Hi Steve,
I have a new gig coming up this winter with my great little hot dog cart, HOT DIGGITY. I will be at a Mall in Marin County, CA where I operate the cart. The Mall wants me to have Mall hours, which are considerably longer than I normally operate. I boil my hot dogs and I can only imagine how the water will look after 8 hrs or service. Other than changing pans and water are there any other tips or suggestions you and your readers might have for me?
Thanks Joan Miller Mill Valley, CA
P.S. Steve, you did a great job on my website!
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Good question Joan (and I’m glad you like the website we built for you!) There are two schools of thought here.
One: The “dirty water dog” crowd swears that the longer the water goes unchanged, the more flavor it imparts to the hot dog.
Two: The other group swears that “dirty water” will scare away customers.
The fact is that as long as the water stays above 140 degrees the entire time it will be safe, however it does look a bit… dirty.
I usually do one to three hour gigs so my water isn’t an issue, but I bet we have plenty of readers who will chime in on this one!
Have at it slingers!
-Steve
Dear Joan,
You bring some extra water with and you skim off using a ladle from time to time some of the grease/dirty looking water which will float to the top. You re-add new/clean water, continuing this process of skimming of the water periodicly throughout the day.
Jim
Great tip Jim. Thank you!
I don’t change my water. Over my 4 to 5 hour shift I believe the dogs may get a little tastier, but my dogs are already considered to be the best tasting dogs around. I would think if you have a bland tasting dog leaving the water for some time might improve the flavor. Try eating one of your dogs with nothing on it , then after the water looks dirty try another dog with nothing on it. As Steve said, as long as you keep the temp up you should be ok.
Bruce’s Hot Dog Cartel.
Thanks Bruce. I’m about to try the chili recipe you sent me, hopefully this weekend. Can’t wait!
just as long as they dont turn into dog stew.
Now granted I have only been operating for 6 months, and operate 3 to 4 hours.., I do not change the water, I too am of the belief that the dogs are better tasting. IMHO…
I’m with you Mark, I’ve never changed the water but my shifts are rarely longer than 4 hours.
I guess I would go dump the water in the down time when not busy and restart a new batch:)
Thanks Shelley!
Good question indeed and definitely will be a concern to a few costomers…a few. A good way that I have handled this is to tell them it has the “secret sauce” in the water that makes the dogs look good. “I would love to share it with you, but then I’d have to kill you. A good laugh and good bite later, I have a happy, unconcerned customer. Good luck!
“I would love to share it with you, but then I’d have to kill you.”
HA!
I put beef boullion cube in my water so it looks dirty from the get go. I do get worried about the flavor from the dogs leaching out or getting water logged after several hours. Maybe I should not be concerned but I have only been out twice so I don’t have a lot of experience to share.
A lot of doggers use bullion cubes to add flavor. Whenever you try a new method, always taste test every half hour or so to be sure the dogs still taste like they should. Once you have your process down you won’t need to taste them every half hour (but I can’t seem to help it, lol) Congratulations on getting started Marge!!!
I ran into this same problem when I started doing LOWES. Some days I would sell Hot Dogs faster than I could make them and other days I would have them sitting in water forever. So I would go back & forth from water to steam to keep them fresh because even the best dog will get waterlogged if it stays in water for hours at a time. After about 3 months of this I bought a Hot Dog roller grill that holds 24 dogs and put it on my cart and set the heat setting to warm, so if i had dogs left over from the lunch crowd I just put them on the roller grill & keep them warm. This also does something else for you that some doggers don’t relize. It’s eye candy for impulse dog sells for someone thats trying to decide what to eat for lunch. It’s a great marketing tool to have if you have access to power. It sure works good for me. GOOD LUCK !
Great tip Kenny and we’re all glad you got your stolen carts and trailer back!
Grand Junction and Denver Colorado. Just a couple in Grand Junction. He went to culinary school and ran a couple of large restaurants years ago in Grand Junction.
I just wanted to mention that he is quick to jump up and open his steam pan when they ask what does he have, and he shows and picks the different sausage and hot dogs that he has. I started doing that too. I think it helps make a sale and whets the appetite.
I do a flavored dog with spices and the water looks colored and I slap it on a bun they bite, I ask how it is? They do thumbs up. If anyone asks, all I have to tell him or her is the spices color the water.
I work a bar years ago. It had an electric pot we kept water in. The owner had a hot sausage and another type that really sold. When the water turned like a reddish brown the sausages were even tastier. He had just changed it every 3 or 4 days and started over. Everyone loved his sausage and for years I hustled 9-ball in his pool hall and I do not ever remember hearing of anyone getting sick.
You’ve led a colorful life Boo. I wouldn’t hold the water that long though, lol!
