DIY Pronto Pups
There’s no denying it: The State Fair is on hiatus this year and we’re a little bummed. But we follow a strict no-wallowing-for-more-than-two-days rule. So we moped, we pouted, we put our hand to our brow and cried out in dismay and then…. we pulled out all our big kitchen pots and got to work!
Okay, we’re being hyperbolic (not about the wallowing part — we really did that). We’re exaggerating about the “we got to work” part because making these DIY Pronto Pups is as easy as pie. You only need 15 minutes and a handful of simple ingredients.
We used L&B Pancake Mix combined with cornmeal to mimic the Pronto Pup’s famous crust. Our pancake mix has just the right amount of sweetness to balance the savory hot dogs, and cornmeal gives the crust its familiar gritty texture. But what really makes a DIY Pronto Pup special is what’s wrapped inside. Each person in our test kitchen chose their own favorite hot dog to dunk in the batter and then dip in the fryer. A customized Pronto Pup can’t make up for missing the Great Minnesota Get-Together, but it can make your meal that much more delicious.
Pair your Pups with our DIY Cheese Curds and have some Sweet Martha’s cookies for dessert — you can find Sweet Martha’s cookie dough in the freezer section at all our stores — to make it a complete State Fair meal.
DIY Pronto Pups
8 servings
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
2 cups L&B Original Golden Malted Pancake & Waffle Mix
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 cups whole milk
Kosher salt
8 hot dogs
Peanut oil, for frying
Mustard, to taste
Special equipment: 8 10-inch skewers
Directions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the pancake mix, cornmeal, milk and a pinch of salt. (The batter should be a bit thicker than pancake batter.)
- Let the batter rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Add a bit more milk to thin, if needed.
- In a large pot or fryer, bring at least 4 inches of oil to 350 F. Dunk hot dogs in the batter and remove with a fork. Gently drop them into the oil and fry, rotating if needed, until golden brown all over, about 4 to 6 minutes.
- Remove the hot dogs from the fryer and add the skewers. Serve with mustard.
