Give Mac And Cheese A Tangy Flavor Upgrade With This Hot Dog Topping

One of the biggest food fads of the early '00s was embellished macaroni and cheese. This dish, once either relegated to the status of barbecue side or low-budget main course, morphed into a restaurant-worthy entree with entire eateries devoted to it. By the next decade, everything pickle was popular. It only makes sense, then, to introduce these two trends to one another, and there's no easier way to do so than by stirring a few spoonfuls of pickle relish into your macaroni and cheese.

There are many ways to make mac and cheese even better. For one thing, you really should be baking it for a better texture. Mix-ins are pretty important, too, since on its own, the dish can be kind of bland. These may include anything from bacon to buffalo chicken to lobster, but pickle relish — which can either be sweet or dill — is an easier and cheaper addition. It's a real flavor booster, too, since its tang cuts through all that starchy stodge.

Pickles play surprisingly well with cheese, even if the classic British cheese-and-pickle sandwich is actually made with a different kind of relish (chutney, which may include such ingredients as carrots, cauliflower, onions, and rutabagas). Still, as anyone who's ever eaten a Big Mac or Chick-fil-A Deluxe is aware, standard cucumber pickles also complement these sandwiches' cheesy component as their sharper flavor offsets its richness. The same is true for macaroni and cheese, although using pickle relish instead of sliced pickles helps to disperse the flavor throughout the dish.

Pickle-enhanced macaroni and cheese is quite the upgrade all by itself, but why stop there? Mustard also enhances the flavor of the dish. Some people prefer using mustard powder, others opt for dijon, while still others swear that plain yellow mustard is the way to go. You just want to go easy on it since too much mustard can overwhelm the other ingredients. There are those who enjoy adding ketchup to the dish, too — this combo is super-popular in Canada. Oh, and let's not forget chili. Just as chili dogs are a wonderful thing, so, too, is chili mac.

Of course, you can go into full-on meal mashup mode by adding sliced hot dogs to your mac and cheese — it's not just for kids. Stir in some pickle relish, along with a squeeze of mustard, ketchup, or both. Maybe add some chopped onions, too, or sauerkraut, if you're into it. Chili dog mac and cheese would also be fantastic, and you can even keep the mustard. (Chili with mustard and onions makes a classic Detroit-style Coney dog.) Even pickle relish could also work with chili, so you can go all out and make a fully loaded hot dog mac and cheese with all of your favorite toppings.