- 1 year ago
The Food Truck NZ - S01E03 - Hot Dogs
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00:00The New Zealand fast food industry is worth over $1.3 billion a year, but there's a huge
00:06social cost.
00:07Two out of every five deaths have some link to diet-related factors.
00:13Without putting you off your dinner, us Kiwis need to change what we eat.
00:19Michael van der Elzen is the owner and head chef at the award-winning molten restaurant
00:23and liquid molten bar in Mount Eden, Auckland.
00:29He's on a mission to make fast food healthy food.
00:32Alright.
00:33It's good.
00:34It's good.
00:35It's yummy.
00:36Yeah, it's good.
00:37It's tasteless.
00:38Fast food can be exciting, it can be healthy, it can be food that we serve in our restaurants.
00:43The bit I'm worried about is, are Kiwis willing to go for it?
00:46Last week, Michael took the food truck on holiday to Mangawhai Heads, where keen Kiwi
00:51campers fell for his fresh take on fish and chips, hook, line and sinker.
00:56It's healthy.
00:57It's healthy.
00:58It's good.
00:59It's really, really good.
01:00Tonight, can Michael create nutritious, affordable hot dogs with the quick tick customers demand
01:06these days?
01:07Find out in the food truck.
01:14The traditional Kiwi hot dog is our beloved cornmeal-battered deep-fried mystery pack,
01:19smothered in sauce.
01:21In the 70s, we doubled up our dogs by bringing in American-style hot dogs, a frankfurter
01:26and a bun.
01:28It's really the ultimate fast food.
01:30You can get it right away, it's generally pre-cooked, you know, you can eat it while
01:34walking around an event, driving the truck, whatever.
01:37You know, I love a really good sausage, you know, all that meat and that real, great tasting
01:43spice that they run through some of them, but some of those hot dogs, they're pretty
01:47scary.
01:48Everyone knows hot dogs aren't exactly healthy, well-rounded or magnificent, but does anyone
01:54care?
01:55I'm waiting for healthy, healthy hot dogs.
01:58In terms of health, I don't really care.
01:59I definitely think there could be a market for healthy hot dogs now.
02:02I reckon when I'm eating a hot dog, the last thing on my mind is health.
02:07In a few days, Michael will have a shot at convincing Kiwis to try some healthy hot dogs
02:12at the all-American setting of a baseball game.
02:14It's going to be hard to convince people.
02:17You know, with convenience foods like hot dogs, people just don't care about their health.
02:22They get something super cheap, they just woof it down, they get their quick fix, and
02:26they just move on.
02:27What I want to know is, can I make a quick fix hot dog that's cheap and healthy, and
02:32then people will buy it?
02:35To see what he's up against, Michael's trying both varieties of hot dog.
02:39First up, the Kiwi Classic.
02:42Hot dog on a stick.
02:43Just one.
02:45What Americans refer to as corn dogs are available almost anywhere you find a deep fryer.
02:52The sausage is not really a sausage.
02:53It basically just tastes of bread.
02:55$2.50, you know, what do you expect?
02:58The American-style hot dog from a gas station doesn't fare much better.
03:05It has the texture of a sausage, it tastes of absolutely nothing.
03:13Michael's determined to find a place where he can get a good sausage for a good price.
03:17And all it takes is a drive to Germany via Auckland's North Shore.
03:22How are we?
03:23I'm good, thank you.
03:24You've got a few different types.
03:25Are they all one particular type of meat, or are they all changed?
03:28No, these three, the spicy, the mild, and the frankfurter, are all pork and beef mix.
03:34And this is a Moroccan lamb, which is just 100% pure New Zealand lamb.
03:37So what would you sell the most off?
03:39Oh, by far, we sell more spicy than anything else.
03:42Probably six or seven times more spicy than anything else.
03:45That's right.
03:46$4.50.
03:47The spicy snarler is about twice the price of the others Michael's tried.
03:50At $6, you get what you pay for, and you know what's in it.
03:54Now, this is fantastic.
