Follow our quick and easy, step-by-step, photo illustrated instructions to learn how to make our North Carolina style Hot Dog Chili. Printable recipe included.
Hot Dog Chili, did someone say let’s cook out?
If I had a dollar for every hot dog I’ve ever enjoyed, I could buy a brand new car. I grew up eating hot dogs and still enjoy them to this day. Of course, nothing makes one any better than to find it made with fresh homemade Cole Slaw and most certainly with homemade chili.
I often thought about owning one of those street type food carts with the big umbrella and setting it up on a street corner to sell nothing but hot dogs and cold sodas. I’d sell one hundred per day, then close up and go home. But alas, it never happened.
When I was a kid, Mama worked at a meat packing company that made hot dogs, bologna, and other such type of things. Mama was able to purchase these items of course, buying hot dogs 100 to a box at a time. We always seemed to have hot dogs in the refrigerator.
Mama made her own homemade chili and homemade Cole Slaw whenever we had hot dogs for lunch or supper. Nothing makes a better hot dog than homemade chili and slaw, did I mention that?
Also, our next door neighbor drove a Coca-Cola® truck and pretty much kept us supplied with coke all the time. His brother stayed straight across the street and drove a truck for a potato chip company. His son and I were best friends, when he wasn’t throwing rocks at anything that moved. Smile. Yep, it was pretty close to Heaven where I lived.
Around my neck of the woods, people seem to prefer a somewhat chunky type of chili for their hot dogs and hamburgers. That’s what we do in this recipe, but feel free to chop yours up much finer if that’s what you like.
And, for me, a boiled hot dog is just about as good as one cooked on a grill. I eat them either way.
Did I mention we like the RED hot dogs? Those all beef types just don’t compare either. What’s your favorite?
Ready to give our hot dog chili a try? Alright then, let’s head on out to the kitchen, and… Let’s Get Cooking!
Hot Dog Chili Recipe, you’ll need these ingredients.
Place a sauce pot over Medium heat on the stove top. Add the pound of ground beef and crumble it up with a wooden spatula as it begins to cook.
Stir the beef and let it cook until fully browned. Drain the grease from the beef into a separate container and discard.
Add the water to the ground beef.
Add the salt.
Add the black pepper.
Add the chili powder. I add a Tablespoon but you might like to add less. You can start out with a teaspoon if in doubt, then add more later to get it tasting like you prefer it. Don’t be afraid to experiment and make the recipe your own. There are many options when it comes to making chili.
Add the ketchup. Give everything a good stir, let the pot come back up to a boil, then REDUCE the heat down to Medium-Low and let the chili simmer for about 20 minutes. Keep an eye on it so all the liquid doesn’t simmer away completely. Stir it about halfway through.
Add the sugar. You’ve got to have a little sugar. Smile.
Add the apple cider vinegar.
Stir everything once again and let the chili continue to simmer until it reaches the desired consistency you prefer. Some folks like a thick chili, others prefer one a bit more on the juicy side. A wetter chili soaks into the buns more so I prefer a somewhat thicker type. It’s totally your choice. Smile.
Enjoy!
