Croissants Are The Hot Dog Bun You Never Knew You Needed

If you love croissants and you love hot dogs, have you ever thought of combining the two? At first blush, this pairing may seem like it doesn't belong on the same plate –- one is a French pastry that can take days to make, and the other is a quick-off-the-grill processed meat product you pair with beer at a baseball game. But opposites do attract, and there's something splendid about a savory, juicy hot dog nestled inside a flaky, buttery croissant.

There are essentially two ways to use a croissant in place of a hot dog bun. The first is to simply slice open an already-prepared croissant and place your dog inside like you would in a traditional bun. You can heat or toast your croissant or simply use it at room temperature — either way will yield a delicious snack or meal addition. Top with your favorite condiments that you would normally slather onto a frank.

The second method is to wrap raw croissant dough around your hot dogs and cook them together, pigs in a blanket-style. This approach can be accomplished with either a from-scratch dough or a ready-made, store-bought croissant dough (although isn't from scratch almost always better? While it may be one of the hardest dishes to make from scratch, a well-executed laminated dough is well worth the effort!).

If you want to choose door No. 2, it will take additional work, but it will be time well spent that your tastebuds won't regret. Pigs in a blanket are one of those retro foods that's due for a comeback, and what better way to reintroduce it to your kitchen than nicely wrapped up inside a freshly made croissant?

You can bake, air fry, or deep fry your croissant dogs — it's really a matter of taste preferences. Simply follow the same recipe or package instructions as you would when cooking croissants solo with that method. Prepackaged hot dogs are precooked before they're sold, so they'll be adequately reheated no matter which method you choose.

You can further level up this tasty concoction with a bacon upgrade (pig-on-pig deliciousness? Yes, please!). You can include precooked bacon on your croissant exterior or place it inside the breading. Cheese is also a great addition. If you're cooking with a conventional oven or air fryer, you can sprinkle some shredded cheese on the exterior closer to the end of the baking process (long enough to allow it to melt). For a deep-fried pig, cheese can be sprinkled on post-fry and melted in a toaster oven or microwave. You can also place cheese inside your croissant wrapper with the dog (or do both — cheese on the outside and the inside! The cheesier the better).