These vegan hot dogs have a better flavor than packaged frankfurters and a lot less fat and calories. Soy-free, low in sodium, and free of added sugar.
Af few weeks ago, my family had a craving for hot dogs, and having heard so much about Field Roast Frankfurters*, I decided to give them a try.
When I found them in the store and took a look at the package, it took a few minutes to get over my sticker shock, not at the price but at the nutritional stats. Each hot dog clocked in at 180 calories and 8 grams of fat. The ingredients list included “expeller pressed safflower oil” and “organic expeller pressed palm fruit oil,” ingredients I normally try to avoid.
Still, I had promised my family gourmet hot dogs and I figured I could practice self-discipline and eat just one, so I bought them and brought them home. Huge mistake! Not because they were bad but because they were so freaking good that my vow to eat only one vanished after one bite, and the only thing saving me from complete gluttony was the fact that there were only 6 frankfurters in the package.
I’d like to say that I’ll never buy them again, but Field Roast dogs basically ruined my family for other packaged hot dogs. More like a sausage than other veggie dogs, they had a great flavor as well as texture.
Fortunately, we don’t eat hot dogs or other packaged food often, so it’s not that big of a temptation, but I have to say that I’ve been practically haunted by the memory of them ever since we had them. And then I realized that I didn’t have to give in to temptation or give up on hot dogs–I could make them myself.
So I decided to make my own hot dogs for our 4th of July cookout. I started with my Italian Sausage recipe and added onion and seasonings such as coriander and mace to make them more “frankfurtery.” And instead of all the oil in those packaged dogs, I used pinto beans, with flax and rolled oats to absorb moisture and keep them tender.
They were a huge hit with my family. My daughter, who has grown cautious with my cooking experiments, said she forgot that they were homemade until she was halfway through her first dog and then marveled several times at how good they were. And I had a hard time keeping my husband from eating them all before I could take photos.
They definitely lived up to my memory of the Field Roast version, even with about 40% fewer calories and 83% less fat. They’re soy-free (if you use coconut aminos), low in sodium, and added sugar-free.
I wish I could say they were gluten-free for my gluten-free readers, but as someone who has no trouble with gluten, I like to indulge now and then. If you’re up for experimenting, you could probably take my Beany Breakfast Sausages, change the seasoning, and shape them to fit a gluten-free hot dog bun.
Homemade Veggie Dogs
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium onion coarsely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3/4 cup cooked pinto beans well-drained
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons coconut aminos or soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon white or black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon celery seed
- 1/4 teaspoon mace
- 1/8 teaspoon hickory smoked salt optional but good
- 1 cup vital wheat gluten
- 1/3 cup oatmeal rolled or quick oats, uncooked
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
Instructions
- Put the onion and garlic into a food processor and pulse to chop finely. Heat a small non-stick skillet. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is softened, about 3 minutes. Transfer onion mixture back to food processor.
- Add the pinto beans, water, coconut aminos or soy sauce, tomato paste, and all seasonings to the food processor. Blend until it’s a thin paste.
- Combine remaining ingredients (gluten, oatmeal, yeast, and flax) in a large mixing bowl. Add the contents of the food processor and stir until combined. If it seems that there’s not enough moisture, add another tablespoon or two of water. Knead in the bowl for about two minutes until a heavy gluten “dough” is formed.
- Set up a steamer in a pot of water and bring the water to a boil. Cut off 8 pieces of aluminum foil or parchment paper, each about 6 inches long. Divide the gluten into 8 equal pieces. Place a piece of foil or parchment on the counter. Roll a piece of gluten between the palms of your hands until it’s about the size and shape of a hot dog. Place it on the foil/paper and roll up. Roll the tube back and forth, pressing lightly with your hands, to give it an even shape, and then twist the ends closed. Repeat with the remaining gluten to form 8 veggie hot dogs.
- Place all the veggie dogs in the top of a steamer, cover, and steam for 45 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly before unwrapping. Store the veggie dogs in a covered container in the refrigerator. Warm gently in a frying pan or microwave or on a grill before serving.
Notes
Nutritional info is approximate.
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Happy eating!
*I have no affiliation with Field Roast or its Frankfurters.
Polly
May 12, 2016 at 9:18 pmI’m finally getting around to making these. SUPER YUM! My son and husband really liked them. My daughter liked them ok. But she’s super picky, so I call it a win.
Thanks for another great recipe.
Al
May 13, 2016 at 12:05 pmI tried the carrots spiced like hot dogs and they lacked body – too mushy… Finally found mace in the store with help – now to find the gluten, which eluded me so far. Thinking of going with some other flour… Any successful replacements discovered yet?
ro9xanne
May 22, 2016 at 12:39 amhi can i freeze this hotdogs in a vacuum bag for about 4-6 months in the freezer would they last and its it ok to add potassium sorbate to them to last long
Susan Voisin
May 22, 2016 at 10:09 amYes, you can freeze them. I’ve never added potassium sorbate to anything, and don’t think these hotdogs need it.
