Hot dogs a Father's Day favorite

That last statement comes from the council’s cardinal etiquette rule: Never use ketchup on your hot dog after the age of 18. “Rumor has it that within the city limits of Chicago, you could be arrested for such an offense,” Super said.

Here’s an example of how seriously Chicagoans take their ban on ketchup on hot dogs. President Barack Obama was in Toledo, Ohio, early this month and had lunch at Rudy's Hot Dog. Ohio Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur was in his party and ordered her hot dog with ketchup. The president, who’s had a home in Chicago since 1985, gently tried to set her straight. "Marcy just wants ketchup," Obama said. "By the way, as an aficionado of hot dogs, you shouldn't put ketchup on your hot dog. ... I'm trying to teach my girls."

No matter where you’re from, mustard tops everyone’s list of favorite toppings, favored by 32 percent of the respondents to a survey by the council. They also found that chili was the favorite of 28 percent of those of us in the South.

But it’s not just condiments that you need to consider when planning your Father’s Day hot dog roast. Have there ever been as many choices for hot dogs as you’ll find this year? Beef, pork, turkey, chicken, tofu, Angus, kosher, low-sodium, no preservatives and more new choices every day, all sized for serving on a hot dog bun. I gathered a group of friends to taste-test a few. We sampled Angus beef, kosher beef, chicken sausage, tofu dogs, pork bratwurst and beef bratwurst.

We tasted them without benefit of bun or condiments. The winner? The Angus hot dog, followed closely by the kosher dog. The big loser? The tofu hot dog. “Tastes like a sponge” was the general consensus, and the chicken-apple sausage was also scorned as “too sweet.” Did both suffer by being compared with more traditional wieners? Maybe, but even the frequently vegan among us couldn’t get excited about the tofu dog. It seems we generally expect our hot dogs to have a certain combination of fat, salt and juiciness.

No matter what hot dog you serve or how you top it, the council has a few etiquette suggestions for your Father’s Day meal. Eat your hot dogs on buns with your hands. Don’t take more than five bites to finish a hot dog unless it’s a foot-long wiener. Then seven bites are acceptable. And whatever you do, don’t leave bits of bun on your plate. Eat it all. (And if the condiments are good, you’ll want to.)

Topper:

What's a hot dog without the fixings? Condiments are how you personalize your hot dog and dress up that bun. It’s certainly easy to buy mustard, relish and hot dog chili, but when you make your own, you can precisely match your family’s tastes. Consider these recipes as suggestions and adjust them to suit the dad in your household.

Hot Dog Chili

Hands on: 15 minutes

Total time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Makes: 3 cups

This recipe will suit most folks from kids to adults because it incorporates so many of the flavors of traditional hot dog toppings. If you want to make it a little more like chili, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of your favorite chili powder. If ketchup isn’t your thing, thin the chili with water instead of ketchup.

1 pound lean ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard

2 tablespoons vinegar

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon celery seed

1/4 teaspoon Tabasco

Ketchup, as needed

In a large skillet, brown ground beef and onion over medium heat, about 10 minutes. While browning, break the ground beef into very small pieces. When beef is brown, drain fat. Add mustard, vinegar, sugar, Worcestershire, celery seed and Tabasco and stir together. Add enough ketchup to make a loose mixture, and simmer chili, covered, 1 hour. Add more ketchup if needed. Serve immediately or it can be made up to three days ahead of time. Serve warm or hot.

Per 3-tablespoon serving: 82 calories (percent of calories from fat, 64), 5 grams protein, 2 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, 6 grams fat (2 grams saturated), 21 milligrams cholesterol, 47 milligrams sodium.

Sweet Red Pepper Relish

Hands on: 10 minutes

Total time: 1 hour plus overnight rest for peppers

Makes: 1 1/2 cups

If you don’t finish this relish off with your hot dogs, serve the remainder over cream cheese on crackers or use it as a glaze on grilled pork or chicken.

4 cups chopped sweet red or yellow peppers (about 3 large peppers)

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar

2 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 teaspoon mustard seeds, slightly crushed

Red pepper flakes, to taste

In a gallon-size zippered bag, combine peppers and salt. Refrigerate overnight.

When ready to prepare, drain peppers in colander. Discard liquid. In a large saucepan, combine peppers, vinegar, sugar and mustard seed. Add pepper flakes if using. Cook, stirring occasionally until peppers are translucent and relish is the consistency of marmalade, but still syrupy, about 40 minutes.

Pour relish into a 1-pint jar and allow to cool. Relish will keep for up to 1 month, refrigerated.

Adapted from “Better Than Store-Bought” by Helen Witty and Elizabeth Schneider Colchie (Harper & Row, $10.95)

Per 2-tablespoon serving: 180 calories (percent of calories from fat, 1), 1 gram protein, 47 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, 158 milligrams sodium.

Corn Relish

Hands on: 10 minutes

Total time: 25 minutes

Makes: 6 cups

This is a not-too-sweet substitute for commercial pickle relish. Any leftover relish would go happily into your tuna or potato salad.

3 cups corn kernels (fresh or frozen)

1 1/4 cups cider vinegar

1 medium sweet onion, chopped

1/2 cup chopped green pepper (about 1/2 large pepper)

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup water

1 tablespoon dry mustard powder

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 teaspoon mustard seed

1 teaspoon turmeric

3/4 teaspoon celery seed

Dash cayenne

In a large saucepan, combine corn, vinegar, onions, peppers, brown sugar, water, mustard powder, salt, mustard seed, turmeric, celery seed and cayenne. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until relish has thickened slightly, about 20 minutes. Pour into jars and allow to cool. Relish will keep up to 1 month, refrigerated.

Adapted from “Fancy Pantry” by Helen Witty (Workman Publishing, $11.95)

Per 2-tablespoon serving: 21 calories (percent of calories from fat, 4), trace protein, 5 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, 41 milligrams sodium.

Horseradish Mustard

Hands on: 10 minutes

Total time: 10 minutes, plus resting time

Makes: 1/2 cup

You may never have thought of making your own mustard, but it’s so easy and so delicious that it’s well worth the 10 minutes you’ll spend.

1/2 cup dry mustard powder

1/2 cup hot water

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon drained bottled horseradish

1 small clove garlic

1 teaspoon sugar

pinch ground black pepper

pinch ground allspice

In a small bowl, combine mustard powder and water and let sit 20 minutes.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine mustard mixture with vinegar, salt, horseradish, garlic, sugar, pepper and allspice. Pulse until mixture is pureed, then pour into a small saucepan. Heat over low heat 5 minutes, stirring constantly, or until mustard has thickened. It will thicken more when cool. Taste for seasoning.

Store in a jar, tightly capped in the refrigerator. It is ready to use in three days and will keep up to one month in the refrigerator.

Adapted from “Better Than Store-Bought” by Helen Witty and Elizabeth Schneider Colchie (Harper & Row, $10.95)

Per 1-tablespoon serving: 25 calories (percent of calories from fat, 42), 1 gram protein, 3 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, 1 gram fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, 269 milligrams sodium.