03:56Finally, I can taste a sausage where I can taste the spice and I can taste the smoke
03:59coming through.
04:00So while this sausage was more expensive, it's the number one seller.
04:05So it shows that people are willing to pay more for a great-tasting sausage.
04:11Most Kiwi sausages come from big factories like Leonard's.
04:15People's come to get an inside look at how they get made.
04:17G'day, Michael.
04:18How are you, sir?
04:20Good to see you.
04:22Doug Leonard is the co-founder of Leonard's Sausages.
04:25Since 1989, they've been known for award-winning quality and quantity alike, pumping out up
04:31to 80,000 sausages daily to stores all over New Zealand.
04:36We've got cocktails, franks, precooks.
04:39That is a child's dream to get lost in that.
04:43Look at them.
04:44I love sausages.
04:45In fact, I had them for tea last night.
04:47But Kiwis like them because they're convenient, and if you go to a barbecue, the chicks always
04:51want to sit down with a little plate on their... and have their steak on their chop and salad
04:55one thing or the other.
04:56The bloke would rather have a sausage and a piece of bread and a can of beer in the
04:58other hand, and that's all good.
05:00Commercial sausages use not only a combination of meat and fat, but also nitrates to prevent
05:05botulism, which can make you sick, emulsifiers to bind the sausage meat, and wheat for binding
05:11and filler.
05:13What would be your ratio of meat to fat?
05:16This sausage here will have 51% lean meat in it.
05:19Minimum.
05:20Our sausages run about 80% fat.
05:22I suppose if you looked at a lamb chop and a sausage, the fat level would be the same
05:26in both, only you don't have a bone in the sausage.
05:28Well, you shouldn't have.
05:29Vein pump in the bottom.
05:31Once the mix is fine-tuned, it's squirted into skins.
05:34A seemingly simple scenario.
05:36Look at the man go.
05:37Isn't he?
05:38Alright, now I've got to slow down.
05:41I'm getting to the groove.
05:42It's either go or stop.
05:45I took the leg off, I didn't stop.
05:47No, you've got to hit it in.
05:48I actually knew that was coming.
05:50From there, the sausages are flash-steamed, then cooled.
05:53I'm stuck in the sausage house.
05:55Separated, and finally packed for consumption.
06:01All up, it's been an eye-opening experience for Michael.
06:04I know a bit about sausages, but it is a little bit scary to hear Doug say that.
06:09You know, law only states that we have to put in 51% meat.
06:12On top of that, you've got all your fillers, you've got your nitrates,
06:15you've got your preservatives.
06:16All these things are essential in making a commercial sausage.
06:20I want to make a sausage that is totally free of all of these.
06:24And hopefully, you know, with as small amount of fat
06:27and as little amount of salt as possible.
06:30Well, in terms of Michael making a sausage with very little or no fat,
06:34I'm sure he can make one.
06:36But whether in fact it's going to be palatable, I wish him luck.
06:39It's not a road I'd care to go down.
06:42Gourmet chef Michael van der Elzen is taking on the hot dog
06:46at a baseball game in just two days.
06:50After sampling some fatty, filler-laden sausages for himself,
06:53he's ready to make some low-fat variations
06:56in the molten kitchen with sous-chef Frenchy.
06:59But can they produce a healthy hot dog that Kiwis will want?
07:03First up, I want to do a vegetarian sausage.
07:05So I'm going to use some jumbo white beans that have been cooked,
07:08some tomatoes that have been slow-roasted overnight,
07:11and then I've got some rosemary.
07:15Sausage making is a painstaking three-step process.
07:18Ingredients are combined in a mincer.
07:20The mince is then packed into a skin using a sausage maker.
07:24For this, Michael's using organic pork intestine
07:27in place of synthetic skins often used in mass production.
07:30Finally, the individual sausages are tied off one by one.
07:35So now I want to make a chicken sausage.
07:37So I want to make these chicken sausages really healthy.
07:40So I'm not going to add any extra fat than what's already in the chicken itself.
