For me, somehow summer is defined by grilled hot dogs. I mean, it’s defined by a whole lot of other things. But grilling up hot dogs and taking a bite of charred goodness fills me with summer vibes. I spent part of my childhood growing up outside of Chicago, and Portillo’s was the place to go for dogs. But there is a big difference between having a Portillo’s dog and making hot dogs on your grill… two completely different flavor profiles.
So, Memorial Day came, which signifies the eve of summer, and hot dogs felt like the right thing to do. Generally, I just grill them up and let everyone add whatever they want. My son ~ ketchup. My husband ~ stone ground mustard, maybe some kimchi, maybe something else random? Me ~ sometimes ketchup, other times mustard, a pickle, and relish.
But, when I mentioned my plan to grill up dogs, my husband mentioned loading his up with kimchi… and I got to thinking ~ I haven’t done a Korean hot dog! I mean, honestly, I don’t know if that’s even a “thing.” But it sounded good! All the wonderful flavors of Korea added to my hot dog? Yes please!
So really what does that look like? First, it was making a kimchi slaw of red cabbage, chopped kimchi, scallions, rice wine vinegar, kimchi juice, and sesame seeds. Super easy, right? I make it a little easier by buying shredded red cabbage from the store and chopping it up from there. Buying it that way gives me several uses of the red cabbage rather than buying a whole head of cabbage and having to throw out the majority of it… I HATE waste!
Then, I made a gochujang aioli, which was pretty much just mayonnaise and gochujang. BUT, I also added some of my husband’s beloved stone ground mustard! And let me tell you, secret sauce not so secret, it was fricking good! Again, super easy, right?
I recommend getting good quality cheddar cheese. There are some brands of cheddar that, to me, resemble American cheese more than cheddar ~ aka, overly processed. My personal preference is Boar’s Head Black Wax Wisconsin Cheddar. I used to be a huge fan of Boar’s Head Vermont Cheddar, but once I had their Wisconsin cheddar, I haven’t switched back. I mean, it’s Wisconsin, and who does cheese better in the States than Wisconsin? If you’re from Vermont, you may be arguing that you all do cheese better. But you don’t. You’re a very close second. But Wisconsin truly is the capital of cheese here in the States. And that is definitely evident if you try Boar’s Head Wisconsin cheddar (I am not getting paid to plug Boar’s Head! I really just love their Wisconsin cheddar that much!).
So, good quality cheese in hand, I folded each piece of cheese in half and broke it into two. Then I folded three of those halved pieces and layered them along the length of the hot dog. I opted for top-cut brioche buns. Brioche buns are so delicious with all of these Korean flavors, and a top-cut bun makes it so much easier to load up your dog with all the fixings!
I like to grill my hot dogs until they’re nicely charred on the outside. If you prefer them simply browned, that’s totally fine! Hot dogs are already fully cooked, so you’re really just reheating them. Cook them as you prefer them! Obviously, if you prefer them boiled instead of grilled, you can absolutely do them that way too! I do recommend grilling them, though, for that added flavor component! From there, just add the dogs on top of the cheese, load it up with slaw, and drizzle over the aioli!
You guys, let me tell you, I am HOOKED! These dogs are absolutely amazing, and I cannot wait to make them throughout the summer! So, I had one dog like this, and then I said, okay, let’s have my second dog with just some ketchup. But I was like… do I really want to do that??? So, I drizzled a little bit of ketchup on the end of my second dog, took a bite, and said “nope.” There is SO much flavor in these Korean hot dogs that having just ketchup doesn’t even come close. I seriously cannot stop raving about them; they are just so fricking good! And what’s better? You can have these babies on the table in 20 minutes!
I paired these with some creamy coleslaw, but feel free to have whatever sides you want! A side salad, fruit salad, french fries, potato salad, potato chips, no sides! Whatever you want! This is meant to be a super easy weeknight meal that is packed with flavor! So keep it easy!
Give me some feedback in the comments below! And tag me on Instagram if you give these a go!
Enjoy!
Cheesy Korean-Style Hot Dogs with Kimchi Slaw & Gochujang Aioli
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Grill, Asian Fusion
- Cuisine: Dinner
Ingredients
8 hot dogs
8 hot dog buns, preferably brioche
8 oz good quality sliced cheddar cheese
Kimchi Slaw
1 cup red cabbage, roughly chopped
⅔ cups kimchi, roughly chopped
4 scallions, chopped
¼ cup kimchi juice
2 TBs rice wine vinegar
2 TBs sesame seeds
Gochujang Aioli
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 TB gochujang
1 TB stone ground mustard
Instructions
In a medium bowl, toss together the red cabbage, kimchi, scallions, kimchi juice, rice wine vinegar, and sesame seeds.
In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, gochujang, and mustard.
Heat your grill over medium flame. Add the hot dogs and cook, turning every couple of minutes, until charred to your liking on all sides.
Fold 1 to 2 slice of cheddar cheese along the length of each hot dog bun. Place a hot dog on top. Scoop the kimchi slaw on top and drizzle the aioli along the length.
Serve with fries, potato chips, side salad, coleslaw, pasta salad, or any preferred side you desire!
Enjoy!
Keywords: hot dogs, grilled hot dogs, Korean hot dogs, Korean style hot dogs, hot dogs with slaw, cheesy hot dogs, kimchi slaw, gochujang aioli
