Coney Island Chili Dogs

To please my pregnant wife (and myself), I wanted to make some dynamite chili dogs per her request.

I made my own hotdog buns and chili to make it so.

This chili is really easy and I found it interesting when researching what to make, that a lot of famous hotdog joints actually use canned chili (à la Hormel) and doctor it up! I couldn't believe it since making your own is so easy. Maybe it's just cheaper. Regardless, I wanted to make my own to see if there was any difference between just using Hormel.

I also found it interesting that Coney Island Dogs really have no connection with Coney Island, NY as they were invented in Michigan! They're very popular throughout the midwest and I love them.

Let's cook!

Coney Island Chili Dogs (from here)

Chili

10 oz ground beef

1/2 large onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard

1 tablespoon dried, minced onion

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon celery salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1, 8 oz can tomato sauce

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 cup water

Dogs

Hot dogs (we like Hebrew National, but any variety will do fine)

Fresh diced onion (yellow for mild, white for the burn or Vidalia for the sweetness)

Shredded cheese is optional but delicious 

==

Start the chili by browning your 10 oz of beef in a sauce pan over medium/high heat.

Add the 1/2 diced onion when it's halfway browned.

Add the 2 cloves of minced garlic at the end and give it a quick stir, cooking until fragrant.

Add the following:

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard

1 tablespoon dried, minced onion

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon celery salt (which I think is CRUCIAL to the flavor of this chili dog sauce)

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Give it a quick stir.

Next, add the 8 oz can of tomato sauce, 1 tablespoon tomato paste and 1 cup of water.

Give everything a good stir and simmer for about 30 minutes over med/low heat, uncovered.

I got the nag that I wanted it to be more smooth, as the beef/onion mix was chunky. I'd eat this chili with a spoon, but for dogs, I'd rather it smoother. 

So I decided to pulse it in the food processor.

Throw it in the bowl. Be careful as it's really hot.

Pulse 5-10 times, checking for consistency as you go.

When it looks more uniform, pour it back in the pot.

I let this go for about an hour, but it was totally edible after 20 minutes or so.

I actually added a teaspoon of cornstarch to tighten it up a bit at the end.

Delicious

==

Cook up your dogs however you like. Pan-fry, boil, nuke, grill. Whatever.

Load up your dogs and devour.

I found the chili perfect. When I think of chili dogs, this is the chili I think of. It's different than the canned stuff in the best way. It tastes homemade and delicious.

The buns added a level of awesomeness that I didn't think possible. They were a little more dense than store-bought and had a more "yeasty" flavor that went very well with the chili and dogs.

You'll have onion breath after this meal, but it's totally worth it.

Enjoy!