While they may not be the healthiest items on the menu, hot dog cravings are real. Add-ons can elevate the humble hot dog to a personal delicacy, and anyone who has never tried it alligator style definitely needs to.
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00:00While they may not be the healthiest items on the menu, hot dog cravings are real.
00:06Add-ons can elevate the humble hot dog to a personal delicacy,
00:10and anyone who has never tried it alligator-style definitely needs to.
00:14Headed to your local diner for a quick bite or a Major League Baseball game for a day of fun
00:19and hot dogs? You'll likely be able to order your hot dog alligator-style and get just that.
00:25What exactly is that, though? Alligator-style simply means a pickle spear is served next to
00:31the wiener right inside the bun, whether it's by itself or among the other toppings.
00:36According to Food & Wine, this request is more common in Ohio,
00:40where dogs are often topped with Cincinnati chili.
00:43Adding a dill pickle spear isn't a unique idea when it comes to hot dogs, though.
00:47If you're a fan of the ever-popular Chicago-style hot dog,
00:51you'll remember that a pickle spear is part of its appeal, too.
00:54In the same vein as alligator-style,
00:56that ever-present pickle lays with the oh-so-delicious dog in a Chicago dog.
01:01Bottom line? When you have a hankering, you can make any hot dog alligator-style
01:05just by tucking a long slice of pickle into the bun right next to the meat. But let's back up.
01:11What is the story of Cincinnati chili?
01:14Skyline Chili, founded in 1949 by Nicholas Lambrinidis,
01:19is one of the most famous purveyors of what would come to be known as Cincinnati chili.
01:23According to WXVU, this chili recipe has Greek and Macedonian roots.
01:29Many people describe Cincinnati chili as sweet, and it's the use of warm spices like cloves,
01:35cinnamon, and allspice in the bolognese-like sauce
01:38that conjures up this association in the American palate. Sounds delicious?
01:43I want all the hot dogs, please.
01:45No, no, no, you don't have to do that. I'm right here.
01:48According to The Atlantic, the chili dog is a story of American assimilation.
01:53The hot dog wiener itself is the industrialized version of a German-style sausage.
01:58The affordability and speed of hot dogs made them a hit at street food carts for late-night bites,
02:04and for hungry workers on a short lunch break.
02:07As for the topping, two chili lineages unfolded almost simultaneously in different parts of the
02:12country. A version of chili inspired by Mexican chile con carne eventually evolved for the
02:18American palate by the early 1900s, while the Greek and Macedonian-inspired chili
02:24gained traction in the Northeast and Midwest.
02:27Several restaurants in Michigan and Indiana claim to have served the first coney dog,
02:32a hot dog topped with chili, onions, and yellow mustard. New York City's Coney Island does have
02:38a long history of serving hot dogs, but it was diners in the Midwest that repurposed the name.
02:43These often Greek diners called themselves Coney Islands,
02:47and it's there that the Smithsonian says hot dogs began to be regularly topped with chili.
02:53Lafayette, Coney Island, and American Coney Island, both in Detroit,
02:57are two of the most well-known establishments serving up this iconic dish.
03:02Thomas and John Carragia claimed to have been the first to offer the cheese-covered,
03:07Cincinnati chili-slathered Coney dog in 1922 at their stand in Cincinnati, Ohio. However,
03:14a different story unfolded around the same time in Chicago, Illinois, in 1929.
03:19According to Block Club Chicago, the first Chicago-style hot dog is attributed to Flukies
03:25and was originally called a depression sandwich. A simple dog could be loaded up with cheap toppings
03:31to create a meal. Typical adornments include relish, mustard, tomato, onions, sports peppers,
03:37celery salt, and a dill pickle spear. All that means if you ask for a hot dog Alligator-style
03:42in Chicago, it likely won't mean a thing. But in Ohio, you'll get the pickle spear
03:48on your chili cheese dog. It can't be said for sure how Alligator-style became a practice,
03:53but getting a dill pickle on a Cincinnati Coney
03:56is definitely a snapshot of two iconic moments in American hot dog history.
04:07you