Reuben Hot Dogs Recipe

Servings: 8

I love Reubens and the Turkey Reuben known as The Rachel (no relation). Why not freshen up the classic recipe with a fun twist? You can make this recipe with knockwurst, long hot dogs made of beef or pork or even plant based Impossible Dogs to make it vegetarian.

The most important thing to me when making a Reuben or a Rachel is to make sure that the sauerkraut is super flavorful. I like to buy a brand that is sold in a jar at the refrigerated section of the grocery store that already has juniper berries and caraway seeds in it. I love the taste of cumin seed with caraway and almost always add it to the sauerkraut before serving it. If you can only find plain sauerkraut at your grocery store, try spicing it up and add your own juniper, caraway and cumin!

My favorite way to cook hotdogs (which I think is even better than grilling) is to add a tiny bit of water to a pan with the dogs and then let the water evaporate as they cook. Cooking the dogs in water will help them to warm all the way through and render out their natural fat. Once that fat is rendered out, I keep cooking the hot dogs in that fat to crisp up the casings.

If you're cooking these dogs on a hot day like I was and still want to serve with fries, you can use the same shortcut I did and buy store bought frozen french fries. I cook mine in the oven at 450 degrees until crispy. On a hot day when I don’t want the extra heat from an oil fryer, store bought fries are an excellent substitution.

Recipe featured on Rachael Ray's Meals in Minutes.

Ingredients

For the Special Sauce:

1 cup sour cream or greek yogurt
⅓ cup ketchup
⅓ cup relish, I love to use Wickles brand
⅓ cup Wickles spicy red sandwich spread or other red pepper relish, optional
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper, to taste

For the Sauerkraut:

2 cups (about 1 pound) plain sauerkraut, drained
A few juniper berries
About 1 tsp of caraway and cumin seeds

For the Dogs and to Serve:

8 beef dogs, plant based hotdogs, my favorite brand is Impossible, or knockwurst
8 rolls that match the shape and size of dogs you choose to use
1 ½ cups shredded Swiss cheese
1 cup shredded Muenster cheese
White onion, finely chopped
French fries and ketchup, to serve

Directions

For the Special Sauce:

Combine all sauce ingredients together in a bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed. Transfer to a squeeze bottle if you have one. Reserve until the dogs are ready to be served.

For the Sauerkraut:

Combine juniper berries, caraway and cumin seeds together with the sauerkraut in a small pot. Warm up over medium heat then turn off the heat and reserve until ready to build the dogs.

For the Dogs and to Serve:

Heat up the dogs in a wide skillet with about ⅛ inch of water. Cook over medium heat until the water evaporates and then continue to cook until the casings are nicely browned and crisp.

If you are making knockwurst, split them down middle with a knife and fan open and crisp both sides.

Distribute half of the cheeses on the rolls, then add a dog, the sauerkraut and the rest of the cheese. Broil to melt the cheese.

Top with the special sauce and raw white onions. Serve with french fries and ketchup.