07:44The filler for this is a hearty mix of blanched greens,
07:47including fresh leeks, spinach and spring onions.
07:52Michael's third variety is a clever self-contained beef hot dog.
07:57Last night I was thinking, what's in a hot dog?
08:00You've got your bun, you've got your sauce and you've got your mustard.
08:03I'm going to put the whole lot inside a sausage.
08:06So it's a hot dog in a sausage.
08:09Will it work? I don't know.
08:11Will people like it? I don't know.
08:13Let's try it.
08:14Mustard and bread are added to the beef mince,
08:17but Michael has the third essential ingredient, incognito.
08:20This has just been set with a little bit of jamsang.
08:22So when you eat this sausage,
08:24you're going to get a burst of tomato
08:26like you do when you're eating a hot dog.
08:29Look at the colour.
08:31Can we see our little... Oh, look at it!
08:34I think the sausages that we've made are challenging.
08:37They're totally different than what you would normally have in a hot dog.
08:41In saying that, are they too far out of the box?
08:50It's a sunny day in Mission Bay.
08:52Michael's hoping the fresh sea breeze
08:54will waft the smell of sausage into hungry lunchtime noses.
08:58The plan today is to cook up my sausages
09:00and I want to give them away to Kiwis
09:02and see what they think of my take on healthy hot dogs.
09:05His three different sausages go into three pans,
09:08fried with a fraction of spray oil.
09:10The worst thing that could happen is nobody likes any of the flavours.
09:13They just look at them and go,
09:14I don't recognise any of them
09:15and I don't want any of those sausages in my hot dog.
09:17I want to go back to my frankfurters
09:19and my flavours that I recognise.
09:21The bangers are done,
09:22but will locals and tourists be open to a healthy hot sausage?
09:27Ladies.
09:28Hey.
09:29Would you like to try some hot dogs?
09:30I'd love to.
09:31Michael's serving the sausages on a simple plain bun,
09:34hoping they'll have ample flavour
09:36for Kiwis to overcome their sauce obsession.
09:38I've got sauce, so if you want sauce, yell.
09:40OK, dig in.
09:42Can I have sauce?
09:43No, you've got to eat it first.
09:45The chicken and vegetable sausage seems to go down well.
09:48It's awesome.
09:49I've got sauce if you require it.
09:51I really like this sausage just alone.
09:53Don't need it.
09:54Don't need it.
09:56I really like that.
09:57I'd buy those.
09:58But perfectionist Michael knows he can improve on it.
10:01That's a good one.
10:02Is that a little bit too dry because of no fat?
10:05Maybe a little.
10:06Maybe a little.
10:07Michael's hoping his vegetarian sausage will be the surprise hit.
10:11I want them to eat it and go,
10:12that's a great-tasting sausage,
10:14automatically thinking that there's meat in them.
10:17But they're 100% vegetarian.
10:19But it turns out he isn't fooling anybody.
10:22What have you got in it?
10:23What do you think?
10:24No meat.
10:25No?
10:26Oh, no.
10:27What do you think?
10:28It's not really holding its shape.
10:30Like a normal sausage would when you bite into it.
10:32Yeah, when you bite into it and it kind of crunches a little bit.
10:35Yeah.
10:38And it's a split decision on the beef hot dog in a sausage.
10:42Yeah, it's OK.
10:43OK.
10:44You're not convincing me here.
10:45I like this one a lot.
10:48Personally, I like these.
10:50Yeah, so I like these ones.
10:51A little bit dry?
10:52A wee bit dry.
10:53You might get a tomato kick.
10:55What, there's tomato in here, you say?
10:57Yeah.
10:58You should get an explosion of tomato coming through there.
11:00See that tomato there?
11:01Yeah, I can see it.
11:02Try and eat that part there.
11:04You know, the chef said there'd be tomato sauce
11:06bursting into my mouth, and it really wasn't.
11:09It was more like little hunks of canned tomato.
