Let's cut a hot dog into eight legs, then watch them curl in the pot! This easy recipe is for ages 8 to 14 (grades 3rd–8th), takes about 15 minutes (plus 2 minutes waiting) and serves 4. Crumb, our tiny chef, reads every step aloud with a picture, so a child can follow along, and every hot or sharp step is marked for a grown-up.
Octopus hot dogs are a hot dog cut into eight legs from the bottom up. When they cook, the legs curl, so each hot dog turns into a little octopus. Children can draw the faces and watch the legs; a grown-up does the cutting and the hot water.
Ingredients
4 hot dogs
1 tablespoon mustard
1 tablespoon ketchup
Tools
A cutting board, A sharp knife (grown-up), A big pot, The stove (grown-up), A big spoon, A colander, A plate.
Steps
Wash your hands with soap for twenty seconds.
Grown-up step: A grown-up cuts each of 4 hot dogs from the bottom up to the middle, into eight legs.
Grown-up step: A grown-up heats a pot of water on the stove until it bubbles gently.
Grown-up step: A grown-up lowers the hot dogs into the water, heads up.
Grown-up step: A grown-up keeps it bubbling gently for 5 minutes. Watch the legs curl!
Grown-up step: A grown-up lifts them out and drains them in the colander.
Let them cool on a plate for two minutes.
Dab two dots of 1 tablespoon of mustard on each head for eyes.
Draw a smile on each one with 1 tablespoon of ketchup.
Your octopuses are swimming! Watch their legs wave.
Safety notes
Sharp! A grown-up does this part.
Hot! A grown-up does this part.
None of the nine major allergens as written. Still read the labels on packets.
Cut hot dogs into thin strips the long way, never round coins, for little ones under 4.
Read the label on packets for allergies.
Kitchen science
A hot dog's skin shrinks faster than its middle when it gets hot, so each cut leg curls up into a curl all by itself.
Make it your own
Thread dry spaghetti through the legs before cooking, for spaghetti legs.
Give each octopus a tiny hat from a slice of carrot.
Serve them on a bed of cooked noodles, as the sea.
Questions about octopus hot dogs
How do you make octopus hot dogs?
A grown-up cuts each hot dog from the bottom up to the middle into eight thin legs. Lower them into gently bubbling water for about 5 minutes until the legs curl, drain them, and draw a face with mustard and ketchup.
Why do the legs curl?
A hot dog's outer skin shrinks faster than its middle when it heats up, which pulls each cut strip into a curl.
Are hot dogs safe for young children?
Whole round hot dogs are a choking risk for children under 4. Cut them into thin strips the long way, never round coins.
Can I make them ahead?
Yes. Cook and curl them, keep them in the fridge, and warm them again before you add the faces.