Chili Dogs

This weekend for the Super Bowl I decided to make one of my favorite bar foods. Chili Dogs. I like my chili dogs to be heavy on the chili. In my opinion there are two types of chili. One that goes on hot dogs and one that is eaten in a bowl with crackers. They are not the same. As a hot dog topping I like my chili to be meaty, spicy, tangy, and bean free!

Chili dogs are the prefect dinner for a busy day. The chili can be made hours or months in advance. It is easy to make a huge batch and freezes well. All you have to do is defrost it and grill the hot dogs and you're set for a delicious dinner without much fuss.  No hot dogs, no problem - this also makes a great sloppy joe!

If you are having a party this is super easy to make and then put in the crock pot to stay warm.  Make a little toppings bar of shredded cheese, chopped raw onions, and mustard.  Guests can serve themselves when they are ready and the food is guaranteed to be warm.  Just keep the hot dogs in a warm oven.

Ingredients
Yields 8 chili dogs
1T. butter
1 pound ground sirloin
1/2 small onion, chopped
2 T. chili powder
1/2 t. cayenne pepper
1 t. garlic powder
1 t. salt
1 t. pepper
1 t. cumin
1/4 t. red pepper flake
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup yellow mustard
8 hot dogs
8 hot dog buns
Shredded cheese and chopped onions for garnish

Directions

1) Heat the butter over medium heat in a large sauce pan until it becomes foamy.  Add the chopped onions and saute until soft, about 2-3 minutes.

2) Add the ground sirloin and brown through breaking up the meat into small pieces while cooking.  After the beef is cooked through and no pink remains add the spices and stir to evenly distribute.  Add the ketchup and the mustard and stir.  Allow meat to simmer for about 10 minutes to let the flavors combine.

3) Prepare the hot dogs and buns and serve the chili on top with shredded cheese and onions.

This chili freezes very well and heats up perfectly in a crock-pot.  I love to have some of this in my freezer in case I have to stay late at work and don't have time to prepare an elaborate mail.  Don't like hot dogs, no problem.  Serve this in a hamburger bun with a slice of American cheese and you have a delicious sloppy joe!