11:13So it's a hot dog within a sausage?
11:15Sauce on the inside.
11:16I'd say he has a wee bit of work for me.
11:18Michael's had a good helping of customer feedback
11:21and the benefit of realistic price advice.
11:24Yeah, we're really into sausages at the moment
11:26that have less of the fillers and more meat.
11:29We're right into a healthier version.
11:31I feel good, and I don't mind paying a little bit more,
11:34knowing it's good for me.
11:36Great.
11:37You make me very happy.
11:38Yeah, I'm happy too.
11:41Would you pay more for a healthy hot dog
11:43or for a normal hot dog from the gas station?
11:46A healthy one.
11:47You would pay more for it?
11:48Yep.
11:49How much more would you pay?
11:50If one from the gas station is $3,
11:52so you'd pay $5 for the same size one?
11:55Yep.
11:56Yeah, boys, you can have sauces now.
11:58Oh, thank you, boss.
11:59I think almost all the people that we served today
12:02were stoked with the health factor,
12:04and all of them said that, yes,
12:06they would pay more for a healthier sausage.
12:09Overall, yeah, I'm stoked.
12:10I can't wait for that baseball game.
12:13Next morning, Moulton's kitchen is all go.
12:17Romantic, isn't it?
12:18It's a bit cosy in here.
12:19Michael's got Matty and Frenchie
12:21to help make sausages for game day.
12:23He's settled on three hot dog styles.
12:25The first is his unusual hot dog in a sausage, on a stick.
12:30This time I've actually set my Dijon mustard,
12:32which we can see there,
12:33and I've also set my tomato, which you can just see there.
12:36I haven't put the bread in there like we did,
12:38so all that's in there.
12:39Instead of using a deep-fried batter,
12:41Michael's doubling up on healthier corn options
12:44by first tipping the dog in corn polenta
12:46and then rolling it in cornbread.
12:49The result, a hot dog on a stick
12:51without the dirty old deep fryer.
12:54I think that looks like a corn dog.
12:57Seem to have a bit of a full patch on top.
13:01A bit like me.
13:03Next up is Michael's hot dog in a sausage.
13:06A bit like me.
13:08Next up is Michael's take on the classic American hot dog.
13:11With the veggie dog a disaster,
13:13he's going to resurrect a meaty masterpiece.
13:16Moulton Restaurant had a paua sausage on the menu about a year ago.
13:19It was fantastic. People loved it.
13:21So I want to replicate that in a hot dog and make a sea dog.
13:24To extend the paua sausage,
13:26Michael's using pickled pork and chicken,
13:28as well as brown bread soaked in milk
13:30to help mellow the tangy paua flavour.
13:33The sausage is then poached in milk
13:35and served up in a bun
13:37with a caper and gherkin-based dry tartare sauce
13:40and a low-fat horseradish mayonnaise.
13:43Here we go. One sea dog.
13:45Doesn't it look great? Full of colour.
13:47Looks fantastic. Hopefully they'll buy them.
13:50For his final menu item,
13:52the chicken and veggie sausage turns into a bright green party
13:55by adding even more vegetables.
13:57He's also going to be changing up its presentation
14:00to make it more kid-friendly.
14:02I really want to make a hot dog that appeals to the kids.
14:05What I'm going to do is I'm actually going to make a hot dog
14:08in the shape of a lollipop and then put a stick through it.
14:11So the kids are going to be eating a lollipop hot dog.
14:14Plus, after complaints of dryness,
14:16Michael's going to dip the sausage in a homemade tomato and apple sauce.
14:20Here you go, little kid.
14:22But will the healthy hot dogs score a home run at the big game?
14:26I'm not sure how it's going to go today.
14:28My hot dogs are so far out of the box.
14:30They're really not what people are used to.
14:32They're healthy and they're tasty,
14:34but are people going to experiment at a baseball game
14:37or are they just going to stick to their fatty comfort foods?
14:40I guess I've got to find out.
