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Homemade corny dog recipe?


Assman

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he corn dog’s birthplace may be disputed among gastronomists, but there is no denying that the corny dog, as the fried delicacy is known in these parts, made its first appearance at the State Fair of Texas. Dallas native Neil Fletcher formulated the recipe in 1942, set up a small stand at that year’s festival, and gave life to the magnum opus of fair food. While precise replication of a Fletcher’s Corny Dog is impossible (every Texan knows that family recipes are guarded more closely than the Hope Diamond), Skip Fletcher, the owner and general manager of the state fair’s famous corny dog stands, offers advice for making the next-best thing.

Batter ingredients:
1 cup yellow cornmeal (not stone-ground)
1 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 cup sugar (optional)
2 eggs
1/2 cup to 1 cup water (or milk) 

Additional materials:
1 one-pound package of 8 hot dogs
8 Popsicle sticks
plenty of peanut oil for frying
cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven
thermometer
kitchen tongs

Find Your Top Dog

The Fletchers use custom-made frankfurters, but you can attain a similar taste with any dog made from a beef-and-pork combination or with the beef-only kosher variety from Nathan’s or Hebrew National. “The main thing is that you need a firm dog,” says Skip. “A mushy one just doesn’t work.” Spear the dog of your choice with a Popsicle stick, leaving at least three fingers’ worth exposed for an easy grip. Set aside.

Batter Up

“Corny dogs are simple,” says Skip, “but they ain’t easy.” The difficulty lies with the corny dog’s coat: the batter. A few wrong moves and the result is disastrous—too mealy, too runny, too thick. Some tips: (1) Do not use stone-ground cornmeal unless you enjoy the texture of concrete mix. (2) Add water last—and slowly—so you can control the batter’s viscosity; aim for a consistency slightly thicker than pancake batter. (3) Do not overbeat or your dog will be too chewy.

The Frying Game

Frying is like lifeguarding: Looking away for even one minute can be catastrophic (and in this case yield a gnarly, burnt Frank­enfurter). The quintessential corny dog resembles a beautiful golden-brown torpedo. Complete submersion is ideal for this look, but you can get away with a cast-iron skillet and three inches of oil. Once the oil reaches 365 degrees, dredge the skewered dog in the batter and fry each side for three to three and a half minutes. Remove the dog with tongs, allow the excess oil to drip off, and cool on paper towels.

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I think one of the pro tips is to coat the dog in flour before you dip it in the batter. This helps the batter stick to the dog. We tried making them several years ago without much success, the batter wanted to come loose from the dog.  

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1 minute ago, RMac5 said:

I think one of the pro tips is to coat the dog in flour before you dip it in the batter. This helps the batter stick to the dog. We tried making them several years ago without much success, the batter wanted to come loose from the dog.  

For sure... you need to make sure all of the moisture is off of the hotdog before dipping it in the batter. Mine worked great by just wiping down the hotdog with a paper towel right before coating it.

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2014 is the only other time I've missed the game in the last 25 years and I did the recipe TonyTexas posted above I'm pretty sure.  They turned out pretty good as I recall but I also re-created the fair experience by starting drinking at 7am and fried them up just before kickoff at 10:45 or so.  I might try Mitch's recipe this year.

 

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11 hours ago, RMac5 said:

Curious about an Earl Campbell hotlink dipped in a hatch green chile batter, might have me a project this weekend.

I think you'd have problems with the amount of juice that hot link is going to sweat when cooking.

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21 hours ago, RMac5 said:

Curious about an Earl Campbell hotlink dipped in a hatch green chile batter, might have me a project this weekend.

I'm really thinking about making homemade corn dogs this weekend since I won't be going to the Fair. Thinking about trying some different sausages in addition to standard hot dogs. I see the concern about using sausage but maybe I'll use some HEB jalapeno dogs or something too.

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Yeah I didn’t think about them being juicy/greasy. Might try to cook the hotlink first then batter and fry it. Thinking I might mince up a bunch of green chiles and let them sit in the batter overnight to help infuse the flavor. Anxious to see how yours turn out if you do make them.

