Baked Hot Dog Casserole
Hot dogs and buns baked under chili, cheese, and onion until bubbly and crisp-edged. Oven or kamado, and built to feed a crowd (especially kids). The mayo inside the bun is the trick.
Ingredients
- 8 hot dog buns 1 package
- 8 hot dogs you’ll buy two 6-packs and have 4 left over; I like Hebrew National bun-length
- Mayonnaise
- Mustard
- Sweet or dill pickle relish
- 2 –3 cups chili with or without beans
- 8 oz shredded cheese or more
- 1 small white or yellow onion diced
Instructions
Assemble
- Arrange the buns snug, cut side up, in a 9x13 baking dish.8 hot dog buns
- Slick the inside of each bun with a thin coat of mayonnaise. This is what keeps the buns from going soggy; don’t skip it.Mayonnaise
- Add mustard and relish to each bun in whatever amount you like, then nestle in a hot dog.Mustard, Sweet or dill pickle relish, 8 hot dogs
- Top the whole pan with the chili, then the cheese, then the onion if using.2 –3 cups chili, 8 oz shredded cheese, 1 small white or yellow onion
- Cover tightly with foil.
Oven Method
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake covered about 20 minutes, until the dogs are heated through and the cheese is melty.
- Uncover and bake another 10–15 minutes, until the top is bubbly and the bun edges brown and crisp.
Kamado Method
- Light the grill as usual; add a chunk of hardwood for smoke if you like.
- Set the heat deflectors at the low level (I wrap mine in foil in case the chili bubbles over) and the grates at the main level, even with the edge of the grill.
- Dial the top and bottom vents until you hold a steady ~350°F on the dome thermometer.
- Set the foil-covered pan in the center of the rack. From there it’s exactly the same as the oven: about 20 minutes covered, then uncover for 10–15 until bubbly and browned.
Notes
- Make-ahead. Assemble, cover, and refrigerate; bake when ready and add a few minutes coming from cold.
- Scale it. Doubles easily across two 9x13 pans for a bigger crowd.