14:44Gourmet chef Michael van der Elzen has spent the last week
14:47developing a more nutritious take
14:49on an all-American fast food favourite, the hot dog.
14:52Today, he's at the home of baseball, Pakuranga,
14:55where the under-16 New Zealand baseball team
14:58are taking on Guam and Australia in the Oceania Cup.
15:02Feeling quite excited.
15:04I've never been to a baseball game,
15:06let alone to a baseball game with the intentions of selling hot dogs.
15:10Michael's one of only two takeaway vendors at the game today.
15:13Finally.
15:14His competition is the genuine New York-style hot dog cart.
15:17This could be scary.
15:18Ladies, how are we?
15:20I have to come over and try what you've got.
15:22So you've got an American hot dog, $3.50.
15:24My first one's free.
15:26Hungarian spicy.
15:28Yep.
15:29And then cheese Kransky, $5.50, which is your most expensive.
15:32And then you've got palms and cheese on top of that,
15:34so you could have a $6.
15:36I'm excited.
15:37It's time for Michael to see what he's up against.
15:42Very traditional, very recognisable flavour.
15:45It's quite fantastic.
15:47Yeah, there's only the two of us here,
15:49and you've got the new take on the hot dog
15:51and you've got the classic, recognisable,
15:53everyone-knows take on hot dogs.
15:55Are people willing to try something new?
15:57That's what we're going to find out,
15:59but damn, I'm going to give it a try.
16:01Michael's settled his pricing.
16:03He's selling the chicken-and-vegetable-stuffed
16:05Swirl Dog for $3,
16:07his healthy take on a Corn Dog for $4,
16:09and his power-stuffed Sea Dog
16:11takes the top billing at $5.
16:13Batter up.
16:14I think people won't want to buy Michael's hot dogs
16:17because they don't know them.
16:19They're different and a bit too extreme.
16:22There's just some last-minute prep,
16:24including the dressing for his Sea Dog,
16:26which will end up snuggled into a fluffy bun
16:28full of chia seeds, rich in Omega-3.
16:31So fresh, it's almost still warm.
16:33The first game of the day is New Zealand versus Guam.
16:36As it gets started,
16:38Michael's dogs are unleashed on an unsuspecting public.
16:41Oh, yeah! First customer.
16:43Am I the first?
16:44You are the first. Are you nervous?
16:46Am I nervous? No, I'm not nervous at all. I'm hungry.
16:48What are you after? The Sea Dog? Yeah, good choice.
16:50I love hot dogs.
16:52I just love the wholesomeness of the combination of three things,
16:55a nice bread, a sausage and all the gooey stuff on top.
16:59Michael's prepped his first hot dog in just 30 seconds.
17:02But will this hot dog lover love the result?
17:05And then you've got your horseradish on top.
17:08You had me at hello.
17:09So this is a fantastic, healthy, full of Omega-3 hot dog.
17:14Do you like that? Oh, that's a beautiful thing. Thank you.
17:16Give it a whirl. Tell me what you think.
17:18That is outstanding.
17:20Enough taste, enough seasoning.
17:22That is beautiful. Fantastic. Have one. They're brilliant.
17:26We've got a Swirl Dog made like a lollipop,
17:28and then you've got a Corn Dog, hot dog on a stick,
17:30and then at the end we've got a Seafood Dog.
17:32Can I have a Corn Dog? You want a Corn Dog?
17:34Michael had dreamt the kids would go for the Chicken and Veggie Swirl Dog.
17:38Naturally for kids, familiar is best.
17:43Delicious? Yeah. Love it.
17:47When the first game finished, both vendors see sales increase.
17:51Now there's a different game on.
17:55Ladies, what are we on? 22. 22? Yeah.
18:00I've only got nine.
18:02But Michael's fortunes change
18:04with the arrival of the entire Guam baseball team.
18:07Come in, boys. Come on in.
18:09Who wants a Sea Dog? One.
18:11Blimey.
18:141, 2, 3, 4, 11, 12.
18:17Oh, my God.
