How do you make hot dog onions?

[Kermit power]

Why is it that the ranker, more repellent and less identifiable as meat a hotdog or burger from a fast food stall becomes, the nicer the onions served with it become?

How do they make them? Is it just about cooking them really slowly for absolutely ages? Or do they par-boil the onions first? Or maybe add a bit of sugar?

I've tried various things, but I've miserably failed to reduce onions to that lovely, slippery ooziness without the starting to burn.

[Papoo]

Don't know exactly, but... When my wife and I decide to go 'white trash' for an evening, we crack open the Miller Lite, and I set about cooking up some jumbo hotdogs on the grill. I dump them into a foil pan, with some thinly chopped onion rings, and a couple of cans of cheap beer, S&P, garlic... Simmer over medium bbq eat..

Then, when nicely cooked through, I take the hot dogs out, and put them directly on the grill, to get a bit of brown on, and leave the onions simmering in the pan.

Come serving, plonk the hot dog in your bun, and grab a handful of onions, and cover your dog. Glorious I add HP (Yes, I've found HP sauce in Arizona)..

Hope that helps.

[grumbledoak]

I've always assumed they are simply left on the hot plate in luke warm, dirty fat for days at a time. Revolting things. Even when I fancy some 'filth' I'll ask them to hold the onions.

[Kermit power]

grumbledoak said:

I've always assumed they are simply left on the hot plate in luke warm, dirty fat for days at a time. Revolting things. Even when I fancy some 'filth' I'll ask them to hold the onions.

If I had the option, I'd get them to hold the filth and just give me the onions in a bun with a slice of cheese and some ketchup!

[Big Al.]

Fair ground hot dog onions are simply boiled, in water.

A better choice IMHO for either Burgers or hot dogs would be caramelised onions.

http://startcooking.com/blog/131/Frying-Onions

HTH.

[spikeyhead]

Kermit power said:

grumbledoak said:

I've always assumed they are simply left on the hot plate in luke warm, dirty fat for days at a time. Revolting things. Even when I fancy some 'filth' I'll ask them to hold the onions.

If I had the option, I'd get them to hold the filth and just give me the onions in a bun with a slice of cheese and some ketchup!

That's all I would eat at festivals in decades gone by, before they had a decent range of food stalls there. Anywhere doing burgers is very familiar with leaving out the burger from a cheese burger.

[zetec]

I've only eaten that kind of muck after a night out, when, tbh, anything and everything tastes good! I've seen the hot dog vendors with their trolleys in London and when sober I wouldn't/couldn't even contemplate it!

[bazking69]

Piles and piles of onions reduced and simmered slowly in a good quantity of butter. Salt, pepper. Sugar is optional if you want a bit of sweetness. Simple.

Sometimes I eat a whole jar (4) of the jumbo hot dogs, covered in onions and ketchup and sat in finger rolls for dinner. Bootiful.

Edited by bazking69 on Wednesday 2nd September 09:19

[gobuddygo]

For nice and sticky onions I always fry mine in a little oil and salt, when they are just starting to brown add boiling water and reduce for 5 minutes.

[paulmurr]

Finely sliced onion, butter and salt in a pan on low with a diffuser for about an hour should do the trick

[prand]

You can get onions in cans, I would imagine these are the king of filth.

[Mr Gearchange]

THE best way to do hot dog onions is to cook them very slowly in butter until they are really brown and very very soft - then crank up the heat to maximum to get them cripsy.

Do not be tempted to hit them with the heat until they are properly brown and softened or they won't turn out properly. Trust me - I have studied this in some depth.

[zakelwe]

I guess them broiling in something tasty would be the reason. For instance if you fried streaky bacon and then turned the heat down and slowly did you onions in the residue then the taste would be very good.

Regards
Andy

[Romanymagic]

zetec said:

I've only eaten that kind of muck after a night out, when, tbh, anything and everything tastes good! I've seen the hot dog vendors with their trolleys in London and when sober I wouldn't/couldn't even contemplate it!

Reminds me of one night up town when I was in the process of purchasing a hot dog from a vendor when some cops moved the chap on, I complained bitterly to the policeman that he had resulted in me missing out on a gorgeous chilli dog. His response what that he had saved my life by allowing me to avoid food poisoning. I was still very disappointed and chased the hot dog vendor down the street, who in turn in a blind panic ran on faster than I could keep up with. It was a terrible end to a great evening!

[AstonV12]

I have to say that's class. The combination of beer and smell of those sweet onions when there is nothing else reasonably priced open....despite potential poisonment!

[Google [bot]]

They are typically done on one of those hot plate bbq things. The problem of course is they burn, so pour water over them so they are in effect being boiled, only of course they are being boiled in the delicious dirty skanky remnants of whatever's on the bbq. This is correct and the best way, I assure you.