Jenny
May 27, 2016 at 9:38 pmI love this recipe. I have made it 3 times now and it is a winner every time. Love that it makes lots of leftovers!
Pauline
May 29, 2016 at 7:34 pmWow, these look amazing, making them for tomorrow’s cook out with carnivores, but of course we are vegetarian
Do you think these would be good for veggie burgers
Haven’t found a good veggie burger yet
Rachel
May 29, 2016 at 11:21 pmDear Susan, these sound fabulous and I like the idea of being certain what additives are in your sausages. I’m in New Zealand and have been unable to find vital wheat gluten. I am also a wheel chair user and am frankly daunted by the diy instructions I have found online to make a version. What is the importance of adding the vital wheat gluten? Are there possible substitutes? Thank you,
Rachel
Susan Voisin
May 30, 2016 at 10:46 amRachel, unfortunately the vital wheat gluten basically IS the hot dog. It’s the main ingredient and provides the structure and texture. It’s possible that you may be able to order it by mail. Maybe someone else from New Zealand will speak up with a suggestion.
miranda miranda
June 5, 2016 at 10:55 pmLove this recipe. I didn’t have any pinto beans cooked up, but had some leftover red beans and a few garbanzo beans also, so I used them instead! I also don’t have a blender/food processor, so I just mashed with a potato masher. And… I also like my food very spicy, so I added lots of extra seasonings. I steamed them in the top basket of my rice cooker . They turned out fantastic! Will triple the recipe next time and freeze some. Delicious!
Deb
June 6, 2016 at 5:51 pmThese were a huge hit!!! My husband and I have only been Vegan for 6 weeks, and I am determined not to buy the “fake” meats just yet. I want to try to eat as “whole” as possible, and these fit the bill. My 20 year old son, (real men eat beef) ate 5 of them, and he is not vegan by any stretch of the imagination. Thank you for sharing.
Deb
June 6, 2016 at 6:02 pmI forgot to mention…I cooked these in a solar pot outside for a little over an hour. They were individually wrapped in foil, as you instructed. I refrigerated until dinner time, then heated them in a cast iron skillet with a nonstick spray. Delicious.
Tammy
June 28, 2016 at 3:51 amHi Susan,
I made these tonight and while they taste good the texture is terrible! What have a done wrong? The inside is so dough-y, are they undercooked? Did I use to much water or not enough flour? Please help!!!
Susan Voisin
June 28, 2016 at 9:41 amIt sounds like they are undercooked. I would wrap them back up and give them more time.
Tammy
June 28, 2016 at 3:58 pmThanks so much! Will try to cook them for longer!
Alyzah
July 3, 2016 at 5:49 pmSuggestions for making this gluten free?
Jem
July 9, 2016 at 3:08 pmHi! Can you make your homemade veggie dogs in the pressure cooker? Any instructions for that?
Susan Voisin
July 27, 2016 at 10:37 amI’ve heard of people placing them above water on the steaming rack and pressure cooking. I’m not sure of the time, though I would think you could start with 10 minutes and add more as necessary.
Jan DeKenis
July 27, 2016 at 9:33 amcan these be frozen?
Susan Voisin
July 27, 2016 at 10:24 amYes, several people have told me they make them in large batches and freeze.
Ana
July 28, 2016 at 4:02 pmI was so excited to find this recipe. And after making it, I am shocked at all the good reviews. It was terrible. Gummy and tasteless. Waste of time and a lot of ingredients.
kathy
August 14, 2016 at 3:50 amHi is there an alternative to vital wheat gluten. This is not available where I live and Id like to make these for my daughter’s birthday which doesn’t allow time to order any online. What role does it play? Can I use haloumi cheese instead?
Susan Voisin
August 14, 2016 at 9:01 amVital wheat gluten is the main ingredient, the only essential ingredient. The veggie dogs basically ARE gluten. I’ve never cooked with haloumi cheese, but I can’t imagine that any cheese would work. I wish your daughter a happy birthday and hope you can find another recipe that will work for you.
Robin
August 15, 2016 at 8:55 pmI too like the Field Roast products. There are some ingredients I wish they would eliminate as well. But when I don’t have time to cook everything from scratch, I use them. Their ingredients are better than many of the other vegan meat products.
Last night my husband helped me make your recipe for hot dogs and we LOVED them! The recipe looked somewhat intimidating (as do most of the vital wheat gluten meat recipes! ) but it was very easy! Thank you for creating such a yummy recipe! It will be a definite repeat in our family!
Yvette Strom
October 14, 2016 at 8:34 pmHi, thanks for the recipe. I’ve never used vital wheat gluten. Are you referring to the doughy stuff or the flour? Thanks.
