carrot dog A healthier alternative to vegetarian hot dogs. This carrot dog recipe will tempt your taste buds and leave you satisfied! Made in a skillet or grilled outdoors, no one will believe these veggie dogs are made from carrots.
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I’ve heard people rave about carrot dogs for years, but I needed to understand the hype. Of course, I have tried many carrot dog recipes, but I wanted to be more impressed. So, I decided to throw my chef hat in the ring, whip up my carrot dog recipe and see if I could love the beloved carrot dog. And, to my surprise, I finally found a combination that I liked. So, I made Chicago-style carrot dogs!
Jump:
In the past, when I made carrot dogs, they didn’t have the texture or flavor I was looking for. Instead, the carrot dogs I made were soggy and tasted more like carrots than ‘hot dogs’. Although I never really liked hot dogs as a kid, I learned to love them loaded with mustard, ketchup and other toppings.
However, this time, my taste buds took me down a different path, and I have to say, I now love carrot dogs. And the family agreed, which is always the goal.
Choosing carrots for carrot dogs
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As with most recipes, the quality and preparation of the product you choose is sometimes more important than the execution.
For this carrot dog cooking experiment, I decided on 4 organic, similar sized and different colored carrots. Out of curiosity, I wanted to experiment with using different colored carrots to see how they looked after cooking.
Although most recipes suggest boiling for 15 minutes, I set my timer to 10 minutes so my dogs wouldn’t get soggy, as has been my attempt in the past.
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Carrot Dog Marinade Ingredients
Often, when I eat out, I try to taste all the hidden ingredients to make my favorite version of the dish.
Unfortunately, I don’t like the marinades used to make carrot dogs, so this combination is a little different. I’ve been a taste tester all year and try to make my carrot dogs taste like vegan hot dogs instead of real hot dogs. After all, we are vegetarians. Who wants to eat a real hot dog? Yak!
- Vegetable broth: I buy a lot of organic vegetable broth from Costco.
- I willow: I am Willow Umami, providing the savory flavor, is the salty element that people love in hot dogs.
- Vegan Worcestershire Sauce: Vegan Worcestershire Sauce (I like Annie’s)
- Liquid smoke: I used hickory liquid smoke Because I love the flavor, but feel free to pick your favorite flavor.
- Rice Vinegar: Rice vinegar Provide sweetness and acidity to the marinade.
- Maple Syrup: Maple syrup Lightly sweeten the marinade and dull the sharpness of the vinegar.
- Onion Powder: Onion powder seasons the marinade and provides depth of flavor.
- Garlic Powder: Garlic powder also season the marinade.
Replace the carrot dog marinade ingredients
- Instead of vegetable broth, try using Yondu mixed with water
- Gluten-free substitutes for tamari or liquid aminos soy sauce. Or use low-sodium soy sauce to reduce your sodium intake.
- Balsamic vinegar is often used to replace vegan Worcestershire sauce in recipes.
- Choose your favorite liquid smoke flavor or liquid smoke substitute paprika.
- Champagne vinegar is similar to rice vinegar.
- Substitute maple syrup in date syrup or agave recipes.
- If you don’t have onion powder, substitute with more garlic powder or vice versa.
As always, I recommend marinating everything overnight for best results!
How to Make Carrot Dogs
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- Make the marinade and place it in a large ziplock bag or container to cover the carrots.
- Trim and peel the carrots, selecting carrots of roughly the same size.
- In a bowl, add 1 tsp salt and carrots.
- Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Using tongs, gently remove the carrots and run under cold water until they are room temperature and easy to hold.
- Once cooked, you can use a knife on the edges to carve the edges into rounded edges to make them look like real hot dogs.
- Place the cooled, cooked carrots in the marinade and marinate for at least a few hours. I always recommend marinating everything overnight.
- Once the carrot dogs marinate overnight, it’s time to cook the dogs up!
- Way to go slow and low.
- You can cook carrot dogs in a non-stick skillet or grill. Regardless of how you cook them, these veggie dogs turn out perfect only if you use every marinade while cooking.
