All For The Topping

[Powder]

I had a hot dog today & realized I mainly only enjoy them for what they get topped with. They go hand in hand with pickle relish, ketchup, brown spicy mustard, onions, etc. It's only when they're dressed up in such a way that I like them. The taste of a hot dog itself is very off-putting to me, but that combination of condiment/veggie blend is killer.

Made me think about some other stuff in a similar vein, like how sometimes you only crave a certain fast food item because of that special sauce it's got. You don't really want a burger right now, but you can't stop thinking about that zesty goop they slopped on it. You want that zesty goop. The burger is merely the vessel which carries that zesty goop into your guts, 'cause we're civilized creatures & ought not make a meal of zesty goop alone.

A Chinese food spot near me has these delicious boneless spare ribs I was super hooked on for a while. Like, I legit believed there was an addictive additive added to it. I fiended more for that dish than any cigarette I ever smoked, a habit I had indulged for almost a decade. But real talk? The pork is just OK. Half of is tough & dry, the other half is just big globules of fat passed off as meat. The rice is bland at best, they seldom toss in an egg roll. But that sauce? Oh my God. That super sweet, gooey, blood red liquid soul-gasm was what kept me coming, you could put it on a sneaker & I'd say grace.


So what are some foods you really only go for due to what's on it?

[Andrew NDB]

I can't eat hot dogs anymore. I had a bad one at work with some funky sauerkraut and got home and was wretching something fierce for hours. Now if I even contemplate eating a hot dog, I mentally taste that hot dog coming back up.

Maybe Korean BBQ? I love the dipping sauce for the meat, particularly paired with the thinly sliced brisket. Heavenly. It, like, melts in your mouth.

[Utrommaniac]

Sometimes, just ketchup and mustard (if I feel like tolerating it) is all I need. Usually on a movie theater black angus hot dog. That's some good sh!t right there. Bratwurst on its own is a thing of magnificence (unless paired with mac and cheese...which is where I'd make a joke regarding my signature, but that would be dated by the time I change it)


Other than that, I'm usually a chili & cheese person.

[Candy Kappa]

For hotdogs, I'm usually very plain unless I buy a fancy one at a stand. But at home it's Heinz ketchup, fried onion and sweet mustard.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

I'm normally not much of a burger person ( since I work around them eveey day), but put pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, and some mayo on it, and I'm there. Hotdogs, it's mustard and relish. And I love me some nuggets with sauce, though plain nuggets I can take or leave.

[Candy Kappa]

Sweet Baby Ray BBQ sauce can go with everything, everything

[IndigoErth]

I dunno, that's interesting, I'm not really sure I can say I've done that. Food with certain toppings, sauces or whatnot, but it's generally the whole thing I crave.

Originally Posted by Powder

'cause we're civilized creatures & ought not make a meal of zesty goop alone.

Ah, why not. Just call it the "astronaut diet."

Gotta word it right. "Meatless orange chicken" sounds a lot better than "I had an orange chicken sauce packet for dinner." lol

[DarkFell]

I can do anything from chili dog to straight up hotdog with cheese, diced onions, and ketchup. I also enjoy a good smoked sausage dog and a good Brat(wurst) dog.

I really loved those Chili Cheese Coney Dogs from Sonic though.

[Powder]

Why did you people turn this into a hot dog thread?

[Sobble]

Cool story

[Cure]

Originally Posted by Powder

Why did you people turn this into a hot dog thread?

Because they didn't read the whole thing.

[KROW]

I don't think you can fully talk about toppings unless you're talking pizza. Dough, tomato sauce, and cheese is fine but dammit, you really gotta enhance that pie if you want a full-on food experience. My go-to is always meat; the more meat, the better. Bacon, sausage, pepperoni, meatballs, ham, chicken, pour it on. Also, exchange that tomato sauce for BBQ sauce, ranch dressing, or even Alfredo sauce and give your mouth a surprise.

I've tried other things but they never floated my boat. Onions tasted gross, mushrooms were a "meh," black olives smell horrible, and pineapple is a big nope. I want to give peppers a try but every time someone puts them on a pizza they have to couple it with onions. Come on, now. And anytime my family orders, we always forget and just go with the safe items to make sure it gets eaten.

Another food you can't really talk about unless toppings are involved is the sundae or parfait. Syrups, fudges, drizzles, sprinkles, nuts, you just gotta have 'em all on there or else what are you doing with your life? My favorites are peanut butter and chocolate hot fudges with Reese's Pieces, whipped cream, sprinkles, and peanuts.

And it doesn't stop at ice cream; frozen yogurt's a great example of getting hog wild. Put some brownies in there or some sponge cake or hell, even some friggin' Gummi Bears. Depending on the flavor of the yogurt, I'll put some honey grahams, chocolate chips, white yogurt chips, or shovel some Fruity Pebbles on there. Good stuff.

[Sobble]

I thought this was a best pizza toppings thread but I read the story

[Candy Kappa]

The KFC gravy, chicken's good but that damn gravy is divine and I was super disappointed when I found out the sad way that the KFCs in Poland don't have it, at least not in Gdansk.

[ProactiveMan]

Nachos. Corn chips are amongst the blandest foods in the world, but they make real good edible spoons.

[Utrommaniac]

I've had a black garlic 'puree' for a while that I will find uses for.


Namely, for the black garlic burger from Bob's Burgers. Mix it with mayo, and it is an experience.

It adds a whole different level of flavor to a lot of my cooking, just not necessarily as a "topping" by itself.

[Candy Kappa]

Originally Posted by Powder

Why did you people turn this into a hot dog thread?

It was a nice item to latch on to so I could shift into topping mode

Which reminds me that the sweet mustard I mentioned in my first post. I use it on almost any foodstuffs, hotdogs, pizza, burgers, grilled cheese sandwich, omelette, eggs & bacon. Sometimes I have just the mustard when I need dipping for my fries. I even had it on slices of bread with salami. And I'm not a huge fan of regular mustard or other mustard types , maille dijon is okay, but no mustard beats this golden runny sweet hotdog-mustard

[CyberCubed]

I only eat plain hot dogs and plain pizza. Regular cheeze pizza is all you need