For all the haute cuisine, food trends, it's always the
comfort foods that satisfy the most.   There is one reason why the humble hot dog is so popular....it tastes good.
This post will NOT get into that debate, ie: which city has the best hot dog...pure nonsense.  Does it always have
to be "the best"????  Can't they all be good?  A Chicago style hot dog, lovingly outfitted in a poppy seed roll,
raw onions, celery salt, sport peppers, neon relish...a celebrity named hot dog at Pinks on Melrose in Hollywood,
a grilled frank in a firm roll from a Toronto cart, a nori and wasabi dressed dog from Japodog in Vancouver,..a
deep fried ripper in a half round pizza roll with fried cottage fries, peppers and onions, from anywhere in North
Jersey,  a thin dog in a soft roll with a dark caramel brown chili sauce from Yacco's in the Lehigh Valley, Pa...
yes..we can go on and on and on...Those early turn of th century enterpreneurs in Coney Island Brooklyn would
never believe how their idea caught on.  A dirty water dog ( the colloquial expression for a NYC water steamed
hot dog cart) is always a treat, especially with some mustard and the NYC onion sauce. A sweet and sour
orange colored stew of onions with tomato, sugar, garlic and seasonings.  Most carts use the packaged
Sabrett (a local Hot Dog maker, and my personal favorite, the hot dogs i mean) onion sauce.  It's very good
and has a distinct taste.  But...let me take you back to my college years, and the hot dog cart at the Northwest
corner of 68th St. and Lexington Ave. 




   Here's my Alma Mater...Hunter College of the City University of N.Y.
I graduated in June of 1980 and attended the school for 4 years.  This is a shot of the old school, which is
at the corner of 68th & Lex, and if you walked to your right out of that door above, you came face to face with
Gus and his hot dog wagon.  A burly short Greek Immigrant who lived across the East River in Astoria,
Queens, he set up shop every day.  Most corners have more than one hot dog wagon, I chose Gus because
his wife made the onion sauce every night.  Not the premade stuff...this was a tribute to all those tasty
Greek ingredients (i love Greek food) that just again, proves that food culture, is the culture of a people.  This
was an immigrant fusion.  A sauce with Hellenic overtones on an American NYC classic...a dirty water dog..
a Sabrett btw.
   Now that's not Gus and his cart, but you get the idea.  It's a NYC
icon.  Some day I must go back to that corner to see if he is still there...however...in this current thread on
traditional foods i'm blogging about...I will pass on to you Gus' sauce..Yes..even back then in 1976 I was
enamored by food and where it came from.  This Food obsession is no passing trend for me. He explained
in great detail how his wife, after dinner was finished and he relaxed, then started to peel the onions, saute'
them and the then simmer in the pot for a few hours for the next morning.  Mmmmm, I can taste the sauce
redolent of oregano and cinnamon (key ingredient here!) on that dirty water dog...Gus gave me his recipe
with such pride..especially since his wife made it...and here I am asking for it, some 18 year old college
freshman...
To start with, let's make a sauce which will go with a least a dozen dogs...Peel and slice 3 yellow onions.
Plunge them into cold ice water and let them sit there for 10 minutes.  Drain and pat dry with paper towels.
In a large skillet heat 1/8 olive oil (try using Kalamata from Greece) and add the onions.  Keep stirring the
onions so they do not burn.
 Sprinkle 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, 1/2 black pepper, and 1 tsp.
oregano over the onions.  Keep stirring and cook for 10 minutes.  Now sprinkle 1 tbs. light brown sugar over them,
and 1 tsp. of Worchestershire Sauce.    Add 1/2 can of tomato paste and 1/8 tsp. of cayenne, 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon.
Careful with this spice as you can lose the balance of flavors with too much of it.  Add 1/2 tsp. of dry mustard.
  Mix this well and let sizzle for a minute.  Then add 1/8 cup
of water.  Stir well and let simmer for  10 minutes on low.  To finish, stir in 3 tbs. of butter, and 1 tsp.apple cider vinegar.
check for seasoning!
and let it cook another 5 minutes, then turn off.  Great to use now, better if you let it sit over night (refrigerated of
course) and use it the next day.   I like larger slices of onion (IT IS HOW GUS DID IT), but you can cut them smaller
if that is your preference.  I will not allow any other changes to Gus' recipe.






Now serve this on a hot dog...tonight we used a local N.J. brand, their called Best's, from the Newark area..my wifes'
favorites...me, i'm a Sabrett man...you can't water steam Best hot dogs, they need to be grilled...know your dog...
some lend themselves better to a particular type of cooking method.  A slice of pickle, mustard, and the onion
sauce...Thank you Gus...and a Yoo-Hoo with that please!