Recipe: Almost Flint-Style Coney Sauce (Hot Dog Chili)

ALMOST FLINT-STYLE CONEY SAUCE (HOT DOG CHILI)

1 1/2 lbs ground beef
4 or 5 hot dogs*
1 Tbs shortening
1 Tbs unsalted butter
1 tsp minced garlic**
1 Tbs prepared yellow mustard
6 oz water
6 oz tomato sauce***
3 Tbs mild chili powder
Kosher salt and pepper

Equipment:
1 (12-inch) skillet
1 colander
1 old-fashioned hand-driven meat grinder (see notes)
1 (8x 8-inch) glass dish
1 (2-quart) sauce pan with a lid

Brown the ground beef in the skillet till itʹs nice and tender. Dump it into the colander and let it drain. Push on the browned meat in the colander with the back of a spoon until most the grease is out, and then dump the meat into the sauce pan.

Install discs onto the front of the meat grinder for a fairly small grind and grind the hot dogs into the glass dish. After digging the rest of the ground hot dogs out of the inside of the grinder, add the ground hot dogs to the browned meat. With the exception of the chili powder and the salt and pepper, add the remaining ingredients to the sauce pan and mix it all as completely as possibly.

Start heating the sauce on the stove over medium heat. When it comes to a simmer, cover the saucepan, set the burner for low heat, and let the sauce simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching.

Add the chili powder to the sauce and stir it in well. Check the flavor of the sauce and add the salt and pepper to taste. Cover the sauce again and let it simmer another 10 minutes to let the flavor develop.

Serve on grilled Koegel Viennas in natural casings on decent (not wimpy) steamed, grilled or toasted buns, all topped with a squiggle of a rich yellow prepared mustard and some chopped onion.

*The hot dogs you grind up will affect the flavor of the finished sauce. Using Koegel Viennas for this makes a lot of sense.

**Don't use garlic powder instead of minced garlic. It's not the same.

***Tomato sauce comes in 8 oz cans, but you should only use 6 oz.

NOTES:
- While it's possible to grind the hot dogs in a food processor, a better texture is created by using an old-fashioned hand meat grinder. These are available in specialty and antique shops, commercial food equipment dealers, and the cooking section of Cabela's in Dundee.

- There are versions of this recipe that say to add onions, not to brown the ground beef first, and slow-cook it all day long. Not everyone likes onions, not browning the ground beef first means greasy sauce later, and if you do use a crock pot for this, add the chili powder, salt and pepper later in the cooking process.

Source: Grand Rapids Press , October 15, 2007