Steve,
This was indoors. Room temperature was the same because he was practically open 24 hours. After the second day it was more like a slow cooked gravy. They smoke meat in some places 48+ hours.
OK… Just sayin’…
When we first started I had a similar problem. I read through the forums and talked to other vendors. Our solution was to change over to a false bottom steam pan set up and steam the dogs instead. We immediately started getting compliments on a better tasting dog and sales increased so we never looked back. Also you can get that small amount of water to temp faster. Noticed Steve built your site, he built mine too and we are thrilled with results! http://streeteatstn.com/
I boil my dogs first to get them up to temp quickly, then I transfer them to a perf pan steamer setup just like you described Sam. It works great for longer holding times.
Glad you like your website and the results you are getting! We spent a long time developing the customer email list feature that tells your customers where you will be, what your specials are, etc. It works a lot better than Facebook because it sends an email to the customer. Everyone has email and checks it many times a day. Half the population isn’t on Facebook and those who are don’t check it nearly as often. Email is still the king.
We are still building and installing these sites for HDCN readers at no cost so if anyone wants a free website for their hot dog biz with the powerful email notification functionality please go to http://www.HotDogCartWebsites.com and click on the green “FREE” button.
I also run into the long times of vending as long as 9+ hours. Lucky most of time I sell what I make. The problem I have is the dogs start to lose that nice pink color and start to turn a brownish color(rust?) When that happens I just take the dogs out and put new ones in (rather have a few to take home I know are good then sell one that someone may think is not quite right)! I also try to keep my heat to the lowest burner setting helps to keep dogs longer. Sell em’ all.
The dogs with a higher fat content turn brown faster. They are still perfectly good to eat, however you are right Jerry – some customers may wonder about them. On the other hand I had a regular customer who would request “one of the well done ones” every time he came to my cart. 🙂
Glad the you got the carts back! I’ve been scrutinizing every cart I see in Tallahassee ,Fl (They probably think I’m a stalker!)
Thanks for keeping your eyeballs peeled Jack.
What a great bunch of folks we have here at Hot Dog Profits. I love you all (in a manly, food vending way of course, lol)!
Some great tips here. I have several thoughts. I usually do special events where my water has to last up to 12 hours as there is usually no place to dump it plus the time it would take to warm up the fresh water would be prohibitive. Dumping it in the holding tank would create some everlasting odor problems I’m afraid. What I do is set up what I call a boiler in which I bring the dogs to temperature then transfer them to a steam type holding pan. (Just a pan with a small rack in the bottom to keep them out of the small amount of water I keep in there to create steam) When that pan gets a bit low I put more in the boiler and transfer again. The water never seems to get too bad as I don’t let the dogs soak in there very long. I use the same set up for my pre-cooked sausages. At the end of the day I take the boil water home with me in a container that I keep for that purpose. This allows me to keep my rotation going and not leave them in either the steamer or the boiler for very long, which produces a nice crispy dog.
Right on. NEVER dump your cooking water in the waste water holding tank. I bring a separate 7 gallon jug just for that purpose.
I use the exact same cooking method. Works great. Thanks Dick!
One thing I forgot to say when you know you have many hours on your feet and no help(relief) in sight. 1. make sure you go to the washroom before you start. 2. sip gatoraid or other high potassium loaded drinks (they help with leg cramps later on after the day is done) by sipping your body uses the drink to help retain water and less chance of having to go more often. I use this in the Summer when I have a few events that can go for 12 hours. I have no relief person so I am on my own. I once needed a tank of LP and a fellow vendor offered to help me out and sold a few dogs while I was gone(refills were within walking dis.) The only trouble was he did not know where things were. Sell em’ all
Good things to think about, especially number one. No pun intended…
I put beef boullion cube in my water. I also use the water logged dogs on the grill and char then for smoke it attracts customers
Great tip. Smell is a BIG draw. Thank you Joe!
I dumped my cooking water in the grey water tank and when it cooled down the fat content hardened and now when I drain the grey water tank, the spigot clogs up. Now I carry a separate container for my ‘hot dog water’. Live and learn I guess.
I’ve made my share of mistakes too Randy. Live and learn is a motto of mine 😉
Our first special event is coming up in a few weeks. It will be a ten hour day. I will try the false bottom steamer pan. Thanks for the good advice from all you other slingers. “Happiness is a warm bun”.
Yes, it is…
Hello All,
My solution was to invest in a second set of pans. If the gig only goes 4 hours I keep the same pans. At the end of the shift I dump the waste water into a separate 7 gallon waste water tank and then I pop in the new pans in place to be ready for the next day. When my hot dog gig goes longer than four hours I just insert a new boiling water pan. My EZbuilt cart heats the water up in no time. The steam table water stays clear for a long time (8 hours or more) so I don’t change it out until I’m done for the day. I’m with Steve…don’t Ever put waste water down the sink!
