Smoked Hot Dogs
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Fire up the Traeger! It’s time for a classic summer favorite! These smoked hot dogs are packed with that irresistible wood-fired taste, and they couldn’t be easier to make. Quick, crowd-pleasing, and full of flavor, this is one recipe you’ll come back to all season long.
Pellet Grill Hot Dogs
Judge me if you will, but a good dog is one of my guilty pleasures.
I mean, I love smoked brisket, smoked pulled pork, steak pasta salad, sourdough bread, and other more… ‘grown up’ foods, but a well-cooked ‘dog still has a special place in my heart! Cooking hot dogs on pellet smoker versus a gas grill mimicks the delicious smoke flavor that you can only achieve when cooking over a wood fire.
Smoking hot dogs is one of the easiest ways to produce tasty hot dogs with irresistible smoky flavor, the process is basically hands-off, and a great choice when cooking for a crowd without worrying about flipping or burning.
This easy smoked hot dog recipe is dedicated to a good dog.
Tips
- Don’t scoff at the time this recipe takes! It will be a little longer than you’re used to, but it is an easy recipe – the cooking time is completely hands-off. Cooking over indirect heat, like on a pellet grill, eliminates the possibility of burning the dogs.
- This recipe is written for a Traeger pellet grill, but it will work for any charcoal grill, electric smoker, or offset smoker you’re using!
- You don’t need a Slot Dog to make these hot dogs, but it’s highly convenient! This nifty tool cuts a diamond pattern into your hot dog. These little cuts expand allowing the smoke flavor to penetrate more deeply into the dog. As an added bonus, the cross-cut pattern actually holds on to sauces, rub, and condiments so much better than a smooth dog!
Key Ingredients
Hot Dogs:
Start with your favorite hot dog. All beef, chicken, vegan, or turkey dogs, whatever you love, use that! Use cold, firm, skinless hot dogs, straight from the fridge. Skip the sausage and brats, those are different recipes!
Buns:
In this house, we love fresh baked hot dog buns. A good hot dog depends on good buns and toppings!
Need a bun recipe: Try my Sourdough Hot Dog Buns!
How To Smoke Hot Dogs
- Preheat your smoker to 180f according to manufacturer’s directions.
Remove hot dogs from the fridge and discard any wrapping.
- Use a SlotDog to score the hot dogs on one side. If you don’t have a SlotDog, use a sharp knife to make score marks in the skin in a spiral slice or crosshatch pattern about 1/8″deep along one side. The scoring helps the hot dogs to lay flat once cooked, as well as expands the surface area for capturing smoke flavor.
- Place the scored hot dogs directly on the lower grill grates of your smoker.
Smoke the dogs at 180 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 – 45 minutes. Increase grill temperature to 350f, and cook the dogs for 10 – 15 minutes or until cooked. Internal temperature measured with a meat thermometer should be 160f before removing them from the grill.
- Serve your smoked hot dogs with your favorite toppings! See below for some awesome hot dog topping ideas!
Variations + Substitutions
Batch + Storage
Batch:
This smoked hot dogs recipe as written makes 6 hot dogs but is infinitely scaleable. You can smoke as many or as few as you like!
This recipe is so great for Memorial Day, July 4th, or for any backyard BBQ that you need a quick and easy win.
Storage:
Smoked hot dogs are best eaten fresh, but if you run into a leftover situation, wrap your leftover hot dogs tightly in plastic wrap or place them in an airtight container and store them in the fridge for a day or two. They can be reheated in the microwave.
Recipes To Put That Traeger To Work!
Topping suggestions
Sometimes, you just gotta go beyond yellow mustard and ketchup. The best hot dogs are born out of creativity and delicious hot dog toppings.
Get totally creative and try something like these:
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📖 Printable Recipe
Smoked Hot Dogs
Ingredients
- 6 hot dogs
- 6 buns
- desired toppings
Instructions
- Preheat your smoker to 180f.
- Remove hot dogs from the fridge and discard any wrapping.
- Use your SlotDog to score the hot dogs on one side. If you don’t have a SlotDog, carefully score your dog in a crosshatch pattern about 1/8"deep along one side.
- Place the scored hot dogs on the lower rack of your pellet grill.
- Smoke the dogs at 180f for 30 minutes. Increase grill temperature to 350f, and cook the dogs for 10-15 minutes or until cooked. Internal temperature should be 160f before removing them from the grill.
- Serve with your favorite toppings!
Notes
Batch:
This smoked hot dogs recipe as written makes 6 hot dogs, but is infinitely scaleable. You can smoke as many or as few as you like!Storage:
Smoked hot dogs are best eaten fresh, but if you run into a leftover situation, wrap your leftover hot dogs tightly in plastic wrap and store them in the fridge for a day or two. They can be reheated in the microwave.variations + substitutions
- Flavored dogs: in a small shallow dish, add 1/4 cup of your favorite rub. I love using the leftover rub from my SMOKED PORK PICNICS! Slot the hot dogs, or slice them, then roll them in the rub before placing them on the smoker.
- Sweet dogs: after scoring the hot dogs, brush them with your favorite BBQ sauce before placing them on the smoker.
hot dog topping suggestions
Sometimes, you just gotta go beyond mustard and ketchup!- minced onion
- sauerkraut
- pickled jalapenos
- mac and cheese
- Cold Dog – Chili + cheese
- DLT – dog, lettuce, tomato, and mayo!
- Nacho Dog – GUACAMOLE, cheese, diced onions, and jalapenos.
- 2P Dog – pulled pork, BBQ sauce, and coleslaw.
Recommended Equipment + Ingredients
Nutrition
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I’m getting ready to make this recipe, but what is “theower”?
Good catch! Supposed to say the lower rack of your pellet grill. I will correct right now!
Two questions.
1. I only score one side of the hot dog?
2. Do I need to rotate them periodically?
Yup, score only on one side. I don’t rotate my hot dogs because I found they cook evenly due to the fan in the Traeger!