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I did a test run for dinner last night using Mitch's recipe and they turned out pretty f'n good. I used my turkey fryer and about 3" of peanut oil in a fish pan. At some point my flame went out, so the oil dropped from 350 to 285, then back to 350 after a relight, so they didn't cook consistently, but I don't think it affected the taste, maybe just the color. I made my own cup of batter and mixed in some Nashville hot seasoning for a little kick. My kids are always my biggest food critic, and they loved them. My oldest daughter even said "I don't usually like corny dogs but these are so good." All I need is my wax cups and some trailer trash telling me Texas sucks and I'm set.56d0f01562d3897d783e3835110644bc.jpg

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On 10/6/2020 at 12:38 PM, Mitch Cumsteen said:

For sure... you need to make sure all of the moisture is off of the hotdog before dipping it in the batter. Mine worked great by just wiping down the hotdog with a paper towel right before coating it.

Moisture. Blah blah. Mom wiped down my hotdog last night.  Blah blah.  Coated her afterward.  Blah blah 

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Simpleton question since I down own a deep fryer and haven’t cooked in oil like that before.  I planned on using the oil in iron skillet method, but how long and at what level of heat does it take to heat/maintain oil to 350?  

Can I just use a meat thermometer?

Has anyone tried wrapping the dog with cheese on the dog prior to batter?

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1 hour ago, Enchubben said:

Simpleton question since I down own a deep fryer and haven’t cooked in oil like that before.  I planned on using the oil in iron skillet method, but how long and at what level of heat does it take to heat/maintain oil to 350?  

Can I just use a meat thermometer?

Has anyone tried wrapping the dog with cheese on the dog prior to batter?

A lot of meat thermometer only go up to 220. 

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2 hours ago, TonyTexas said:

A lot of meat thermometer only go up to 220. 

I use my Thermapen to check oil temp all the time when I'm frying okra in the cast iron.

It can take a little time to get to 350-375 on the stove but it's best to build slowly to that temp because if you go over, it takes awhile to get it back down to the preferred temp window.

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5 hours ago, Enchubben said:

Simpleton question since I down own a deep fryer and haven’t cooked in oil like that before.  I planned on using the oil in iron skillet method, but how long and at what level of heat does it take to heat/maintain oil to 350?  

Can I just use a meat thermometer?

Has anyone tried wrapping the dog with cheese on the dog prior to batter?

I used a cast iron skillet for mine and I'd never used it for cooking in oil like that either until I tried corn dogs. It's not that complicated but As C-Man said, build slowly on the temp. I went over and had to wait probably 15-30 minutes to bring it back down and then adjust it back up. My mistake was starting it on high and then it zoomed right past 350.  Try medium heat and let it come up slowly. I used a candy thermometer and it was perfect.

I don't know about wrapping in cheese. I think you would run the risk of the batter not sticking to the cheese or the cheese not sticking to the dog. 

 

 

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Ok; ordering a candy thermometer on amazon. Probably wont be here in time for cooking before the game tomorrow but that's fine.  Might do one or two with cheese and report back. I think I saw people wrapping cheese on the dog and putting it in the freezer to help it stick before dipping in batter.  I had planned on cutting up a jalepeno to include in the batter as well. 

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24 minutes ago, Enchubben said:

Ok; ordering a candy thermometer on amazon. Probably wont be here in time for cooking before the game tomorrow but that's fine.  Might do one or two with cheese and report back. I think I saw people wrapping cheese on the dog and putting it in the freezer to help it stick before dipping in batter.  I had planned on cutting up a jalepeno to include in the batter as well. 

They have them at most grocery stores. 

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4 hours ago, Enchubben said:

Ok; ordering a candy thermometer on amazon. Probably wont be here in time for cooking before the game tomorrow but that's fine.  Might do one or two with cheese and report back. I think I saw people wrapping cheese on the dog and putting it in the freezer to help it stick before dipping in batter.  I had planned on cutting up a jalepeno to include in the batter as well. 

Second what Hank_Hill said--that you can find them at most grocery stores in the kitchen wares aisle. Or, you can grab a piece of bread and cube it and toss a chunk in every so often to test.

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