city of Chicago, Illinois and its surrounding suburbs. The hot dog is topped with mustard, onion, sweet pickle relish (usually neon green), a dill pickle spear, tomato slices or wedges, sport peppers, and a dash of celery salt; but never ketchup^[1]^[2]^[3]. It is taboo to put ketchup on a Chicago hot dog; there are actually some hot dog shops and stands that will refuse to provide service if the customer makes the request.

1 History and more detailed information
2 In popular culture
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

History and more detailed information

The origin of the Chicago-style dog is a matter of debate, but they were served at 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago ^[4]. Chicago-style hot dogs are boiled or steamed to a temperature above 170 degrees Fahrenheit (~77 degrees Celsius) before adding the toppings ^[3]. They can also be grilled, though these are referred to as "chardogs". The natural casing of the hot dogs provide a distinctive "snap" when bitten ^[2] The most common dog weighs 1/8 lb. and is made by Vienna Beef, although some vendors in Chicago use other brands. Chicago-style hot dogs with all the toppings are sometimes called "dragged through the garden" because of the unique combination of condiments. Banana peppers are sometimes offered as an alternative to sport peppers. At Hot Doug's, a unique "sausage emporium" in Chicago, they offer grilled onions or raw onions. Some Chicago restaurants choose to associate publicity solely with the hot dog, even though they serve many other items, including the Maxwell Street Polish, gyros, Italian beef, and pork chop sandwiches. The Chicago-style hot dog is ubiquitous, so publicity gimmicks are often needed to attract customers to a restaurant. One of these gimmicks is Superdawg's two giant hot dogs (Maurie and Flaurie) on the roof of the building. Henry Davis (1904-1974), a one time VP of sales, was instrumental in making Vienna Beef the Chicago Hot Dog. Henry was honored by Vienna Beef, the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois for his contributions in helping create Chicago's independent Hot Dog stands. There is a permanent collection of documents, photos and memorabilia in the Chicago Historical Society Archives called the "Henry Davis Collection" and was inaugurated in 1989. In Chicago, there are more Hot Dog joints than there are McDonalds, Wendys, and Burger Kings combined ^[4]

In popular culture

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

On an episode ("Nighthawks") of the television show Dead Like Me, Rube, the character played by Mandy Patinkin, describes in detail a Chicago-style hot dog. He contrasts it with a New York-style hot dog in an effort to illustrate how death in Chicago is different than death in any other place.
In an episode ("Brennan") of the show Matlock, Ben is told how to make a Chicago-style hot dog, which he proclaims is the best hot dog he has ever eaten.
In an episode of The Bernie Mac Show, Bernie and his family took a trip to Chicago and consumed Chicago-style hot dogs at Bernie's request. Bernie enjoyed his, but the rest of the family became ill. Later, Bernie became sick as well.

References

^ Leroux, Charles. "Chicago hot dogs", Chicago Tribune, Tribune Co, 2005-08-30. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.
^ ^a ^b Smith, Kathie. "Chicago's food history", Toledo Blade, Block Communications, 2007-05-01. Retrieved on 2007-05-01.
^ ^a ^b Fluky's. HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN "CHICAGO STYLE HOT DOGS". Retrieved on April 28, 2007.
^ ^a ^b Weller, Sam [March 2000] (August 2002). "Secret Hot Dogs", Secret Chicago, Photographs by Linda Rutenberg, 2nd editition, Toronto: ECW Press, 113-116. ISBN 155022493X. “two young immigrants from Austria-Hungary toted their secret frankfurter recipe to World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago....Today, the Vienna all-beef hot dog recipe is served up by 2,000 vendors across the city....In fact, there are more Vienna Beef hot dog vendors in the city than there are Burger King, Wendy's , and McDonald's outlets combined.”