Let’s Cook! Kimchi Hotdogs

Kimchi Hotdog

One of the popular new dishes served at the 2013 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival was at the South Korea booth – the Kimchi Dog – a hotdog topped with spicy, crunchy, pickled cabbage turned out to be a hit, and when you think about it this combo is a delish no-brainer (think sauerkraut with a kick)!

We first encountered this at the Food & Wine Festival Preview Dinner back in the summer, and Bonnie and I scarfed so many down that we could hardly eat all the rest of the goodies offered that evening!

Kimchi Dogs on the appetizer table at the Food & Wine Preview Dinner

Afterwards I recalled that I had seen a recipe by big-time chef Jean-George Vongerichten for a kimchi-topped wiener in the Kimchi Chronicles book, so I pulled that tome off the shelf and headed to the kitchen (for more on the Kimchi Chronicles, check out the post “Let’s Cook! Korean Seafood and Scallion Pancakes”).

So once again let’s not tarry – let’s cook!

Ingredients

1/2 cup  thinly sliced Kimchi (you can find kimchi in the produce section of many groceries, but if you have an Asian market handy, head there for sure and get the traditional Napa cabbage kimchi)

2  tsp Honey

2  tsp Rice Vinegar

4  Hot Dogs (your favorite type/brand – I usually go for a good Kosher-type, but I think this would work with a weenie-sized sausage or even, gasp, a veggie-dog if you must)

4  Hot Dog Buns (again, your favorite – I’m partial to Martin’s Potato buns)

4  Tbl Mustard (your choice or a combo: a hot Chinese-style mustard is good, or brown deli-style is good too, even Dijon… maybe try a bit of hot on one side of the bun and another type on the other…)

Procedure

Slice the kimchi (you may want to wear gloves, if not be sure to wash your hands well afterwards if you handle the spicy goodness).

Like the fancy bowl?

Mix in the honey and vinegar.

Cook your dogs with your preferred method… of course grilling is good…

Toast/grill your buns… the hot dog buns that is…

Spread the grilled buns with about a tablespoon of your choice of mustard(s), lay in a weenie and top each with one-quarter of the kimchi mixture… then eat up!

Now this isn’t the same recipe as served at Food & Wine, but was met with unanimous raves by my test subjects… and yeah, Jean-Georges does kinda know his stuff…

If you’ve never tried kimchi, don’t be afraid – this is a good “gateway” recipe to try it out, and you just might get hooked!

The kimchi mixture is dead simple to make, and should keep well, so go ahead and make a bigger batch! It’s good on more that just hot dogs.

Hope you try this one, and as always, please leave your comments if you do!

Back to the kitchen – see you soon!