Few foods carry as much cultural weight or as little formality as the hot dog. Endlessly adaptable and instantly recognizable, it’s both a fixture of the American summer and a blank canvas for interpretation.
The humble hot dog is our current culinary fixation and perhaps the edible embodiment of our philosophy ‘The Art of Casual Living’. Our pursuit of this ethos permeates everything we do, including what we cook and how we gather. This season, we’ve been grilling our own new-age hot dogs at Hudson Wilder events. Now, we’re finally sharing how to make our Kimichi Curry Hot Dogs at home. Read on for the recipe.
At its core, the hot dog is fast, familiar, and functional. A New York street staple, served with few frills and even less ceremony. But its enduring appeal lies in its versatility whether it’s wrapped in foil from a corner cart or hot off the grill at a friend’s backyard barbecue. It’s casual, but never boring and somehow always exciting regardless of how old we are.
Its origins trace back to Europe, to the frankfurters of Germany and the wieners of Austria, brought to the U.S. by 19th-century immigrants who introduced these sausages to the streets of New York. By the early 1900s, the term “hot dog” had entered the lexicon, and the format had found its footing as an urban essential: quick to serve, easy to eat, and quietly democratic in its accessibility. It became a fixture at baseball stadiums and Coney Island boardwalks, a rare constant in a rapidly changing country.
Today, the hot dog is being redefined through an Asian lens. From okonomiyaki-style toppings in Japan to sugar-dusted, battered versions in Korea, these interpretations are not just playful, but also add new global and cultural layers.
Endlessly reinvented, yet never out of reach, the hot dog remains a source of delight. So much so, it’s even found its place beyond the plate. As Gr8 Collab’s Emma Chozick first reported: hot dogs are the hottest thing in design, covering Herman Miller’s reissue of their 1973 Hot Dog Picnic poster and Gohar World’s Coney Island summer campaign.
Radical design group Jonald Dudd has long drawn inspiration from the hot dog, which appears throughout their branding and portfolio. In their most recent group show during NYCxDesign, their installation included a full hot dog cart (sadly, no hot dogs were served). Functional, playful, and oddly elegant, the hot dog is being treated as a cultural object in its own right.
[insert image of HW Kimchi Curry Hot Dog]
Kimchi Curry Hot Dogs Recipe
Ingredients
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4 beef hot dogs (Sabrett or Nathan’s recommended)
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4 brioche buns
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½ cup napa cabbage kimchi, finely shredded
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1 packet S&B Japanese curry
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Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish
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Silgochu (Korean shredded red pepper), for garnish
Instructions
1. Prepare the Curry Sauce
Cook the S&B Japanese curry according to the package instructions. Once cooked, blend until smooth using an immersion blender or countertop blender to create a thick, pourable curry sauce.
2. Grill the Hot Dogs
Grill the hot dogs over medium heat until nicely charred and heated through, about 5–7 minutes.
3. Toast the Buns (Optional but Recommended)
Lightly toast the brioche buns on the grill or in a hot pan until golden and warm.
4. Assemble the Hot Dogs
Place a hot dog in each bun. Spoon over the curry sauce generously. Top with shredded kimchi, fresh cilantro, and a pinch of silgochu.
5. Serve
And enjoy in good company, always.