Courtesy of Lino Yi.
This week, we’re bringing you a recipe for Minhwa Spirits’ volcano hot dog.
You may have noticed a familiar face serving food at Minhwa Spirits lately. Chef Lino Yi (formerly TKO Korean, Lazy Betty) recently took over the kitchen at the jumak and distillery. Among the new dishes are kimchi fried rice with mozzarella, spicy mayo, gochujang, and scallions, and house-made beef mandu (Korean dumplings).
Yi became the head chef after Minhwa Spirits hosted months-long residencies with Ganji and Salty Smiles, and joins James Sung (formerly Palo Santo, Umi), now the distillery’s new beverage director. But don’t worry, Postern Coffee isn’t going anywhere, and you can still catch the occasional pop-up here, like Dhaba BBQ, on Mondays and Tuesdays.
In addition to his duties as chef, Yi will serve as a mentor for participating pop-ups. “This way our in-house staff can help pop-ups get some advice from a guy who’s done it and [get] support from a full staff,” said Minhwa Spirits co-founder Ming Han Chung.
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Yi conceptualized the volcano dog recipe served at Minhwa Spirits more than a decade ago while working at a sushi food truck in Orlando.
“One night, we were posted up in front of Will’s Pub, a dive bar full of punks. There was a show going on, and the place was packed, but no one’s buying sushi. I complained, ‘These kids don’t want sushi, they want hot dogs,’” Yi said. “I literally walked across the street to 7-11 and bought a pack of hot dogs and buns. Then I took all the toppings of our volcano roll and put them on top of a hot dog.”
He quickly changed the dry-erase board in front of the food truck to read “Volcano Hot Dog $6.” Yi recalled watching a customer walk away with a volcano dog, taking a few bites, and then showing it to friends, who all ordered the hot dog. It’s been a staple at Yi’s pop-ups ever since.
“It’s sushi in a bun, but it’s easier to eat, no chopsticks required,” Yi said. “Think of it as East meets West, and the economy lobster roll.”
Yi prefers using Nathan’s beef hot dogs and recommends serving the volcano dog with shrimp chips (pictured), which complement the seafood-heavy profile and resemble fries. And, instead of ketchup, opt for gochujang, a fermented red chili paste, as your dipping sauce.
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 pack hot dogs
1 pack buns
1 pack imitation crab sticks (1 pound)
2 cups spicy mayo
2 ounces eel sauce to garnish
1 ounce Sriracha to garnish
Scallions chopped into 1/8-inch pieces, enough for 1 ounce to garnish
Pinch of sesame seeds to garnish
Pinch of togarashi (Japanese seven-flavor chili pepper) or gochugaru (Korean chile powder) to garnish
Directions
Make the crab salad: Finely mince the crab sticks and mix in the spicy mayo. Set aside.
Cook hot dogs according to personal preferences. (At Minhwa Spirits, Yi deep fries the hot dogs and finishes on the flat-top.)
Warm the crab salad using a torch or toaster oven. If using a toaster oven, spray a foil sheet with oil and spread the crab salad so it’s the same length and size as the hot dog. Bake at 350° Fahrenheit until hot mayo starts bubbling, or about 5 minutes.
Assemble the hot dog on top of the bun. Add torched crab salad on top, or slide toasted crab salad on top of the hot dog.
Garnish with a drizzle of eel sauce, dots of Sriracha, scallions, sesame seeds, and either a pinch of togarashi or gochugaru.
Dining and Cooking