Aunt Elsie's Hot Dog BarBQue Sauce

Every family has a recipe like this. Aunt Elsie’s hot dog sauce is the kind of thing that shows up at summer cookouts and church potlucks and makes people ask for the recipe. Ketchup, sweet relish, a little sugar, vinegar, and sauteed onion simmered together into a sticky, sweet-tangy barbecue sauce that coats every inch of the frank.

The technique is worth following exactly. Score each hot dog three or four times lengthwise, cutting about a quarter of the way through without separating the halves. As the hot dogs simmer in the sauce, those cuts open slightly, letting the sauce work its way inside and causing the dogs to plump up dramatically. The texture is completely different from just dropping whole franks in.

Lard is the original fat for sauteing the onion here. It adds a richness that neutral vegetable oil doesn’t. If you’re substituting, use bacon fat or butter rather than canola.

Pro Tips

• Don’t rush the onion. Saute until genuinely tender and translucent before adding the sauce ingredients. Raw onion bites through the sweetness of the sauce.
• Simmer on low heat once the hot dogs are in. High heat tightens the skins and makes the dogs tough.
• This sauce also works as a dip for cocktail wieners or a topping for a simple chili dog.
• Make a double batch of the sauce and freeze half. It reheats perfectly.

Variations

• Spicier version: Add a teaspoon of hot sauce or a pinch of cayenne to the sauce for a version with some heat.
• Smokier: Stir in a half teaspoon of smoked paprika with the ketchup for a more barbecue-forward flavor.