What are the best hot dogs to buy?

We came. We almost threw up. We conquered.

The Method

Much to the dismay of many of our taste testers, Test Kitchen Dictator Manager Brad Leone was adamant that we abide by a strict no-buns policy, for fear it would compromise the test's purity (Martin's Potato Rolls, we love you). For the same reason, we chose to boil our hot dogs according to package directions rather than griddle them, as any resulting charred flavor could have tainted our taste buds—or so Brad said. (Side note: There's nothing like watching 10 pots of hot dog water simultaneously bubbling away on the stove.) Ketchup, mustard, relish, and 'kraut were also banned from the tasting room, which left us with nothing more than nine paper plates heaped with piles of anonymous hot dog, a box of toothpicks, a stack of too-small Dixie water cups, and the fear of God. Thus began our journey to a place we'd like to never visit again. Shall we get on with our results?

Nathan’s Famous Skinless Beef Franks

The green-and-yellow packaging will be instantly recognizable to anyone who grew up in driving distance of Coney Island's most famous hot dog stand. Unfortunately, the packaged version just didn't stand up to the ones we've eaten while walking on the boardwalk. Although we liked the texture (it has a nice elasticity), we were overwhelmed by the aggressively "loud" salty-sweet flavors that dominated this dog—similar to the way a large dose of MSG can send your pleasure sensors into overdrive. "S U G A R," wrote one tester. "All of the flavors," wrote another.

Oscar Mayer Classic Wieners

As the saying goes, if I were an Oscar Mayer wiener, everyone would be in love with me. Or something like that. The classic dogs of our childhoods lacked the “snap” that we crave in a hot dog now that we’re adults with fully grown canines, although several of us were into the slightly smokey flavor.

Hebrew National 97% Fat Free Beef Franks

The concept of a reduced-fat hot dog seems cruel, but we felt we had to throw in a package of beloved Hebrew National's version into the mix to see how they stacked up. Let's just say, we'll be sticking with its original version, which we felt had superior flavor (these had a vaguely lemony aftertaste) and texture.

Sabrett Skinless Beef Frankfurters

These were hands-down the most polarizing hot dog brand we tried. Several of us liked Sabrett's aggressively meaty, salty flavor and relative firmness compared to other brands we tried. One taster wrote, "This is what I think of as a 'hot dog.'" But a few dissenters were, let's just say, very put off by the taste. We'll let you make the call, here.

Ball Park Beef Franks

"If you've recently had oral surgery, this is good," wrote one taster. That's pretty much all you need to know about these smooth-as-a-baby's-buttocks hot dogs. Although we agreed these silky-slippery links were probably the best bet for kids, they broke down a little too easily for our refined adult palates—a hot dog that doesn't require you to chew before swallowing just feels wrong.

Applegate The Great Organic Uncured Beef Hot Dogs

Most of us were fans of these preservative-free, 100% grass-fed beef hot dogs—if only because it feels really healthy to say "preservative-free, 100% grass-fed beef." But the very salty flavor was vaguely reminiscent of a bouillon cube, and while that wasn't a make-or-break for us, we felt other hot dogs we tried held up better in the taste category.

Just FreshDirect 100% Grass-Fed Organic Uncured Beef Hot Dogs

The first thing we noticed about these hot dogs was how prominent and thick the casings were. Boiled, these dogs were less than ideal to munch on, as the casings became slightly plasticky and hard to chew through. However, we all agreed these would probably be great thrown on the grill.

Runner Up: Hebrew National Beef Franks

Hebrew National enjoys something of a cult status within the frankfurter world, and for good reason. These 100% Kosher beef dogs were a frontrunner for our #1 pick. "YES!!!" one taster wrote in praise of the juicy frank's "clean hot dog flavor." We were also into its great snap and general plumpness. "Would eat a whole one," said one taste tester—and when you spend an hour stuffing your face with hot dogs, this is meant to be a compliment of the highest caliber. Although we boiled our hot dogs, we think Hebrew National would make a killer grilled version. Our few dissenters thought the flavor could use a boost, but overall, we give these a hearty seal of approval.

The Winner: Boar’s Head Beef Frankfurters with Natural Casing

Our winning hot dogs took top honors in both taste and texture across the board. Its natural-meat flavor came through without being aggressively salty or spicy, which is an issue we continually ran into with other brands. In essence, it's exactly what we think a hot dog should taste like. We also loved its bouncy, snappy texture, which we think would make it an ideal candidate for both grilling and steaming purposes. As one taster wrote: "This is the peoples' hot dog!!!"

Related: 8 Creative New Hot Dog Toppings that Put Ketchup and Mustard to Shame

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