Don't Overlook This Detail On Hot Dogs Before Buying Them — It Helps With Flavor

From the best gas station franks in the U.S. to grilled red hots on the Fourth of July, few foods are as classically American as the humble hot dog. Most hot dogs are made with meat that has been cooked or smoked, and yes, sometimes organs are used to make them, like liver or heart (though these ingredients are listed separately). Like all sausages, hot dogs consist of meat that is ground and seasoned, then stuffed into a casing. The type of casing matters, especially for hot dog brands that only use high-quality ingredients. If you're a fan of the "snap" sensation when biting into a hot dog, franks with natural casing are for you.

Most hot dogs have a natural casing or are sold skinless (the casing is removed before it's sold). Natural casing is an edible animal part, usually the intestines. Many commercial hot dogs, including some of our favorite all-beef ones, are made with a cellulose or plastic casing that's removed before they're sold. That's because cellulose, which comes from cotton, isn't edible.

Natural casing acts somewhat like the crust on a loaf of bread, providing a textural contrast to the softer inside. The casing also helps lock the hot dog's juices inside, so the frank will be moister when you bite into it. This also means that the hot dog will have a meatier taste, because the flavor in the liquid won't leak out during cooking.

The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council reports that New Yorkers spent more than $116 million on hot dogs in stores in 2025, more than any other city in the United States. Sabrett, which calls itself New York's #1 hot dog, manufactures both skinless and natural casing franks. The ingredients of each are nearly identical: beef, water, salt, seasonings, and preservatives, but Sabrett's natural casing franks have an additional note on the ingredients list. "Encased in sheep casing" is the brand's way of saying that the hot dogs have been stuffed inside a sheep's intestine, one of the most common natural casings. At Food Bazaar, a grocery chain with locations throughout the boroughs, Sabrett skinless and natural casing hot dogs are the same price ($9.19 at the time of writing), but the skinless variety come in a pack of eight while the natural casing dogs come in a pack of six, so they're more expensive per link.

Preserve the unique taste of natural casing hot dogs by preparing them at their best. The casing acts as a barrier to heat, meaning they heat up more slowly than skinless dogs but also more evenly. They grill well, but simmering the hot dogs and finishing them on the grill will prevent the high heat from splitting the casing and causing the delicious juices inside to run out.