By Theo Town

Defining the Sandwich

To settle the issue, we need to begin with the definition of a sandwich: a sandwich is any food consisting of a filling, such as meat, cheese, vegetables, etc, between slices of bread or a split roll. By that logic, everything from turkey on rye to a meatball sub qualifies. So where does the hot dog fall?

The Anatomy of a Hot Dog [Didn’t expect this when you clicked on this article]

A classic hot dog consists of a sausage placed inside a split bun. The bun, whether white, whole wheat, or pretzel, is a form of bread. The sausage, an item of food in the form of a cylindrical length of minced pork or other meat encased in a skin, typically sold raw to be grilled or fried before eating, meanwhile, acts as the central filling. Sometimes toppings like onions, mustard, relish, or sauerkraut are added, just like other sandwiches.

The fact that the bun is often still connected on one side doesn’t disqualify it. Submarine sandwiches or “subs” and hoagies frequently use hinged rolls as well, yet no one argues whether those are sandwiches.

The Legal Stuff 

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which regulates food labeling and safety, has at times classified hot dogs under the umbrella of sandwiches. Though in 2015, the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council (yes, it’s real) declared that a hot dog is not a sandwich, but that’s more of an opinion than a fact.

From a culinary point of view, chefs and the USDA often define a sandwich by structure, not sentiment. filling + bread = sandwich

Why the Confusion?

Much of the people calling a hot dog a sandwich stems from cultural association. People don’t go to a Mets game asking for a “sausage sandwich.” The term “hot dog” implies something  different than people’s knowledge of a “sandwich.”

Conclusion

Yeh its a sandwich… what else more is there to say?