Homemade Coney Dog Sauce
My homemade coney dog sauce is savory, perfectly spiced, and slightly sweet. It’s so much better than any canned version at the grocery store! This sauce is made with easy, wholesome ingredients that pair perfectly.
You don’t have to go anywhere to enjoy a good coney dog when you whip up this recipe! Every bite takes me back to summer days growing up in the Midwest! This recipe includes a video tutorial so you can make it alongside me, step-by-step!
This post may contain affiliate links of items I know and love. Read our disclosure policy for more information. I NEVER use AI (artificial intelligence) to create content for Plum Branch Home. Recipes, blog posts, photos, videos, podcasts, social media content: everything is made from scratch by me, Molly LaFontaine. After developing my recipes, they’re tested 2x by my husband, Tyler, and I before publishing. What you see from Plum Branch Home is real. It’s made for a reason, tested, and loved!
Like I said, this sauce makes me think of summer days as a little girl growing up in northeastern Indiana. I loved when my mom made coney dogs.
It always made regular hot dogs feel more special. We’d even put a little spray cheese over the top; that was my favorite part!
It’s always special when the taste of food brings back memories or makes you nostalgic. That’s exactly what this recipe does. If I were to close my eyes and take a bite, I’d think I was sitting around our family table at 8 years old.
Inspiration Behind My Coney Dog Sauce Recipe
With Labor Day coming up, I wanted to create a delicious savory recipe that would be perfect for the weekend. My husband and I don’t really do anything on Labor Day besides relax and enjoy some good food. Minus last year when we ran our first 5K, and it kicked my butt haha!
But when I was brainstorming, coney dogs popped into my head, and I had no clue why. I hadn’t had a coney dog since I was probably 10 or 12 years old. But the taste has been branded into my mind. It felt like I had one yesterday.
So I got in the kitchen and recreated the flavors from memory. That’s what you have here in this recipe. A recreation of summer days, a 4-H grilling project (I made coney dogs one year), and Mom’s coney dog suppers! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
What is Coney Sauce?
It’s a delicious finely ground beef sauce filled with flavors of tomato, chili powder, cumin, and a lot of savoriness. It never has beans, and it’s not necessarily chili. It’s its own thing, and you use it to top hot dogs, usually.
Where did Coney Sauce Originate?
Contrary to popular belief, coney sauce did not originate on Coney Island. It’s from Detroit, Michigan! That’s right; it’s a Midwestern staple, not from New York. P.S. I did not know that until this year, so if you didn’t either, don’t feel bad!
The Difference Between Coney Dogs and Chili Dogs
Coney dogs are topped with a thinner, finely ground, meat-heavy sauce without beans. A chili dog is topped with a ground beef chili sauce that’s thicker, with a more pronounced chili flavor, and sometimes has beans.
Why You’ll Love My Coney Sauce Recipe
- Easy to Follow Recipe: The steps are simple to follow, nothing too complicated.
- Wholesome Ingredients: Each ingredient is wholesome, especially if you choose organic tomato sauce/paste and mustard. As well as a good Worcestershire sauce with clean ingredients (Lea and Perrins is my favorite brand).
- Made with Ground Beef: This sauce is made with ground beef, no organ meats.
- Beginner-Friendly: This recipe is easy enough that a beginner can make it without feeling overwhelmed.
- Rich and Savory Flavors: The flavors are so delicious! They’re perfectly rich and savory.
- Perfect Balance of Spice: With just a few spices, they balance out for the perfect flavor.
- Better than Store-Bought and Restaurants: You won’t find a coney sauce this good in a can or at a restaurant (at least in our opinion).
Molly’s Tips for Making Coney Dog Sauce
- Use a potato masher to get the beef into finely ground pieces. You can do this with a spoon, but the masher works better.
- Opt for organic tomato paste, tomato sauce, and mustard for the best flavor.
- Use a clean-ingredient Worcestershire sauce like Lea & Perrins Original. Look for one that doesn’t have caramel colorings or additives.
Ingredients You’ll Need (with notes)
Note: Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this blog post for measurements.
- ground beef: use a good quality beef, I love getting some from a local butcher but any will work
- sea salt: you can also use regular salt
- ground black pepper: pepper is a must in coney sauce
- yellow onion: yellow onions add the best flavor
- tomato paste: I like to get an organic option (usually Great Value’s organic at Walmart)
- tomato sauce: I like to get an organic option (usually Great Value’s organic at Walmart)
- yellow mustard: you can use any brand but I recommend getting an organic one with minimal ingredients
- Worcestershire sauce: choose a clean-ingredient option like Lea & Perrins
- raw honey: this adds the perfect sweetness without using regular sugar
- chili powder: use a salt-free version
- onion powder: this adds extra depth to the flavor
- ground cumin: cumin adds the unique flavor you get in coney sauce
Helpful Kitchen Tools for this Recipe
This section contains Amazon affiliate links to items I use and love for this recipe.
- stainless steel skillet
- potato masher
- measuring cups and spoons (these are my favorite)
How to Make Coney Dog Sauce
Note: Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this blog post for the full written recipe.
