“I grew up eating it that way.” “I love the sweet-and-savory combo.” “You put mustard on it – why not ketchup?” Those three statements and others in a similar vein encapsulate why we eat ketchup on our hot dogs. For those of you who grew up eating ketchup on your juicy, crisp hot dogs, you should know that you came by this foodie habit honestly. There’s even a scientific study out of Aston University which tells us something we already know. That is, we often inherit our parents’ eating habits. If those eating habits included eating frankfurters with plenty o’ ketchup, then chances are, you eat this combo today, (well, any combo really, as long as it was one that your parents also consumed).
Some historical accounts suggest that people have been eating ketchup — also known as catsup — on their weiners since at least the late 1800s. All of this means, of course, that if your parents ate ketchup on their hot dogs, they probably had the habit passed down to them, too. This attitude will likely prove to be a head-scratcher for those who embrace the stance that the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council takes, which is that no one over 18 should eat ketchup on hot dogs. Eating hot dogs with ketchup is a 200-year-old fight backed by lots of tradition and even more hot dogs. The not-over-18 crowd probably doesn’t stand a chance.
Ketchup and hot dogs are savory and sweet
Franks definitely fall into the savory category of food, particularly if you love hot dogs stuffed with ingredients like jalapeno and cheese care of companies like Berks. They are bites of umami through and through — in fact, it’s the umami punch of frankfurters that drives people to add squirts of mustard to their dogs. A squirt of two of the yellow stuff augments the already-savory flavor even further. This style of hot dog is a big deal in places like Chicago, where mustard, sliced tomatoes, and celery salt make up the city’s hot dog DNA.
However, for those who like to combine sweet and savory flavors together in one big bite, ketchup-topped hot dogs in a bun just make sense. As far as condiments go, ketchup, with slightly sweet tomatoes and either sugar or corn syrup at its base, ranks among the sweetest of all the condiments.
While it’s not quite the sweet-and-savory combo that, say, pineapple on pizza is, it still has a place among food combos. However, some detractors of the ketchup-and-hot-dog combo solemnly refuse to eat it. They argue that ketchup acts as a mask to the wiener’s flavor, but in this case, that’s the point.
However, it’s hard to achieve sweet and savory without ketchup on your dog of choice, so if that gives the frank a character that’s only very loosely like pineapple pizza, then so be it. It’s a legit American hot dog style, and it’s unlikely to go anywhere anytime soon.
