Swap Your Toasted Hot Dog Buns For Warm, Spongy Steamed Buns

Some meals you want homemade. And then there are others where the pros just do it best — and we're lucky if we can match that same restaurant-made, store-bought quality with our homemade dupe attempts. Steaks you'd get from a restaurant are one example, as are the more lowbrow treats like that irresistible movie theater nacho cheese or the unbeatable hot dogs you'd get at a baseball game. Even the foodie snobs have to admit, there's nothing quite like 'em.

To bring the impeccable baseball stadium hot dog texture and taste home with you, the secret lies in the bun as much as the dog itself. Ever noticed how perfectly cloudlike, soft, and spongy your ballgame buns are? For that perfect airy, almost melt-in-your-mouth texture — never a dry, stale bite in sight — forgo prep methods like toasting your bun or using it right out of the bag and instead give it a good steam. This imparts the carby bun with a soft, cushy texture and lots of moisture. 

Whether you're cooking your dogs over a campfire flame or on your home stovetop or grill, the magic is all in that perfectly pillowy bun that provides the contrasting soft bite against the snappy, blistered meat of the dog. This texture can be achieved with home steamers, the microwave, or even one trick that uses no appliances or extra heat at all.

Much like pizza, all hot dogs — even sub-par ones — get the job done when the craving strikes or the campfire necessitates. But there are clearly the cream-of-the-crop dogs people go out of their way for. Costco's food court dogs are one such example. The virality of this dog is largely thanks to the company's steamed buns, which are soft and chewy, never dry.

You have a few options ranging from low-tech to more advanced for nailing this DIY steaming. There are specifically designed bun steamers you can buy, sure, but the cheapest and easiest way is to wrap them in a damp paper towel and throw them in the microwave for 20 seconds or fewer. Or, while your dogs cook, bring a pot of water to a steady boil, then place an apparatus above the steam — this could be a steamer basket, a colander that fits over the pot, or a cookie rack on the top of the pot — anything that lets the buns steam, but keeps them out of the water. 

Or, use zero heat at all and let the heat of the dogs themselves do the work, turning buns into dreamy, warm little clouds. . After dogs are cooked, harness the heat by placing them in a bun and wrapping the whole thing firmly in a sheet of aluminum foil. The heat from the meat will perfectly steam the bun around it, so you can unwrap to chewy, airy, stadium hot dog perfection.