DC Half-Smoke
A coarse, smoky pork-and-beef sausage, grilled until browned, in a soft steamed bun with yellow mustard, onion and a scoop of smooth, spicy chili.
Ben's Chili Bowl opened on August 22, 1958, founded by Ben and Virginia Ali, and Ben came up with putting the half-smoke on its menu. The sausage is usually credited to Raymond Briggs of DC meatpacker Briggs and Co., who sold it from about 1930 and never explained the name. On January 10, 2009, President-elect Barack Obama stopped at Ben's with Mayor Adrian Fenty and had a half-smoke with chili.
🇺🇸 This one is American
A coarse, smoky pork-and-beef sausage, grilled until browned, in a soft steamed bun with yellow mustard, onion and a scoop of smooth, spicy chili.
🇦🇹 The original
In Vienna the same sausage comes in a pair, warmed in water below the boil, with mustard, horseradish and the roll on the side, not around it. See the Frankfurter Würstel with Mustard and a Roll recipe.
Why it works the kitchen science
A long, low simmer
Three hours turns the beef and spices into a smooth, deep sauce instead of a chunky bowl chili.
Blend a little back in
Blending part of the chili gives the smooth, spoonable texture of a dog chili that coats the sausage.
Step by step
- Step 1
Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook the garlic, onion and red pepper 3 minutes, until soft.
- Step 2
Turn the heat to medium-high, add the beef and cook 5 minutes, breaking it up, until browned. Ground beef should reach 160°F. Stir in the tomato paste and cook 1 minute.
- Step 3
Add the spice mix, crushed tomatoes, crumbled bouillon cube, water and salt. Bring to a simmer, then cover with the lid ajar and simmer on low 3 hours, stirring every 30 minutes and adding a splash of water if it gets too thick.
- Step 4
Blend about 3/4 cup of the chili until smooth and stir it back in. It should be thick enough to mound on a spoon.
- Step 5
Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat with the oil. Grill the half-smokes, turning, 8 to 10 minutes, until browned all over and steaming hot (165°F for higher-risk eaters). Keep them whole, as Ben's does, or butterfly them with a seam left joining the halves.
- Step 6
Steam the buns over simmering water 1 minute, until soft and warm.
- Step 7
Set each half-smoke in a bun, add a line of mustard and the chopped onion, then a generous scoop of chili. Serve with chips.
DC Half-Smoke
Serves 4 (1 half-smoke each) · 4 half-smokes, about 2 cups chili · 3 hr 40 min total
Chili spice mix
- 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp cayenne (use 1/4 tsp for milder)
- 3/4 tsp garlic powder
- 3/4 tsp onion powder
- 3/4 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp mustard powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Chili
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- 1/4 onion, finely chopped
- 1/4 red bell pepper, finely chopped
- 8 oz ground beef
- 1/2 tbsp tomato paste
- 7 oz canned crushed tomatoes (about 3/4 cup)
- 1 beef bouillon cube
- 3/4 cup water, plus more as needed
- 3/8 tsp kosher salt
Half-smokes
- 4 half-smoke sausages (about 1/4 lb each), or other coarse smoked pork-and-beef sausages
- 1 tsp oil
- 4 soft split-top hot dog buns
- 4 tsp yellow mustard
- 6 tbsp finely chopped white onion
- To serve: potato chips
Method
- Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook the garlic, onion and red pepper 3 minutes, until soft.
- Turn the heat to medium-high, add the beef and cook 5 minutes, breaking it up, until browned. Ground beef should reach 160°F. Stir in the tomato paste and cook 1 minute.
- Add the spice mix, crushed tomatoes, crumbled bouillon cube, water and salt. Bring to a simmer, then cover with the lid ajar and simmer on low 3 hours, stirring every 30 minutes and adding a splash of water if it gets too thick.
- Blend about 3/4 cup of the chili until smooth and stir it back in. It should be thick enough to mound on a spoon.
- Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat with the oil. Grill the half-smokes, turning, 8 to 10 minutes, until browned all over and steaming hot (165°F for higher-risk eaters). Keep them whole, as Ben's does, or butterfly them with a seam left joining the halves.
- Steam the buns over simmering water 1 minute, until soft and warm.
- Set each half-smoke in a bun, add a line of mustard and the chopped onion, then a generous scoop of chili. Serve with chips.