18:19Michael churns out 14 Sea Dogs,
18:21along with a couple of Corn Dogs, in record time.
18:26Enjoy.
18:28Another Sea Dog?
18:31Do we have anything like that in Guam?
18:33No, not in Guam.
18:37But as the Kiwi team gears up for the second game,
18:40it looks like the trusty food truck has stalled.
18:42And that's not Michael's only problem.
18:44His Corn Dogs are coming apart at the seams.
18:50Oh, my God.
18:52The skin is wrong. The skin is absolutely wrong.
18:55Do you want to try another one?
18:57Do I have to pay for one?
18:59Nah, I'll give it to you. Here comes another one.
19:05Really, really nice. Much better.
19:09But one customer is far from satisfied.
19:12Just bought one from just next door here.
19:15She's brought over to me. She can't stand it.
19:17She's to get all these ones.
19:20While Michael's Corn Dog goes into the bin,
19:22the queue grows at the traditional hot dog stand.
19:25Everything is going really well.
19:27We have a huge line at the moment.
19:29Everyone wants our hot dogs.
19:31And I think we are kicking Michael's ass.
19:33But word of Michael's healthy dogs
19:35has attracted an overseas visitor.
19:37New York Yankee, Curtis Granderson.
19:39And he's starving.
19:40One Corn Dog, just one?
19:41We'll start with one.
19:42I want to eat them all for everybody else, you know.
19:44And you get a very unique Corn Dog.
19:46Okay, and then we just go right to work.
19:48Go for it. Okay.
19:52Oh, man. Good for you?
19:54Good.
19:55And good for me?
19:56And tasty?
19:57And tasty, hopefully.
19:58Oh, man. Oh, I do.
19:59Okay.
20:00You can be brutally honest. I can take it.
20:02You see, I'm going back for another bite.
20:05There you go.
20:06A New York Yankee eating my Corn Dog.
20:08Very good Corn Dog.
20:09Michael isn't letting Curtis go
20:11without a taste of the New Zealand sea.
20:13Thank you, everybody.
20:14Pleasure. Enjoy the rest of your day.
20:16Give you some elbow.
20:17All righty.
20:18Pleasure.
20:19At first, I thought he might have been playing up for the cameras.
20:21But I watched him.
20:22I watched him walk off.
20:23And he was chowing down on a heart.
20:25So he loved the sausage.
20:27It was great.
20:28He loved the hot dog.
20:29I'm happy for the rest of the day.
20:31Curtis isn't the only fan of Michael's healthy hot dogs.
20:35It's a great fresh taste.
20:37It's nice.
20:39It's got lots of stuff in it.
20:41For five dollars, yeah, this is a really good alternative.
20:44Yeah.
20:45As the second game draws to a close,
20:47there's a flurry of sales at both carts.
20:49Pleasure.
20:53There you go.
20:56Very good for you. Enjoy.
21:01So the question is, who won the dog fight?
21:04Hit me. What did you do?
21:0572.
21:07Bugger.
21:08How many did you do?
21:0953.
21:12You thrashed me.
21:13You outsold me by 20 hot dogs.
21:15You know, why?
21:17Because people like buying what they know.
21:20Because your ones, they are delicious.
21:22But they don't know what it's going to taste like.
21:25So they go for something that is recognisable
21:28over something that challenges them a little bit,
21:31even if it is healthier.
21:33Yes.
21:36Overall, Michael's success was in creating three hot dogs
21:40that were good for the health and easy on the wallet.
21:44Both Sea Dogs and Corn Dogs sold well,
21:47but the Swill Dogs swilled right down the plug hole.
21:51I did get the Swill Dog wrong. It was too out there for kids.
21:54I recognise American hot dogs. That's what they wanted.
21:57But we gave it a whirl with the Sea Dog,
21:59which was really outside the box,
22:00and people were willing to go for it.
22:02Overall, I'm pretty happy.
22:04That's 53 people walking away with healthy hot dogs
22:07and loving it.
22:09I'm happy.
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