Skillet method
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- Pour a small amount of marinade into the pan and rotate the dog until all the liquid dissipates; Continue until all the marinade is gone.
- Cook low and slow
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Grill method
- Place on the grill and continuously brush the marinade over the carrot dogs, rotating them and repeating until all the marinade is gone.
- Again, cook low and slow.
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Next, choose an oil-free healthy bun and load up on your favorite toppings We’ve kept it simple with pickle relish and mustard, but here are some more tips to liven up your dog:
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And, if you’re looking for a great side dish, like the Crispy Air Fryer Steak Fries recipe I served up, here are some of my personal favorites:
Instead of opting for a veggie dog, try a healthy carrot dog next time. You might be pleasantly surprised like me!
Chicago style carrot dog ingredients
- Yellow mustard
- Tomato slices
- Jaran is delicious
- Sliced Dill Pickle Spears
- Chop the onion
- Sports pepper
- poppy seeds
Recipe FAQs
They’re smoky sweet, full of umami flavor and made with healthy ingredients you can feel good about. Perfect for your next BBQ or family gathering!
The carrot dogs are marinated in a unique combination of umami flavoring ingredients and seasonings.
Carrots are full of benefits—they can promote healthy vision, balance your blood sugar, help control weight, reduce your risk of cancer, regulate blood pressure, reduce heart disease, improve immunity, and boost brain health.
advice
- Choose carrots of the same size so they cook evenly.
- Wait until the water boils before adding the carrots to the pan.
- Make sure to cook the carrots for 10 minutes, and done!
- For perfectly shaped carrot dogs, boil them first because the edges look like hot dogs when used with a knife.
- Marinate overnight for best flavor.
For your next barbecue, try this easy carrot dog recipe. My husband, a former hot dog lover, says they taste like hot dogs.
Enjoy more vegan recipes!
If you like this carrot dog recipe, give us a 5-star review and comment below. We want to hear from you!
📖 Recipe
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carrot dog
Carrot dogs are a healthy alternative to vegan hot dogs. This carrot dog recipe will tempt your taste buds and leave you satisfied! Made in a skillet or grilled outdoors, no one will believe these veggie dogs are made from carrots.
instructions
Trim and peel the carrots, selecting carrots of roughly the same size.
Add 1 teaspoon of salt and water to a pot and bring to a boil.
Now, add the carrots.
Cook for 10 minutes.
Using tongs, gently remove the carrots and run under cold water until they are room temperature and easy to hold.
In a large plastic bag or container (the width of a carrot, combine all ingredients (I used a large ziplock bag).
Place the carrots gently in the bag and seal, allowing the carrots to marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
Skillet method
Using a non-stick skillet, heat the pan to low and gently place the carrots in the pan.
When the pan reaches temperature, add small amounts of the marinade from the bag and all the carrots until the marinade has spread.
Then, rotate the carrot dogs, add a little more marinade, and repeat this process of rotating and adding liquid until all the liquid is gone from the bag and pan.
Serve on warm buns with your favorite toppings.
Grill method
Heat the grill to low. When it’s preheated, place the carrot dogs directly on the grill.
Using a brush, add the carrot dog marinade as you turn them around until all the liquid is gone.
Serve on warm buns with your favorite toppings.
Comment
- Choose carrots of the same size so they cook evenly.
- Wait until the water boils before adding the carrots to the pan.
- Make sure to cook the carrots for 10 minutes, and done!
- For perfectly sized carrot dogs, boil them first because using a knife will leave the edges looking like hot dogs.
- Marinate overnight for best flavor.
nutrition
Calories: 77kcalSugars: 17gProtein: 2gFat: 0.2gSaturated Fat: 0.03gPolyunsaturated Fats: 0.1gMonounsaturated fats: 0.02gSodium: 532mgPotassium: 342mgFiber: 2gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 10260IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 48mgIron: 1mg
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Oh! My name is Kathy, I am a retired high school English teacher and vegetarian and blogger. My entire blog is completely plant-based vegetarian. I truly believe that what we eat and how we live determines our health and the preservation of our planet! 🙂
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