Susan Voisin
October 14, 2016 at 11:13 pmHere’s what it looks like: http://amzn.to/2dRp8HQ
Andrea
February 21, 2017 at 8:33 amHi Susan,
The recipe sounds great. Do you think Xanthan Gum would work instead the vital wheat gluten?
Also which other way I could use instead of using a steamer (as I don’t have one). Can I fry them?
Thanks
Susan Voisin
February 21, 2017 at 1:32 pmSorry, I don’t think that either of those substitutes would work. You would be better off with a recipe that’s written using xantham gum.
Kristen
April 12, 2017 at 8:08 pmMade these tonight. Disappointed with this recipe. Wasn’t good. Sorry 🙁
Bob Highfill
April 13, 2017 at 9:36 amA great hors d’oeuvres is to prepare mini carrots are you describe. Use the little pita pockets cut in half as buns. Put some mustard and pickle in the bottom of the pocket, and a carrot lengthwise across the opening. Good little, cldn finger food that is liked by almost everyone (especially UU’s – lol)
Gary
April 13, 2017 at 2:39 pmCan the hot dog recipe be doubled with no problems?
Susan Voisin
April 13, 2017 at 4:06 pmYes, other people have tried it and it works fine doubled.
Nori
April 29, 2017 at 6:24 pmI followed the recipe almost to the letter( liquid smoke instead of smoked salt) . I rarely do this. We loved it! The only thing I would do differently next time: I would throw the oatmeal in the food processor for a few seconds, the whole pieces of oatmeal were a little out of place. Flavour was really good though. Would make again.
AC
May 27, 2017 at 10:34 pmIs there a substitute for the gluten? Neither my husband nor I can eat gluten – allergic. Thanks.
Susan Voisin
May 28, 2017 at 10:30 amThis recipe is gluten-based, so it would be hard to replace it. If you do a google search, you may be able to find a gluten-free vegan hotdog based on some type of flour.
Miriam
June 8, 2017 at 12:21 pmOh my goodness, these are delicious! We’ve just recently decided to switch to a vegan diet, and as summer arrived, we were mourning our BBQ favorites.
These are so good, even my hot-dog loving husband was impressed.
It’s going to be a great summer!
Kim
June 30, 2017 at 4:56 amThese turned out great!!! Thank you so much! I’ve made them multiple times now and always keep a batch in the freezer.
Dawn
July 1, 2017 at 3:53 pmHello, I am new to plant based cooking and have never used vital wheat gluten…is there a substitute I can use such as all chickpea flour? Or what else would you recommend as a substitute?
Susan Voisin
July 1, 2017 at 4:26 pmI’m sorry, there’s no real substitute. You might be able to find another recipe that uses gluten-free flour, but the proportions of this recipe are for wheat gluten. It has a unique meaty texture that you can’t really replicate.
Rebecca Smith
July 3, 2017 at 3:45 pmJust made these for the 4th of July party! They came out good. This was my first time making them and I’m glad hay they retained their shape. Let’s hope they taste as good as they look.
Katie Marabello
July 3, 2017 at 10:58 pmHi Susan,
thank you for your wonderful recipes! I made these hot dogs tonight and got the whole family’s approval. Just wondering—since we follow Dr. Mcdougall’s low protein, low fat way of eating, is there any way to cut back a little on the gluten? I wouldn’t know how to change the proportions. Dr. Mcdougall told me that 1/4 cup of gluten has a huge amount of protein in it. I think it’s 20-25 grams. I realize that the pinto beans do help so there’s a little less gluten in the recipe. I would just like to reduce it a little bit more, maybe 1/8-1/4 cup?
thanks again, Kd
Susan Voisin
July 3, 2017 at 11:31 pmYou could try replacing some of the gluten with flour, but they will probably come out bready rather than meaty.
Jenna JM
July 6, 2017 at 11:26 amJust made these…..INCREDIBLE!!!
Could not locate hickory flavored salt, but can see they would be even better with.
Thanks for a great recipe…
Lela Kenney
September 1, 2017 at 7:41 pmExcellent! A very good substitute for hot dogs. My husband gave it an A+++. 🙂 They’re easy to make and very filling. Thank you for sharing!
Connie
October 4, 2017 at 8:57 amI know it’s been a long while since anyone has commented here but I just wanted to say thank you for this recipe. A family member decided to go vegan and I was trying to find substitutes to make so that family meals accommodated everyone and these hot dogs were well received at a table where everyone else was eating real sausage. But it doesn’t stop there! I used this recipe, and by changing the seasonings, was able to make a passable substitute for turkey so that this family member would not feel left out at thanksgiving dinner. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!
