Plump or shriveled???

When I saw the picture of the dog for today's RF feature, I thought YUCK. The dog from Botsford Drive-in in Newtown, CT is on a nice bun with nice fixin's, but the dog itself looks like a shriveled leftover. I'd have sent it back, and maybe that would be a mistake. To be featured here, Botsfords has to be great, so what am I missing? Have I just been brainwashed by the "they plump whrn you cook 'em" ads?

quote:

Originally posted by tmiles

When I saw the picture of the dog for today's RF feature, I thought YUCK. The dog from Botsford Drive-in in Newtown, CT is on a nice bun with nice fixin's, but the dog itself looks like a shriveled leftover. I'd have sent it back, and maybe that would be a mistake. To be featured here, Botsfords has to be great, so what am I missing? Have I just been brainwashed by the "they plump whrn you cook 'em" ads?

YES, you have. Now, mind you, I have never had the pleasure of a Botsford dog, but, many times a shriveled dog is just the 'ticket'. Not always, but, sometimes.

A shriveled dog would be unacceptable at any Chicago hot dog stand. Our dogs are plump, snappy, and juicy, not limp, lame, dry, withered, and shriveled. That dog looks like a makeover from a weekend Boy Scout camping trip.

CSD

Chigago dogs are never fried as far as I know.

Frying, either deep, on the griddle, or both makes a dog look a little wierd, but it adds a nice personality to the meal. Different. But, still nice.

There is a place for both styles -- even charcoal grilled (ala Glenwood) ... all are vital.

Hello all ,

On our recent Jersey Hot Dog Tour we had all kinds of different style dogs . Rutts Hutt is your typical " shriveled dog " and my personal favorite from the tour , thanks to the relish. It does not matter what the dog looks like its the taste that matters .

Benzee

Chicago hot dogs are never fried, griddled, or roller grilled. They're boiled, steamed, or char grilled. Most Chicago hot dog stands boil their dogs. The stands that do high volume business(Portillo's & Gene & Judes)boil their dogs because it's faster.

I have to say, the Botsford Drive-In hot dog pictures look like my fantasy hot dog. I'm not really fond of plump dogs.

I don't want to see something on the bun resembling a coprolite. I want plump, snappy and juicy.

All I can say is, that dog looks mighty good to me. Y'all can have Ballpark Franks.

I'll have to admit that it didn't look to appetizing, but I reserve my opinion to those who proclaim taste is better than overall presentation of same.

I saw that picture from Botsford's and immediately pulled out the map so I could check it out on my next trip to the area. That is my kind of dog. A nice skinny, most likely all beef dog, charcoal grilled until it shrivels up. That is just the kind of dog that is served at Syd's in Union NJ, and was the favorite from last weekends hot dog tour.

I'm pretty sure that Botsford's deep fries their hot dogs. And the brand is Hummels beef and pork. I got 2 pounds of Hummels from long dog last Saturday and they are very good. A unique tangy flavor. Also spicier than your typical beef/pork blend. First time I had a Hummels was at Swanky Franks in Norwalk about 3 years ago, and I thought it was all beef because of the spicing.

Signman,

If you want a dog similar to Syd's, try the Glenwood in Hamden, Connecticut. Same exact size as the Syd's dog, and charbroiled. Again, it is a Hummels beef and pork dog. One of my 2 favorites in Connecticut, along with Rosco's.

IT doesn't have to be Frank's ballpark to stay plump on the grill.
Hoffman's franks and coneys don't shrivel like that when you cook 'em.

I didn't notice the shrivelling until it was pointed out, and now that I notice it, I don't think it looks appetising...but then, it's a hot dog for crying out loud, so, in the end, if it tastes good, that's all that matters.

I have had some Kosher dogs that shrivelled (all beef), they were OK dogs. IMO, it's not flavor of all the stuff you put on the dog, it's the flavor of the dog itself that counts. Good toppings can make a bad dog taste like a bad dog with good topping. A good dog with good toppings, is just plain good.

The shrivelling seems to occur with skinless dogs. Natural casing dogs don't. The shrinkage (really, I'm not trying to do a Seinfeld analogy) seems to happen as the dogs cool. I noticed that all the skinless Hummels I grilled this summer seemed to display some shrivelling as they cooled down. That didn't happen with the natural casing ones.

I'm just glad we have choices. Would get kind of boring if everyone served the same ol' dog..

quote:

Originally posted by UncleVic

I'm just glad we have choices. Would get kind of boring if everyone served the same ol' dog..

Correct. But the picture of that dog posted yesterday looked just like what my mother (to be polite.....not really good cook) would serve us and it was not tasty!

Happy Birthday , Tiki !! Oh, Sorry Wrong thread, The topic confused me!