This is an amazing vegan hot dog recipe that I lightly adapted from a 2018 edition of VegNews. I’ve made ’em countless times, and they always turn out great! Below, I’ll show you a step by step guide of how to make vegan hot dogs, so that there is no confusion. Let’s get to it!
How To Make Vegan Hot Dogs: Recipe Video
How To Make Vegan Hot Dogs : Ingredients You’ll Need
- 1 (14-ounce) package extra-firm tofu
- ¼ lightly heaping cup masa harina, or finely ground yellow cornmeal
- ½ lightly heaping cup vital wheat gluten flour
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, or safflower/canola oil
- 1 ½ tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1 ½ tablespoons sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground mace, or nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground mustard
How To Make Vegan Hot Dogs: Step by Step
STEP 1: COMBINE INGREDIENTS IN A PROCESSOR
After pressing the extra-firm or firm tofu for half an hour, crumble it up in a food processor, and then add the vital-wheat gluten and spices. Combine until it forms a sturdy dough, and use the dough blade attachment of your processor if you have one.
STEP 2: FORM THE DOUGH
Once the dough is formed, shape it into an oval about 1/2-inch thick, and then cut into about 8 even portions. After that, roll each portion into 4-inch log-shaped dogs.
STEP 3: WRAP THE TOFU DOGS IN PARCHMENT PAPER AND THEN IN ALUMINUM FOIL
This is the most tedious part of the whole process: cutting the strips of parchment and aluminum foil. You’re going to need about eight strips, about 6-inch wide by 8-inch long, of parchment paper and foil. That should be about enough to easily wrap around the tofu hot dog with margins on the sides, but without completely smothering it in excess paper or foil.
Twist off the ends after wrapping them in parchment and foil to create a seal. Generally speaking, you want to twist in the direction in which you rolled, so that you don’t rip the paper or foil and make a hole through which steam can accumulate.
STEP 4: STEAM THE WRAPPED TOFU DOGS FOR 45 MINUTES
Break out your steamers, get a fair bit of water boiling, turn down the steamer to medium-low (a steady simmer) and then place your wrapped tofu hot dogs in a steam basket evenly distributed and well away from the boiling water. Close a lid on the top, and let them steam. They should swell up and be firm to the touch by the end of the 45 minutes of steaming.
STEP 5: UNWRAP, LET COOL, AND THEN THEY’RE READY TO EAT OR TO GRILL
Remove the hot dogs with tongs, and let them cool for 10 minutes. Then, unwrap them, and let them cool for another 10 minutes or so. And that’s it: everything you need to know about how to make vegan hot dogs at home!
Note: Unlike the store bought brands of vegan hot dogs, you don’t need to fry these in a pan before battering, as they should be tender and cooked through from the steaming process.
Transform Hot Dogs Into Corn Dogs ?
Now that I’ve taught you how to make vegan hot dogs, why not learn how to transform them into corn dogs? If you’d like to learn more about how to turn these into corn dogs, then visit this Vegan Corn Dog Recipe.
I hope you enjoyed this tutorial on how to make vegan hot dogs. If you did, consider leaving me a comment and recipe rating before you go!
From Scratch Vegan Hot Dogs
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Aluminum foil
- Steamer
Ingredients
- 1 (14-ounce) package extra-firm tofu, pressed for 30 minutes and crumbled
- ¼ lightly heaping cup masa harina, or finely ground yellow cornmeal
- ½ lightly heaping cup vital wheat gluten flour
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, or safflower/canola oil
- 1 ½ tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1 ½ tablespoons sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground mace, or nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground mustard
Instructions
- After pressing the tofu for 30 minutes, crumble it up into a food processor (with a dough blade attachment if you have one), add everything else to it, and process until it forms a sturdy dough.
- Form the dough into an 1/2-inch thick oval and portion it into 8 equal pieces. Roll the pieces into 4-inch hot dogs.
- Cut eight 6×8-inch strips (or strips big enough to fit the dogs) of both parchment paper and aluminum foil. Next, wrap the hot dogs first in parchment paper strip, twist the ends in the direction you rolled, and then wrap the hot dogs in the foil strip, twisting the ends in the same direction you rolled again to create a tight seal.Tip: You can cut off a bit of the excess twisted end with scissors, to help fit in the steamer.
- Add some water to a steamer, and then get it boiling. Once boiling, add the wrapped tofu dogs to the steam basket, cover with a lid, reduce the heat to a steady simmer (low-medium heat) and steam for 45 minutes, until firm to the touch.
- Remove the tofu dogs from the steamer, and let them cool for 10 minutes before unwrapping. Eat right away, or save for later to grill.
Video
Nutrition
May you have good food in good company,
That Vegan Nephew
I want to avoid cooking with aluminum foil, both for health reasons and for environmental impact reasons. Can I skip the step of wrapping in foil? Would it help to use thread to tie the ends and wrap lightly around the cylinders of the parchment paper?
Hi Deborah,
That very well might work. I’d also use a bit more parchment than is shown here, just so you ensure it holds up during the steaming process. Let me know how it goes if you decide to try it !
These are delicious! We have made them several times and the corn dogs too. We lightly grilled them to reheat them and they were just what you would expect to put on a toasty hot dog bun. If I could comment on not using foil. I don’t see why it wouldn’t work as Deborah described. Maybe wrap twice in parchment – once in each direction. Maybe we will try that next time we make them.
Followed the recipe exactly and they are excellent.
So glad you enjoyed them, Gail! 🙂
wow – best hot dogs ever! the texture, flavor, even the color are spot on. we can’t wait to serve them to meat-eaters and see their faces. have you ever freezed the dogs to steam/fry up later?
Hi Maura,
Thank you for the comment! I’m glad you enjoyed the hot dogs.
I think you could probably freeze the hot dogs after they’ve been steamed, and put them on the grill later. I wouldn’t freeze the batter before steaming them though.
I’m making this recipe for the first time today using a steamer. Can the hot dogs be baked in an oven instead of steaming?
Hi Angela,
The steamer is pivotal to make sure the hot dogs are moist and plump. I’ve never tried it in the oven, but my intuition tells me it probably wouldn’t work as well.
Thank you for the comment! Hope they turned out alright for you.
I am making these delicious hot dogs again today. They were a big hit and tasted like the real thing. We steam then grill. Thanks so much for your recipes!
That’s so good to hear, Angela! I like to grill mine, too. Thank you 🙂