Ben's has never published its chili recipe. We combine Virginia Ali's assembly method as told to InsideHook with the chili from RecipeTin Eats, "Chili Dogs" by Nagi, a self-described copycat of Ben's sauce, halved here. Toppings are confirmed by Ben's own grocery page. The halving and the 3-hour simmer for the smaller batch are our adaptation. InsideHook. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
Tips
- The chili freezes well. Make a full RecipeTin batch (double this one) and freeze the rest.
- Ben's sells its chili and half-smokes retail if you want to taste the original next to yours.
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Mustard, onions and chili. Documented (Ben's grocery page; InsideHook; DCist).
- Whole vs split. Disputed: Destination DC says the half-smoke is traditionally slit before grilling; Virginia Ali says Ben's keeps it whole.
- Where the name comes from. Folklore, with every theory unproven: half pork and half beef, half smoked, split in half, "half the seasoning" of a Polish. The term appears in a Philadelphia ad as early as 1862.
- "All the way". Not found on any page we opened; Folklore / common usage.
Every other hot dog style
Frankfurter Würstel with Mustard and a Roll
Two slim smoked sausages, warmed in hot water that never boils and served in a pair with sharp or sweet mustard, horseradish and a crusty roll on the side.
Chicago-Style Hot Dog
An all-beef frank in a steamed poppy seed bun, "dragged through the garden" with seven toppings, and never ketchup.
New York Street Cart Hot Dog
An all-beef frank held in a hot "dirty water" bath, in a steamed bun with sweet red onion sauce, sauerkraut and mustard.
Detroit Coney Island Hot Dog
A natural-casing dog in a soft bun under a fine, beanless meat sauce, a stripe of yellow mustard and a pile of chopped onion.
Sonoran Hot Dog
A bacon-wrapped dog in a soft bolillo split along the top, loaded with pinto beans, tomato, onion, jalapeño salsa, mustard and a zigzag of mayo.
New Jersey Italian Hot Dog
Hot dogs fried in oil with peppers, onions and potato rounds, stuffed into a pocket of round Italian pizza bread over a line of mustard.
Seattle Cream Cheese Dog
A butterflied, griddle-browned dog on a toasted bun spread with cream cheese and piled with golden onions, jalapeños optional.
American Corn Dog
A hot dog on a stick, twirled in a cornmeal and buttermilk batter and fried golden, with a squiggle of yellow mustard.
Chilean Completo Italiano
A long hot dog in a big soft bun, buried under diced tomato, salted mashed avocado and a heavy line of mayonnaise, in the red, green and white of the Italian flag.
Danish Ristet Pølse
A griddle-browned sausage poking out of both ends of a soft bun, striped with ketchup, mustard and remoulade, buried in raw and crispy onions and topped with sweet cucumber.
Korean Corn Dog (Gamja Hotdog)
A hot dog on a stick wrapped in chewy yeast dough, rolled in potato cubes and crumbs, fried and dusted with sugar, then zigzagged with ketchup and mustard.
Coney Island Griddled Dog, Inspired by Nathan's Famous
An all-beef natural-casing frank cooked whole on a flat-top, gently first and hot at the end, for a blistered, snappy skin.
25-Minute Air-Fryer Chili Cheese Dogs
Air-fried franks, a quick skillet chili and melted cheddar, on the table in about 25 minutes.
Meatballs of the World
Italian-American Meatballs
Big, tender meatballs braised for an hour in red sauce over spaghetti. The one most Americans grew up with.
Pallottine (Abruzzo Meatballs)
Tiny meatballs, smaller than a marble, tossed right through square spaghetti alla chitarra. No bread at all.
Swedish Meatballs (Köttbullar)
Small, soft meatballs browned in butter, in a cream sauce made from the same pan, with lingonberry jam on the plate.
Danish Frikadeller
Pork meatballs shaped with a spoon and fried slowly in butter, crusty outside and soft in the middle.
Königsberger Klopse
German meatballs that are never fried: poached, then served in a creamy white sauce with capers.
Spanish Albóndigas in Almond Saffron Sauce
The tapas bar classic: small meatballs in a golden sauce thickened with fried almonds and bread.
Mexican Albóndigas with Chipotle and Mint
Soft meatballs with rice and fresh mint inside, simmered in a smoky tomato and chipotle broth.
Izgara Köfte (Turkish Grilled Meatballs)
Small, flat meatballs kneaded hard, rested cold, and charred on a hot grill pan.
Lion's Head Meatballs
Big, soft pork meatballs, stirred into a sticky paste, fried to set, then braised in a savory sauce.
Chicken Tsukune
Japan's chicken meatball: kneaded sticky, grilled on skewers, glazed with sweet soy tare, dipped in egg yolk.