Mexican Hot Dog
Mexican hot dogs take the classic hot dog, load it up with slow-cooked caramelized onions, corn, and pickled jalapeños, then pile it into a soft bun with spicy elote mayonnaise. They're simple, loaded with flavor, and fun to make for your next summer fiesta!
Cooking for a crowd? Serve these Mexican hot dogs with our loaded food truck nacho fries, easy sweet potato nachos, or Mexican pasta salad.
Put down the ketchup, here's a hot dog recipe that goes way beyond the bun. We pile delicious Mexican-inspired toppings and homemade elote mayonnaise into a soft bun for an easy meal that's flavorful and fun.
The sweet onions and corn, flavorful elote mayo, and spicy pickled jalapeños compliment hot dogs amazingly well. Once you try a Mexican hot dog you'll make the recipe again and again.
Grill 'em up for your next summer cookout for a twist on the humble hot dog that everyone will love. Serve them with a platter of nachos and a pitcher of watermelon margarita!
How to make Mexican hot dogs
If you've ever wondered how to make Mexican hot dogs, it's really simple. We love to make them on the grill in the summer. Grilling them gives them a nice charred look and taste. Here's how to make them in a few easy steps:
- Start by caramelizing the onions. Cook the onions in a bit of oil over medium heat, stir in a little cumin and oregano, and then continue cooking them until they're soft and wonderfully sweet.
- While the onions cook, prepare the rest of the recipe. Stir the mayonnaise, cojita cheese, and elote seasoning together in a small bowl to make the tasty elote mayo sauce.
- Get your grill ready then cook hot dogs until they are slightly charred and fully cooked. Warm the buns on the grill too, if you'd like.
- Now, assemble them. Slather the buns with some elote mayonnaise, layer in some caramelized onions, a hot dog, some corn, and pickled jalapeños. That's it!
Full recipe instructions are in the recipe card below.
Mexican hot dog ingredients
Here's what you'll need to make the caramelized onions:
- Avocado oil – or another neutral-flavored cooking oil.
- Onions – sliced thin.
- Cumin + oregano – Mexican spices that go so well with onions.
Here's everything you'll need to make the elote mayonnaise:
- Mayonnaise – a neutral-flavored mayo will work the best.
- Cojita cheese – feta makes a nice substitute.
- Elote seasoning – we use our homemade elote seasoning to make the mayo; it only takes about 5 minutes to make (see note in the recipe card below)
This is what you'll need for the Mexican hot dogs:
- Hot dogs – use your favorite kind.
- Hot dog buns – we love brioche buns!
- Corn – fresh, frozen, or canned.
- Pickled jalapeños – try tamed jalapeños if you're sensitive to heat.
Variations to try
While hot dogs are always delicious, it's the toppings that make them so much better. These Mexican-style elote hot dogs are already piled high but here are some other tasty ways to top 'em:
- Grilled bell peppers
- Sliced avocado or guacamole
- Pico de gallo
- Cooked bacon
- Pinto or black beans
- Grilled pineapple
- Shredded cabbage
- Lime wedges
- Cilantro
- Hot sauce
FAQS
To save time, you can prepare the elotes mayonnaise and caramelized onions in advance. Simply store them in the fridge in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.
How to serve Mexican hot dogs
These Mexican hot dogs are a meal on their own but we like to serve them with our sweet and spicy yam wedges or smoky roast potatoes.
Serve them on a big platter at your next fiesta with our easy sweet potato nachos, Mexican pasta salad, or chili lime grilled corn on the cob for a delicious Mexican-inspired menu.
Don't forget to wash them down with one of our ultra-refreshing summer drinks like our fresh pineapple margarita, or pink lemonade margarita, or a rhubarb margarita.
More great hot dog recipes
- Tropical Mango Hot Dogs with Sweet Spicy Mayo
- Hawaiian Hot Dogs with Grilled Pineapple and Teriyaki Mayo
- Hot Dogs with Caramelized Onions
- Chili Dogs
Mexican Hot Dog
If you love this recipe as much as we do, let us know with a 5-star rating!
Ingredients
Mexican Caramelized Onions
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 medium onions, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon EACH: cumin and oregano
Elotes Mayonnaise
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup cojita cheese, can substitute feta cheese
- 1 tablespoon elote seasoning, see notes
Mexican Hot Dogs
- 4 hot dogs
- 4 hot dog buns
- 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
- ¼ cup pickled jalapeños
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a medium-sized frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, stirring a few times. Reduce the heat to medium-low, stir in the cumin and oregano and cook for 5 minutes more.1 tablespoon avocado oil, 1 medium onions, 1 teaspoon EACH: cumin and oregano
- While the onions are cooking, make the rest of the recipe. Combine the mayonnaise, cojita cheese, and elote seasoning in a small bowl.¼ cup mayonnaise, ¼ cup cojita cheese, 1 tablespoon elote seasoning
- Preheat your grill to medium-high. Put the hot dogs on the grill and cook them until they are slightly charred and fully cooked. If you'd like, warm the buns on the grill.4 hot dogs, 4 hot dog buns
- To assemble the Mexican hot dogs, slather the buns with some elote mayonnaise then fill them with the caramelized onions, a hot dog, some corn, and pickled jalapeños.1 cup frozen corn, ¼ cup pickled jalapeños
Notes
- ½ teaspoon sweet paprika
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon coconut sugar
- A squeeze of lime juice
These hot dogs look great! I like to eat Mexican-style more than American-style hot dogs. I also made a Mexican hot dog with my Z Grills pellet smoker. This version features smoked beef franks rolled in lightly browned tortillas (no hot dog buns here) drizzled with hot sauce. Each serving is topped with flavorful garnishes, including sliced olives, jalapeno, and chopped fresh cilantro.