Basic Fried Rice & Hot Dogs

Cheap, easy, fast, gluten free, dairy free and family-friendly, this is a tasty way to use up leftover rice. Years ago I wrote an article about using hot dogs in frugal cooking and I got a lotta flack from a lotta people about how bad hot dogs are for your kids and how no one should ever eat them. They’re filled with artificial junk, a processed franken-food of the highest order.

That may be true. These days it really depends upon which type of hot dogs you buy. There are plenty of brands available that are not filled with BHT, BHA or nitrates. There are varieties that are not made from meat byproducts. There are even a wide variety of hot dogs that contain no meat at all, because they are made from tofu or wheat gluten. I’m not going to tell you which type of hot dogs to buy. That’s up to you and your wallet and your conscience.

I will tell you that I buy two types of hot dogs, Oscar Mayer Selects Turkey Dogs, in 1-pound packs and Sam’s Club Daily Chef all-beef hot dogs, in 10-pound boxes. When we were very poor, and the kids couldn’t tell the difference, we used Gwaltney Great Dogs, the lowest priced chicken version. Now the kids are older and they can tell the difference in quality, so we eat better quality hot dogs. I like the Oscar Mayer Turkey dogs because they are lower in fat and calories and they are sincerely, the best turkey dog I’ve ever eaten. The family prefers the all beef dogs and I have to agree, they do taste very good. They are not cheap though, so if I couldn’t get them for the about the same price per pound as the turkey dogs I like, I wouldn’t buy them.

Easy Peasy, Fried Rice with Hot Dogs

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
• 4 to 6 hot dogs, sliced
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or other fat of your choice
• 1 egg
• 3 cups cooked, leftover rice
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• salt or soy sauce, as desired

Directions

First chop your onion and then slice your hot dogs. I like mine sliced diagonally. The kids think it’s fancy. You could also cut them into 4 long “worms” lengthwise and then cut them crossways into four pieces. This makes short little “worms” that are less likely to choke toddlers, who are not always the best chewers.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet. Add the onions and hot dogs. Fry for 5 to 10-minutes over medium-high heat, or until the onion begins to become translucent (see-through).

Crack an egg into the skillet. Scramble it up with the hot dogs and onions.

Add the rice, black pepper and any salt or soy sauce you think you might need.  Stir fry until the rice is hot and tender. Serve in bowls with carrot sticks and apple wedges on the side.