Now this post will be lost on everyone that’s never visited Rhode Island, but if you know someone from Rhode Island, they might appreciate this.. well they’ll make fun of it, unless they’re vegetarian. This post is me doing my part for the interwebz by providing web-searching vegetarians with a recipe for one of the greatest meals ever created: The Hot Weiner. Step outside Rhode Island and talking about a “hot weiner” will give you all sorts of looks, and maybe a call or two to your HR department. Say it within Rhode Island’s borders and you’ll get that “hurts so good” mmmhmm look. That’s because hot weiners are basically a bomb set to make your insides explode.. but they’re just so damn tasty.
But what is a hot weiner? Well off the top of my head, it’s like a hot dog, in a steamed bun, with spicy mustard, meat sauce, and raw onions on top. Olneyville New York System has mastered the original meat version. According to Wikipedia: The Hot Wiener is a staple in the food culture of Rhode Island. It is typically made from a hot dog made of veal and pork thus giving it a unique and different taste from a traditional hot dog made of beef. Once placed in the bun, the weiner is topped with a meat sauce seasoned with a myriad of spices like cumin, paprika, chili powder and allspice, which is itself covered in finely chopped onions, celery salt and yellow mustard.
Veal and Pork?! Gross.
For almost 5 years now, being a vegetarian has meant no hot weiners. This was a huge delicacy to give up (though had I known I was eating pork and veal it would have been a lot easier), but after watching the showtime series Brotherhood (shot in Providence) I decided to seek out a vegetarian hot weiner recipe. No luck on Google, apparently I’m the only one searching.. or am I? For all you vegetarian former or current Rhode Islanders, here is your awesome tasting recipe for Vegetarian Hot Weiners!
Ingredients:
Olive Oil (for frying pan)
2 yellow onions
1 pack of Morningstar Hot Dogs (in the frozen food section of big supermarkets)
1 bag of Morningstar Meal Starters (in the frozen food section of big supermarkets)
Hot dog buns (We recommend whole wheat buns to keep it low-cal)
Chili Powder
Allspice
Celery Salt (regular salt works fine if you can’t find Celery Salt)
Spicy Brown Mustard
Preparation:
Fill medium to large sized pot with water and cover until water starts boiling.
Add a small amount of Olive Oil to frying pan and set on medium. Wait 1 minute and add Morningstar Meal Starters, mix frequently so they don’t burn.
Remove skins from onions and dice into very small pieces.
Add veggie dogs to boiling water
Steam Hot Dog buns until they are just slightly moist.
Serving:
Place veggie dog in bun, cover in spicy brown mustard, then with Morningstar Meal Starters, and then with diced onions.
Best served with Del’s Lemonade or Coffee Milk.
