Chili Buns
Chili buns are a traditional Appalachian meal made by slathering hot dog buns with mustard and chili and topping with diced onion.
Ingredients
For the chili sauce
- 1 cup flat beer or water
- 1 pound lean ground beef (preferably 90/10)
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6 saltine crackers, finely crushed (about 1/8 cup)
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons New Mexico ground red chile or cayenne pepper, or more to taste
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
If you want to make chili buns
- 1 package hot dog buns
- yellow mustard
- 1 small white onion, finely chopped
- Hot sauce (Crystal, Tabasco, Texas Pete, or your fave brand), as much as you can handle (optional)
If you want to make slaw dogs
- 1 package hot dogs
- 1 recipe chili buns fixings (see above)
- Your favorite coleslaw
Instructions
Make the chili sauce
- Put the beer and ground beef in an unheated medium saucepan. Use your fingers to gently rub the beef until it makes a slurry with the liquid. You want this to be a very fine-grained chili which means you don’t want any chunks or lumps. (Some folks use a potato masher rather than their fingers.)
- Stir in the garlic, salt, and cracker crumbs and place the pan over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
- Turn the heat to medium-low and continue to cook, stirring frequently to prevent sticking, until the liquid has largely evaporated but the mixture is still very moist and holds its shape on the spoon, 4 to 10 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato paste. Remove from the heat and stir in the ground chile, cumin, and cinnamon. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes before serving. (You should have about 2 to 3 cups chili sauce.)
How to make chili buns
- Lightly paint the inside of a hot dog bun with yellow mustard. Pack 3 or 4 heaping teaspoons chili into the bun, starting with a spoonful in the center and smoothing it over the mustard with the back of the spoon. Add more chili sauce, pressing it out to either end and smoothing it lightly as you go, until the bun is lightly filled, using about 1/3 cup chili sauce total. (Keep in mind you’re not making a sloppy joe. You want the chili should be packed firmly in the bun.) Top with chopped white onion to taste. Serve your chili buns immediately and pass hot sauce on the side.
How to make slaw dogs
- Heat the hot dogs by submerging them in boiling water for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, paint the inside of the chili buns' hot dog buns with yellow mustard, and sprinkle in chopped white onion to taste. Drain the hot dogs and pat them dry. Place them in the buns and cover each with about 2 tablespoons chili sauce, then about 2 tablespoons slaw. Serve your slaw dogs immediately and pass hot sauce on the side.
Nutrition
Serving: 1chili bun | Calories: 210kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 571mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4g