If you’ve ever hosted a tailgate party or cookout, you’ve dealt with this frustrating mismatch: hot dogs are usually sold in a package of 10, while bags of hot dog buns are sold in 8-packs.
Now if you whip uphomemade vegan carrot dogsinstead, this is no big deal since you can customize your number of marinated and grilled carrots to match the amount of buns and the amount of diners. Or you could slice up the extra hot dogs to use in pigs in a blanket. But otherwise, every time you make a platter of these beloved baseball stadium snacks and street-cart treats, you have a couple dogs without a bun to call home.
A dog without a bun is certainly edible, true, but not nearly as amazing. So we couldn’t resist turning to the experts to inquire about why these packages don’t pair up. While we were at it, we asked Eric Mittenthal, the Washington, D.C.-based president of theNational Hot Dog & Sausage Councilto dish about his favorite fun facts about this family-friendly food. (Don’t worry, we saved the “Is a hot dog a sandwich?” debate for another day.)
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Why Don’t Hot Dogs and Buns Match in Package Size?
“The most common size hot dogs are 10 hot dogs in a pound,” Mittenthal explains, which means that the classic hot dog is 1.6 ounces. Less frequently, he says, “There are also sometimes 8 per pound, and even some packages with 6 or 4 hot dogs.”
As far as their carb counterparts, “Hot dog buns most often come 8 per pack because the buns are baked in clusters of 4 in pans designed to hold 8 rolls,” Mittenthal adds, hence the stack of two rows of 4 buns you’ll spy next to the loaves of bread at the supermarket. “While baking pans now come in configurations that allow baking 10 and even 12 at a time, the 8-roll pan remains the most popular.”
Most brands that sell hot dogs don’t also sell buns, and vice versa, except for a few outliers like Ballpark (which sells bothbunsanddogs). So each company sticks to what is most efficient for their manufacturing process, regardless of what their pairing pals across the country are doing.
There’s hope on the horizon, Mittenthal reveals: “It’s possible that we might see equal-sized portions in the future, as there have been some efforts in recent years from hot dog companies to match the number of dogs to the number of buns.”
Related:6 Best Healthy Hot Dogs
Try This Savvy Solution to Match Hot Dogs and Buns
Until then, to balance the equation, Mittenthal says it’s especially easy if you’re hosting a crowd.
“Just use math! Buy four packs of 10 hot dogs and five packs of 8 buns and throw a party. It’s a perfect solution,” he suggests.
Fun Facts About Hot Dogs
While we had Mittenthal on the line, we asked him to share some of his favorite sausage stats and facts from theNHDSC.
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