# The Great Hot Dog Debate **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 4, 2008, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331 "2008-07-04T23:34:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![LilGypsyGirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/54ee81/32.png) [@LilGypsyGirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LilGypsyGirl)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/1 "2008-07-04T23:34:32Z")
Attending a family BBQ today is the inspiration for this thread. Let me give you all some quick background: **Me:** NYC born and raised, moved to Orlando a year ago. **GypsyBoy:** Jacksonville, FL born and raised. The issue: **GypsyBoy** and the rest of my future in-laws are horrified that I use mustard on my hot dog pretty much exclusively. I am horrified that **GypsyBoy** and the rest of the GB clan uses ketchup on hotdogs pretty much exclusively. To me, ketchup is for kids. And eventually kids will evolve to mustard, in my experience. Also, there is the addidtion of COLE SLAW to the top of GB’s hotdog. \*\*COLE SLAW!! \*\* :eek: What the fresh hell is THAT??? I have never seen such a thing, EVER. I was repulsed, horrified, and intrigued all at the same time. Not quite intrigued enough to TRY it, but curious nonetheless. I \*will \* concede to chili, with our without cheese, on a hot dog, but I had never had that until I met my future hubby. For the whole of my life, I have been a mustard/sauerkraut or mustard/out-of-the-cart onions girl. So I ask you all: (1) Is the Mustard v. Ketchup a regional thing? and (2) What’s with the COLE SLAW? Seriously? :dubious: What say you, Dopers? Am I being a hot dog snob? Hope you all enjoyed your Fourth! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/2 "2008-07-04T23:36:44Z")
I’m the rare one who doesn’t like either condiment on hot dogs. If I had to pick one, it would be mustard. Spicy mustard. Not that yellow garbage. I’m from Ohio My partner is from Northern Arizona. He uses ketchup. On hot dogs. Gross! ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/3 "2008-07-04T23:39:23Z")
Ketchup is what got Lucifer ejected from Paradise in the first place. God was having a cookout, all the angels were there drinking beer and playing Frisbee, and then Luci blew it for everybody by asking for ketchup on his dog. The rest is History. As for slaw, I’m open of regional variation. I personally go with mustard, relish and onions, but I’ve had slaw dogs, and they were not bad. I’ve even enjoyed dogs with bacon, BBQ sauce and cheese. But the Ketchup Heresy is the deal breaker. ---
**Author:** ![LilGypsyGirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/54ee81/32.png) [@LilGypsyGirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LilGypsyGirl)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/4 "2008-07-04T23:42:35Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] Ketchup is what got Lucifer ejected from Paradise in the first place. God was having a cookout, all the angels were there drinking beer and playing Frisbee, and then Luci blew it for everybody by asking for ketchup on his dog. The rest is History. As for slaw, I’m open of regional variation. I personally go with mustard, relish and onions, but I’ve had slaw dogs, and they were not bad. I’ve even enjoyed dogs with bacon, BBQ sauce and cheese. But the Ketchup Heresy is the deal breaker. [/QUOTE] HAHA! I’ve already threatened to call off the wedding due to the boy’s condiment-palsy. He agreed to TRY mustard on our next hot dog meal. I still will not even LOOK at the ketchup! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/5 "2008-07-04T23:43:53Z")
[QUOTE=dalej42] I’m the rare one who doesn’t like either condiment on hot dogs. If I had to pick one, it would be mustard. Spicy mustard. [/QUOTE] Same here. If I put a condiment on hot dogs, it is exclusively Inglehoffer stone ground mustard. Ketchup is an abomination. I can see a kid putting ketchup on a hot dog but if they fail to grow out of it they’re cut out of the will. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/6 "2008-07-04T23:48:36Z")
Ketchup _is_ kid’s food. The only acceptable use of ketchup for an adult is with fried potatoes, and even that is dicey. It’s the equivalent of drinking an alcoholic beverage with a marachino cherry in it. Cole slaw and meat is a working combination, as odd as it may sound to people who haven’t had it before. Cole slaw isn’t all that different from sauerkraut when you get right down to it. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/7 "2008-07-04T23:50:36Z")
I like spicy mustard. . . and coleslaw. These are just personal tastes; they don’t mean anything. We can pretend they do, though, if it makes for a more enjoyable thread. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/8 "2008-07-04T23:51:12Z")
[The Master speaks.](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_095.html) ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/9 "2008-07-04T23:53:00Z")