In a large skillet, add ground beef, salt, and pepper. Cook on medium-high heat for 6-8 minutes or until fully cooked. Use a spoon or potato masher to break beef down into finely ground pieces as it cooks.
Once cooked, remove cooked beef from the pan. Make sure to leave as much grease behind as possible. To do this tilt the pan so grease drains from beef, use your a spoon to help them separate.
Finely dice onion and add to the pan with beef drippings. Cook on medium heat for 2-4 minutes until translucent (soft and slightly see-through).
Then add tomato paste to the pan with onions and cook for 2 -3 minutes. Stir continuously. (This adds more flavor than adding it later with other ingredients.)
Turn heat down to low. Add in tomato sauce, mustard, Worcestershire, honey, chili powder, onion powder, and cumin. Stir to combine.
Add cooked beef back into the pan and stir to combine.
Let simmer, uncovered, on low heat for 10 minutes.
When finished, add 1/8 tsp extra salt if desired (= more flavor). Enjoy!
Video Tutorial
Best Ways to Serve Coney Sauce
You can serve coney sauce the traditional way on a hot dog or over tortilla chips to make nachos. You could also serve it with chips for walking tacos, or even eat it with a spoon.
It’s a great sauce to serve for summer holidays, cookouts, at family gatherings, backyard BBQs, or on random weeknights.
Make a Detroit Style Coney Dog
If you’d like to make a Detroit-style coney dog, you’ll want to quickly steam a hot dog bun. To do this, get a pot of boiling water going on the stove and place a wire cooling rack or any kind of rack over the top.
Place your bun(s) on and let them steam in the steam coming off the boiling water for 30 seconds.
Then, put an all-beef hot dog into the bun, add my homemade coney sauce, and top it with a little mustard and freshly diced onion.
Make a Coney Island Style Coney Dog
Contrary to popular belief, you make a Coney Island dog the same way you make a Detroit-style coney dog! Follow the instructions in the section above.
Storing Hot Dog Meat Sauce
You can store this sauce in the fridge for 2-3 days. I highly recommend storing it in a glass, airtight container to prevent any plastic taste from leaching into it.
To reheat, simply place the sauce back into a skillet and warm over low-medium heat until the temperature you desire.
Freezing and Thawing Instructions
You can freeze this sauce for up to 3 months in the freezer. I recommend freezing it in a glass airtight container for the best taste.
To thaw, simply place it in the fridge overnight. Then warm it in a pan over low-medium heat or place it in a slow cooker on low.
Frequently Asked Questions
This isn’t THE A&W coney dog sauce recipe but it’s my version with a similar taste!
You make it the same way I do, which is cooking down the beef, adding onions and tomato paste, then the rest of the ingredients, and finally simmering it for 10 minutes to cook. It’s very easy.
Yes it does! It’ll last up to 3 months in the freezer.
Simply top a hot dog with this sauce for a coney dog.
I don’t recommend using ketchup in place of tomato paste or sauce in my recipe.
They originated in Detroit, Michigan!
Mine is made of ground beef, spices, onion, mustard, Worcestershire, tomato paste, and tomato sauce.
More Ground Beef Recipes to Try
If you’re looking for more easy recipes to use ground beef, try a few of these:
- Meatloaf Burgers (with homemade ketchup)
- Game Day Chili (no beans, pasta optional)
- American Flag Taco Dip (Made From Scratch)
- Mini Meatloaf Recipe From Scratch
- Easy Crockpot Stuffed Pepper Soup Recipe
If you made this recipe, give it a 5-star rating below and share a photo on your social media stories! Be sure to tag @plumbranchhome
Recipe
Homemade Coney Dog Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb ground beef
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 3/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 or a yellow onion
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste (I recommend using organic)
- 3/4 cup tomato sauce (I recommend using organic)
- 2 tsp yellow mustard (I recommend using organic)
- 2 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce (I like Lea & Perrins for a clean version)
- 1 1/4 Tbsp raw honey
- 1 1/4 tsp chili powder (salt-free)
- 3/4 tsp onion powder
- 3/4 tsp ground cumin
Instructions
- In a large skillet, add ground beef, salt, and pepper. Cook on medium-high heat for 6-8 minutes or until fully cooked. Use a spoon or potato masher to break beef down into finely ground pieces as it cooks.
- Once cooked, remove cooked beef from the pan. Make sure to leave as much grease behind as possible. To do this tilt the pan so grease drains from beef, use your a spoon to help them separate.
- Finely dice onion and add to the pan with beef drippings. Cook on medium heat for 2-4 minutes until translucent (soft and slightly see-through).
- Then add tomato paste to the pan with onions and cook for 2 -3 minutes. Stir continuously. (This adds more flavor than adding it later with other ingredients.)
- Turn heat down to low. Add in tomato sauce, mustard, Worcestershire, honey, chili powder, onion powder, and cumin. Stir to combine.
- Add cooked beef back into the pan and stir to combine.
- Let simmer, uncovered, on low heat for 10 minutes.
- When finished, add 1/8 tsp extra salt if desired (= more flavor). Enjoy!
Video