Hot Dog

Method

1. score2 min
   shallow, on the bias
   frankfurters, three or four cuts a quarter-inch deep along each side — the casing shrinks harder than the filling over heat, and these cuts give it somewhere to go instead of splitting open in one long seam
2. poach8 min
   160-180°F / steaming, never bubbling
   frankfurters + water, off a bare simmer with the heat cut to nothing — a frank is already fully cooked, so this is only about carrying the center to serving temperature. A rolling boil agitates the casing until it ruptures and washes fat and cure salt out into the pot, which is exactly the flavor you are trying to keep inside
3. sear3 min
   medium-high, single layer
   drained frankfurters + oil in a skillet, rolling them a quarter turn every 30 seconds until the skin blisters and browns in streaks — they must be dry going in and must not touch each other, or the released steam holds the surface below browning temperature and they turn grey instead
4. toast2 min
   medium, cut faces down
   buns split open + butter on the interior faces, griddled until just gold. The butter waterproofs the crumb so mustard and juices do not soak through and tear the bun, and a warm bun is the difference between one hot dish and a hot frank in a cold sleeve
5. top1 min
   toasted bun + mustard striped down the inside of the bun, then the frank, then any coarse toppings — sauce goes on the bread rather than over the frank because the casing is slick and anything laid on top of it slides off at the first bite