The Hot Dog Calculator calculates the number of hot dogs or similar sized sausages or kielbasas you need to cook in order to feed a certain amount of people. Enter the number of people you need to serve and the serving size per person and you will get the amount of dogs you need to cook to meet that demand.
Photo by Didriks
INSTRUCTIONS: Enter the following:
- (n) People to Feed
- (P) Hotdogs per Person
- (PK) Number of Hotdogs in a Pack
- (CP) Cost per Pack of Hotdogs (Note: the default price is the average hotdog price from the vCalc pricing survey)
Number of Dogs (nDG): The calculator returns the number of hotdogs, hotdog packs, pack of buns and the approximate total cost in U.S. dollars.
The Math / Science
There are several facts that you can assume when figuring out how many hotdogs to cook.
- If the hot dogs are the main dish assume an average of 2 hot dogs per person.
- This calculator overestimates the calculated amount by 5% to give some extra leeway in case of big eaters (not including professional hotdog eating competitors, if any of them are coming just buy ALL the hot dogs.)
Hot dogs are an easy summer favorite to cook, and everyone can do it, but despite this there are techniques that can be used to ensure that your hotdogs are grilled to perfection. Your typical supermarket all beef dog is caseless, which can cause it to dry out more quickly as you cook them. To get a good end result with a caseless hotdog either cook them slowly on lower heat to bring them up to temperature without drying them out too quickly and then sear the outside to quickly crisp them up, or heat them in a roasting tray filled with liquid on your grill until they are hot and then sear them quickly. Alternately some people like to slash caseless hot dogs before cooking to allow them to heat through to the center more quickly so there is less chance of drying them out before they are done.
If you really want the best hotdogs, you need to go with natural casing hotdogs. They are a little harder to find and you will pay more than typical caseless all beef dog but the snap when you bite into one is totally worth it. Don't tell your more squeamish friends that the casings are made from hog intestines, once they try one they will love them. Never slit a natural casing hot dog, you want the casing to keep all the juices inside. You can employ the simmering and then grilling method mentioned above if you wish or you can just grill them up to temperature slowly and finish quickly at higher heat to put the final crispness on the casing. I have had good results this way.
To spice things up a little experiment with different seasonings and sauces in the simmering pan.
For a good resource on everything from lighting your grill to cleaning it up when you're done and all the grilling tips you need in between, check out How To Grill Outdoors from campingcooks.com
PRICING
Hot Dog Price Survey, price for an 8 count pack of hot dogs.
- Date: 5/2/24
- Economy Price: $1.24 USD
- Average Price: $3.64 USD
- Premium Price: $3.64 USD
Hot Dog and Sausage Calculator (CLICK HERE) computes the number of hot dogs or sausages needed for a group and the associated cost.
Food Pricing Survey
The Price of Hot Dogs data table is an informal pricing survey of the price of hot dogs at nationally advertised stores (e.g., Walmart) per their website. The most common hot dog packaging size is for an eight (8) count. The prices are normalized to U.S. dollars per eight count package.
The brands surveyed include:
- Oscar Mayer
- Hebrew National
- Ball Park Franks
- Nathan's
- Bar S