Yeah, slaw is a southern variation, I think. Chicagoans put a whole freakin salad bar on theirs. I can’t fathom cole slaw and ketchup, though, that’s just…ugh. Ketchup is for kids, definitely. I have had a slaw dog with bbq sauce, and it was pretty good, though. Please note that although I mentioned ketchup and bbq sauce in the same paragraph, these two things shouldn’t be anything alike. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/10 "2008-07-05T00:03:18Z")
An appropriately made hot dog is one that has whatever YOU personally want on it. Anyone who says otherwise needs to get a grip. It’s just a hot dog, for Christ’s sake. A good host makes a lot of condiments available, because the cool thing about hot dogs is that everyone likes theirs a little different. ---
**Author:** ![3acresandatruck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/e79b87/32.png) [@3acresandatruck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3acresandatruck)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/11 "2008-07-05T00:06:05Z")
As long as I can have my hot dog my way, I couldn’t care less what other people put on theirs. I’ll admit that ketchup is \*not \*one of the ways I like hot dogs. But I like’em Chicago-style - or at least I liked the hot dogs I made following the formula they had on some PBS hot dog program. At first I thought it looked like a wierd way to do up a hot dog, but it was _good_. I like chili dogs. It has to be my homemade chili, and I sprinkle them with diced onions. Some people like shredded cheese, too, but I’ll just have extra onions, thank you. And I like hot dogs with sauerkraut and horseradish mustard. Now, what hot dogs do you get, and how do you cook them? I usually get Hebrew National; I’ll boil them or grill them over charcoal. ---
**Author:** ![Southern\_Yankee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/southern_yankee/32/2800_2.png) [@Southern\_Yankee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Southern_Yankee)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/12 "2008-07-05T00:09:47Z")
Mustard and BBQ onions (NYC street cart variety) are my toppings of choice. Chili sauce, mustard and chopped raw onions (a Texas Wiener, in Jersey-speak) are acceptable too. Down here in NC, slaw is common, but with mustard, not ketchup. KETCHUP on a hot dog?? Blech. ---
**Author:** ![LilGypsyGirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/54ee81/32.png) [@LilGypsyGirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LilGypsyGirl)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/13 "2008-07-05T00:22:05Z")
According to GypsyBoy, the cole slaw is a “southern thing,” so he wasn’t particularly shocked when I said I had never seen it before. with him being originally born and gred down here, I conceded. whether that;s correct or not, I am not sure. And in his defense, he didn’t put slaw AND ketchup on the hotdog - that was my bad sentence structure, sorry. He ate two with ketchup and one with slaw only. Not that that makes the ketchup thing any better, just adding clarification. 😃 Oh, and I buy Sabbrett’s (with skin - for that “snap” when you bite into it) hot dogs. I either grill 'em or dirty water them like the guys on the corners back home in NYC. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/14 "2008-07-05T00:33:29Z")
[QUOTE=RickJay] An appropriately made hot dog is one that has whatever YOU personally want on it. Anyone who says otherwise needs to get a grip. It’s just a hot dog, for Christ’s sake. [/QUOTE] Indeed. All this pretentious snobbery over a tube full of ground-up lips, feet and assholes. Sheesh. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/15 "2008-07-05T00:36:32Z")
[QUOTE=RickJay] An appropriately made hot dog is one that has whatever YOU personally want on it. Anyone who says otherwise needs to get a grip. It’s just a hot dog, for Christ’s sake. A good host makes a lot of condiments available, because the cool thing about hot dogs is that everyone likes theirs a little different. [/QUOTE] Clearly an American Leaguer. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/16 "2008-07-05T00:39:26Z")
Moved from IMHO to CS. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/17 "2008-07-05T00:43:01Z")
[QUOTE=Lamar Mundane] Cole slaw isn’t all that different from sauerkraut when you get right down to it. [/QUOTE] You say that like it’s a good thing. 😕 😃 ---
**Author:** ![LilGypsyGirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/54ee81/32.png) [@LilGypsyGirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LilGypsyGirl)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/18 "2008-07-05T00:48:52Z")
Oops. ☹ Sorry, **Frank**. Assumed since it was a thread looking for opinions, well…you get the idea. I will post more carefully from now on. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/19 "2008-07-05T00:49:42Z")
I don’t get the virulent anti-ketchup stance that a lot of people seem to have. I like both mustard and ketchup on the thing. Limited to one, I’d choose mustard. Cole slaw is horrifying, hot dog or no. Same for kraut, but I know lots of people love it. ETA : Born and raised in Trenton, NJ. Joe ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331/20 "2008-07-05T00:53:59Z")
[QUOTE=LilGypsyGirl] I will post more carefully from now on. 😃 [/QUOTE] Oh, heavens, it’s no big deal. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-hot-dog-debate/455331.md?page=2)