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Learn how to make the best Hot Dog Chili Recipe around. With only a few ingredients, you will be making homemade chili from now on. It is tangy and delicious.
No more store bought chili with this easy chili cheese dog recipe. It tastes amazing and makes your hot dog complete.
We love a good hot dog around here. I even learned how to grill hot dogs perfectly every time! But you can’t have a hot dog without this homemade hot dog chili recipe. This hot dog sauce taste so much better than the can hot dog chili and is a classic American Recipe.
If you prefer you can also make, Crock Pot Hot Dog Chili Recipe or this Keto Chili Recipe.
What's in this post: Hot Dog Chili Recipe
What is the Difference Between Hot Dog Chili and Regular Chili?
Hot dog chili does not have beans and has a sweeter flavor due to the ketchup in the recipe. The texture is smoother than regular chili and not chunky.
It has a fine texture. You might hear some people refer to this as hot dog sauce. This is due to the smooth texture.
The flavor is tangy and not spicy like regular chili. Everyone will love this recipe. This hot dog chili taste so much better than the can stuff and you can control the ingredients.
Ingredients
- Ketchup – If you are out, check out this Easy Homemade Ketchup Recipe.
Scroll to the bottom for the full recipe and ingredients for the recipe card.
Substitutions Ideas
- Ground turkey. You can use ground turkey instead of ground beef in this recipe.
- Garlic. Minced garlic can be substituted for garlic powder in homemade chili.
- Spice – If you prefer to have some extra spice, mix in some cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes. You can even mix in some slice or chopped jalapenos.
- Change Seasoning – Feel free to change the seasoning to what you have on hand.
How to Make Hot Dog Chili
Step 1 – Brown the ground beef. Add the ground beef to the pan and cook until no longer pink using medium high heat. Once cooked, drain thoroughly to remove any excess grease.
Step 2 – Add seasonings to the beef. Now, it is time to add the onion and garlic powder, chili powder, tomato paste, ketchup, salsa and water to the ground beef. Combine well and simmer for 20 minutes.
Step 3 – Cook the hot dogs – You can boil them or grill them.
Step 4 – Warm the buns – Toast the buns until they are slightly crispy and warm.
- Step 5 – Add your favorite toppings. Top the hot dogs with yellow mustard, shredded cheddar cheese and onion if you desire and add the hot dog chili sauce.
- Step 6 – Serve. Serve immediately. Salt and pepper to taste. Jump to recipe and full nutritional content including saturated fat.
Recipe Tips
- Lean ground beef. This type of meat will help the chili not be too greasy.
- Beef broth. You can thin the chili using beef broth if needed.
- Olive oil. Sometimes when using lean ground beef olive oil is needed. Just a drizzle should do the trick when cooking.
- Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Change the flavor slightly and add these two ingredients for a change. It is delicious and can be added to taste for bold flavor.
- Make extra to freeze. It is so delicious and you will be happy to have some in the freezer.
- Thinner sauce. If you prefer a thinner sauce, use tomato sauce instead of tomato paste.
Topping Ideas
- Diced Onion
- Coleslaw
- Cheese Sauce
- Relish
- Shredded Cheese
- Jalapenos
These are just a few ideas for toppings. Feel free to use what you like the best. You can’t go wrong with this easy chili recipe.
What to Serve with Chili Dogs
- Quick & Easy Baked Beans – This is the perfect side for chili dogs.
- The BEST Coleslaw recipe – Cool, refreshing and light this coleslaw is easy to make.
- Boiling Corn on the Cob Recipe – Corn on the cob is always the perfect side with these hot dogs.
- See The Best Side Dishes for Hot Dogs for more ideas
How to Use Leftover Chili
- Sloppy Joes. Feel free to use the leftover chili to make sloppy goes. It is a delicious idea for another dinner. You may like this Easy Sloppy Joes Recipe.
- Chili Cheese Fries. Jazz up plain French fries with leftover chili. Check out this delicious Cheese Fries recipe.
- Hamburgers. Top cheeseburgers with homemade chili for a fabulous dinner.
Frequently Asked Questions
The chili will last 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Just make sure to store it inside a container with a tight lid. You can also freeze the chili up to 2 months using an airtight container. If you are short on freezer space, I recommend using freezer bags. These freeze flat and can be stacked to save space.
When ready to enjoy, reheat on the stove top or microwave. The chili can also be reheated in the slow cooker. I like this option for cookouts and potlucks. Just use the low setting for 2 to 3 hours.
Homemade chili is even better made in advance. The flavor has even more time to combine. I actually prefer to make this a day in advance. It gives the recipe even more time to simmer.
You can even make oven baked chili dogs to prepare the chili dogs in advance. Save time and money and make this hot dog chili in advance.
Easy Hot Dog Recipes
Recipes for Lunch
How to Boil Hot Dogs
Easy Slow Cooker
Crock Pot Hot Dogs
Quick and Easy Air Fryer
Air Fryer Hot Dogs
Easy Grilling
Grilled Hot Dogs
If you make this recipe for hot dog chili, please leave us a comment or a star review. We love hearing from you.
The Best Hot Dog Chili Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb Ground Beef
- 1 tbsp Ketchup
- 8 Hot Dogs
- 1 tbsp Salsa
- 1 tsp Onion Powder
- 2 tbsp Tomato Paste
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tbsp Chili Powder
- 8 Hot Dog Buns
- Diced Onions optional
- 8 oz Cheddar Cheese (shredded)
- Mustard optional
Instructions
- Brown ground beef and drain thoroughly.
- Add onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, tomato paste, ketchup, salsa and ½ cup water to the ground beef. Mix and simmer 20 minutes.
- Heat hot dogs in boiling water or grill them.
- Toast buns in 300 degree oven until slightly crisp.
- Top hot dogs with mustard and onion if you desire and add chili and cheese.
Looks delicious! Looking to do this for a grad party – we’re grilling different meats – brats and dogs!
How much would I make for a large crockpot full? Triple the recipe? Or more?
Thank you!
I haven’t tried that before but I think that you could easily triple the recipe or makes 4 batches and it should fit easily in a large crock pot.
I would love to try this recipe you have made me so hungry. Got to get up from this chair and rattle some pots and pans??????
Please send chili recipe.Thank you so much.
The taste is very good, however it is not very saucy… only need it for one evening but I like a little more sauce.
I used to work at a 50’s diner that served Coney Dogs—looks similar to this. It was a secret family recipe that even the staff didn’t know the recipe! The only thing I know for sure is that they added shredded potatoes to it. ? Don’t know the amounts—just saw them shredding a BUNCH of potatoes to make BIG batches—then they froze it in smaller batches until we were ready for another batch. We went through a LOT—our Coney Dogs were famous & known as the best around! Might need to experiment & see if I can find a similar match. (The Diner went out of business…
I haven’t tried this chili yet but can you make a large amount and freeze it?
Yes – This recipe would be great for freezing.