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Joey Chestnut ate 83 hot dogs in 10 minutes in 2024. There’s a good chance he didn’t stop to savor and enjoy most of those dogs. But when you’re having a backyard BBQ and you want fewer than 83 hot dogs, you probably want them cooked perfectly, right? Except, what does it mean to cook a hot dog perfectly? Perfectly cooked chicken will measure 165 degrees Fahrenheit. A medium rare steak? About 130 degrees Fahrenheit. But no one ever tells you how to perfectly cook a hot dog. Until now! Turns out, you want your hot dogs at about 155 degrees Fahrenheit.
The USDA recommends heating to 165 degrees or “steaming hot.” However, that second part is very unclear. Steaming hot can happen at remarkably low temperatures and is also relative to the temperature outside. Your breath is steaming hot in the winter, after all. Epicurious found that, at 165 degrees and above, hot dogs get dried out and start to burst. If you have ever tried to microwave a hot dog and created a wizened, gnarled meat tube, you know this all too well.
Given that hot dogs are already cooked, you don’t technically need to reheat them before eating. Again, the USDA recommends heating them to steaming hot if you are at risk of foodborne illness, but the administration also recommends the same for lunch meat. So you can technically eat a cold hot dog, but there is a risk of it containing harmful bacteria, so it’s not recommended.
Finding the perfect hot dog temperature
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Hot dogs cooked to around 140 degrees have poor texture and lack flavor. Between 150 degrees and 160 degrees Fahrenheit is the sweet spot, where the dog is juicy and flavorful while also having the most desirable texture. You can technically achieve this through any cooking method, including grilling, poaching, roasting, or even careful microwaving. Obviously, the end result of each will be a little different.
Temperature regulation with a hot dog can be harder than it looks. To get an even 155 degrees throughout, the best way to cook hot dogs is the one people often turn their noses up at, but it’s used by hot dog carts around the country every day: poaching. Immerse a hot dog in 155 degree water, and it will cook evenly to that temperature.
The texture of a poached dog is not always what you want and, for that, you may want to finish your hot dog with another method. A couple of minutes on the grill to get some smoky char and grill marks without drying it out is ideal. Pan frying to crisp the outside and develop a Maillard crust, while keeping the interior moist, also works well. A few minutes under a high heat broiler has the same effect. The result is a juicy, flavorful interior with a crisped, colorful exterior. That’s the perfect hot dog.
Two-step cooking a hot dog may not sound ideal, but it works. If you’re having a cookout and really want the best, take the time to poach the hot dogs before hitting the grill. Your guests will probably appreciate the effort, even if they don’t realize why the hot dogs are so good.
Dining and Cooking