Chicago-Style Hot Dogs (Weeknight Version)
Classic Chicago hot dogs built on steamed all-beef franks and poppy-seed buns with the canonical toppings — mustard, neon relish, chopped onion, tomato wedges, sport peppers, a dill spear and a sprinkle of celery salt. Fast to make on a weeknight and unmistakably Chicago.
AI image20 min
start to finish
10 min
hands on
Easy
difficulty
4
servings
Ingredients
Contains gluten. Cooking for an allergy? Check the label on every packet you use — brands differ, and we can only tell you what the recipe calls for.
Roughly, per serving
420 kcal18g protein36g carbs24g fat
An estimate, not a lab analysis.
Method
Arrange toppings: put mustard, relish, chopped onion, tomato wedges, sport peppers and pickle spears on a board or plates for easy assembly.
Bring 1 cup water to a simmer in a large skillet or shallow saucepan over medium-high heat.
Add the hot dogs to the skillet, cover, and steam/poach until heated through and plump, about 5 minutes.
While the hot dogs heat, split buns but do not separate fully.
Remove the hot dogs with tongs to a plate and drain any excess water from the pan.
Add 1 tablespoon oil or butter to the same skillet over medium heat and place buns cut-side down; toast until lightly golden, about 1–2 minutes.
Place one hot dog into each toasted bun.
Assemble each Chicago hot dog in this order: a stripe of yellow mustard, a heaping teaspoon of sweet pickle relish, a sprinkle of chopped onion, two tomato wedges tucked on one side, two sport peppers laid across the top, and one dill pickle spear alongside the dog.
Finish each hot dog with a light dusting of celery salt and serve immediately—do not add ketchup.
Worth knowing
- Use an all-beef frank for a more traditional Chicago flavor; if you need pork or turkey, the assembly stays the same.
- Poppy-seed buns are traditional — if you don’t have them, use soft split-top buns but keep the poppy seeds if possible.
- If you prefer char, grill the hot dogs 3–4 minutes over medium-high heat before toasting buns instead of steaming them.
- Keep toppings ready before you cook so assembly is quick and the buns stay warm.
Make it yours
Cooking without dairy, without an oven, for someone who won't touch chilli, or for six instead of four? Have the recipe rewritten around it — quantities, steps and all.
QuickKid friendly
Watch someone make it
A different recipe for the same dish, by a cook who has spent years on it.
More Chicago cooking
An original Restaurant Pro recipe — our own composition in the idiom of Chicago cooking, not any restaurant's recipe.