A second set of pans would come in handy -Thanks Mary Jayne!
I finally opened my stand this week. I started the week, boiling my dogs. I am there for about 5 hours per day. So, being no expert, I found that I didn’t like how the dogs looked after a while in the water, so I decided to steam them. The flavored water sits below & I add more water as needed. The smell is there & some of the sugars from the dogs make a nice outer sort of glaze on the dogs. I also found that I am using less fire to keep them up to temperature.
Good for you Greg! Congrats on your start up!!!
Is there any differance in boiling your dogs or steaming them ? I never did boil them before, is there any differance in tast or Texture after boiling.?
Not that big a difference. Boiling produces a somewhat softer dog, steaming keeps the texture “snappier”.
What do you clean the hot dog water pan with. Get stains around the rim that is hard to clean.
I use a scotch-brite pad and cleanser. If it’s really bad you can use oven cleaner.
I put beef bullion in my boiling water. It turns the water brown, and adds a nice flavor to the dogs. I am at a flea market where I cook dogs from about 8:30/9:00 am to about 2:30 pm. I use the same water in the boiler for about 6 hours. I do add water to the boiler all during the day, which lessens this problem. It has never been an issue in over a year at this gig. If you serve a good Hot Dog, people will line up for them. I often see the same people every week end. Also, I have had the health department visit me at the flea market, to inspect, and watch how I conduct myself, and there has not been a water issue with the extended useof the same water, just as long as the temp is at 140 degrees where it belongs.
You’ve been there a year already Paul?!!! Time flies when you’re having fun. Thanks for the great comment!
I add 2 chipolte chile & 1 garlic ” bouillion” cubes to the water as soon as I start heating it up….and i NEVER change the water…people LOVE EM’! !!
Wow, sounds good!
I do a few long events and I have extra set of pans that I change out, this makes clean up easier for me, keeps my cart (pan area cleaner) and most of all makes me happy. I agree with steve that if you keep your temps correct it will not matter except for how it looks. I prefer to have clean pans. At these special few event that last from 0600 am to 12:00 pm I normally change my pans at 3 pm.
DUGGS DOGGS
GOOD!! GOOD!!
The best looking hot dog man in Georgia must have the best looking pans too!
“He had just changed it every 3 or 4 days and started over.” for real? yuck!!!
Bringing them to a boil in the beef water and then move the dogs to a steamer. When I throw in cold dogs in the beef water I know the servable ones are in the steamer. I don’t leave dogs in the water though after they are at serve temp. I have seen some dogs and sausages explode in boiling water…and then you really have dirty water dogs.
Exploding hot dogs! Wear your safety goggles folks 😉
Steve,
love all you do, I am slowly starting out in the cart world, I was wondering if any of youre reader use a generator I have a trailer and need to power it with a generator but looking for something quiet. I have a regular generator but is load. any ideas? thank you mike
The four stroke generators are a lot quieter Mike. Hondas seem to be popular among my readers.
Joan, A friend of mine from NY used to heat up a cheap dog to add flavor to his water, then put in his selling dog for the public. I put in a cap or two of Dales Marinade to help flavor my water, and never, and I do mean never get rid of the water until I’m done for the day or night, no mater how long the hours. And why are clients looking into your water anyway? i show them the dog and then serve them, I’m not trying to sell the water!! You will lose your great taste of the dog you’re trying to make a market hit of if you continually change the water while working. Just don’t do it!!
I’m not trying to sell the water!!
Good point Carl, lol!
I’m going to try to flavor the water a bit more by putting in a few chopped onions, just can not sell to anyone that is alergic to same. Will let you know how it goes.
Interesting…
Gentlemen…
From the start…Just Aqua
1 Hour later 10 oz. of Heineken goes into the aqua
2 Hour Two teaspoons of onions into the aqua
3 Hour A little chopped garlic into the aqua
4 Hour …count the $$ smell sells
joe
Smell sells for sure! Thanks Joe!
I have a client that is highly allergic to onions in any form and I for one l
like the EMS folks in our area, but don’t want them doing CPR or whatever at my cart on his account.
Being from New England and having spent several years in NY Dirty water dogs are the best…. If you change the water you ruin you dogs. I am from Maine and we had Red Snappers that died the water red If I went someplace and the water was not red I moved on. I will be serving Red Snappers soon to Indiana Cannot wait we began the cart construction today and are using Steve’s videos to convert an electric cart to a propane cart with everything I need… Cannot wait as I said… I will be posting pics later of my Neon Red Cart! I also have family in Arkansas and hope next year to be ableto go see them and Steve is just an hour off the path I take so maybe I can go get one of his dogs meet hime in person and take him some Snappers to try!
Bernie
snappershotdogs.com
Follower of Steve! lol