Gayle
October 12, 2017 at 11:45 amHi Susan…I’ve run across this recipe from a few years back and attempted to read through comments before asking this…BUT>>> there is allot of comments. So here I go. When steaming these sausage packets… do you leave the heat on high all the while ? I’m sure the pot will run dry so do you keep adding water? OR>>> do you turn it down to a simmer and just watch? May seem like simple cooking questions but I’m not a cook..so need to know for success. Thanks in advance!!
Susan Voisin
October 12, 2017 at 12:19 pmThat’s a great question! I do turn down the heat so that the water is at a low boil, and with the pot covered, I’ve never had it run dry. I should add that to the instructions. Thank you!
Deirdre Hulihan
October 15, 2017 at 3:43 pmBrilliant! Thank you! I laughed out loud reading about trying to avoid gluttony with the Field Roast dogs. I have tried them and agree. I made this recipe for the 2nd time today. I’m not that interested in fake meats, but I do love (and miss) a hot dog. It never occurred to me that there might be a way to make a vegan dog at home. I am thrilled.
Jak
January 12, 2018 at 8:00 pmI love that you put in that you had no affiliation with Field Roast or it’s Frankfurters. I just imagine it coming up in conversation like, “Are you affiliated with those Frankfurters?!” Too funny. These look amazing but honestly, it’s way too much work for me. Plus I’m not afraid of healthy amounts of natural fats and I know calories are bogus for measuring the value of a food, so I’m okay with either my spouse’s amazing bean burgers or whatever fakefurters has the most whole-food ingredients. The steaming thing I haven’t seen before, I might try that with some other recipes I’ve got.
TofuAnnie
April 4, 2018 at 9:07 amI know I’m late to the game on these but I’ve just never liked the taste or price of commercial made brands so I just gave up on hot dogs….that is until now. I tried them one weekend when visiting my mom (who is now plant based…yay!!) and I had her close her eyes and smell the bowl where I was mixing them. Her eyes opened wide and she declared them hot dogs!! They taste so good, I’ve decided to make a double batch and freeze a few. These and your BBQ ribz are my guilty pleasure go to’s. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!
Kay
May 12, 2018 at 7:20 pmI just found this recipe on your blog and decided to give them a try tonight. They are delicious! I was a bit worried about making them since I’ve had mixed results in the past when making veggie burgers, but these turned out great! We have enjoyed the Field Roast products in the past but find them much too high in sodium (not to mention fat). These were really tasty without the high sodium and fat content, and were quite easy to make. Thanks for a great recipe!
Lynn
May 25, 2018 at 8:22 pmWhat is mace? I cannot find it at any of the stores in my area. Is there another substitute that can be used? Or can I leave it out without altering the “hotdog” taste?
Susan Voisin
May 25, 2018 at 9:49 pmIt’s a spice from the same tree as nutmeg. It does create part of the typical hot dog flavor, but if you can’t find it, you can leave it out. https://www.mccormick.com/spices-and-flavors/herbs-and-spices/spices/mace-ground
Carol Orwig
July 4, 2018 at 4:35 pmLove these, but find it takes considerably longer than 20 minutes to assemble.
Christa Prescott
July 14, 2018 at 8:33 amHi Susan. I’m a big fan with a quick question. How long would you steam these in an Instant Pot?
Thanks,
Christa
Susan Voisin
July 14, 2018 at 11:03 amI’d do them 15-20 minutes at high pressure with a quick release. This is just a guess, so please let me know what happens if you try it. Thanks!
London
January 4, 2019 at 9:51 pmI have the hardest time with gluten. Is there a way to substitute this ingredient?
Susan Voisin
January 4, 2019 at 11:02 pmI think there’s a gluten substitute you can buy, but I’ve never tried it.
Julie
January 17, 2019 at 7:50 pmTHESE ARE ETHICAL VEGGIE DOGS WITH NO TAPIOCA STARCH-It is a fantastic recipe though I have not made it yet. I was so despondent when my former favorite Smart Dog vegetarian hot dogs changed their formula and stopped using wheat gluten and substituted tapioca starch. I am upset on two levels, the first that tapioca starch is a precursor to the production of additional progesterone in the body possible leading to an imbalance which has beein linked to certain side effects in some cases., It is a a steroidal hormone in the body and too much of it can cause hirsutism (bnody hair growing in the wrong places and being coarser or unsightly,) and also weight gain. THE OTHER MORE REASON IS ETHICS. TAPIOCA STARCH IS FROM THE CASSAVA ROOT. This means the whole plant was likely destroyed to harvest the root, unless only some roots were trimmed in a hydroponis growing situation. As an ethical vegetarian I am concerned about the consumption of roots and even am growing my own onions and garlic so I can trim the tops so as not to destroy. Thank you for the recipe though I am saddened I will have to spend additional time in my VERY BUSY schedule to handmake vegetarian hot dogs for myself as I never use tapioca starch.