Ballpark Hot Dogs With Grilled Peppers and Onions

Nothing says summer like grilling ballpark hot dogs with peppers and onions. I don’t care what time of year it is. It’s like a bite of sunshine in your mouth and makes you dream of relaxing days under a blue sky. And the best thing is, you can bust out the grill at any time of year to make them.

Plus they are so easy to make. Your biggest concern is whether or not you want to use traditional hot dogs or if you want to use hot or sweet Italian sausages. And then are you going to cook them whole, or do that thing where you slice them in half? Apparently here in Rochester, it’s a thing to cut them in half. I will never understand this, but when in Rome…

So here is a quick and easy classic way to make your ballpark hot dogs or sausages.

Ingredients for Ballpark Hot Dogs

• 3 green bell peppers, cleaned and cut into strips
• 1 medium sweet onion, cut into wedges
• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 package (14 ounce size) hot dogs, smoked hot or sweet Italian sausages, cut in half lengthwise
• 4 hero rolls, sliced open
• 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella

Making Ballpark Hot Dogs

1. Heat grill to medium-hot.
2. Toss peppers and onions with oil in a bowl, then put in grilling basket or tray.
3. Cook basket with peppers and onions on grill and sausages directly on grates.
4. Cook peppers and onions until just starting to char, about 3 or 4 minutes, then flip and continue cooking for 3 or 4 minutes or until soft and nicely charred.
5. Cook hot dogs sausages about 3 or 4 minutes, then flip and continue cooking for about the same time or until they get nice and hot and have good grill marks. If you leave them whole, it may take a little bit longer.
6. Put open side of rolls down on grill during the last minute of cooking to toast.
7. Remove everything from grill.
8. Toss peppers and onions and hot dogs or sausages with vinegar and mozzarella cheese in a large bowl.
9. Use tongs to serve 2 sausage halves and a generous amount of peppers and onions on a toasted bun.
10. Add a bit of mustard if desired.

I admit that I would probably pick out more of the onions on mine. And then trying to decide which mustard to use would totally depend on your taste. I have a serious thing for horseradish mustard, but dijon could also work.

How do you like your ballpark hot dogs?