Many countries have their own distinctive way to serve a hot dog. The Chilean completo, in almost complete disregard for a culture that generally looks down on handheld and potentially messy food, has a series of toppings that require a certain precision to allow you to get this all-ages treat to your mouth.

Certainly, Chile owes some of its completo culture to Germany, both for the hot dog sausage and the mandatory sauerkraut that adorns it. From there, the additions of avocado, mayonnaise, and tomato reflect the Chilean zeitgeist. Other permissible toppings (though here the name changes from completo) are salsa americana (similar to tartar sauce), Salsa Verde/Parsley-Onion Salsa, a spicy sauce called pasta de ají, and optional ketchup and a mild yellow mustard.

Completos are a popular birthday party food, especially for children, but they fill almost every meal niche equally well (perhaps with the exception of breakfast), including the meal/snack we call the bajón, which is the mid-partying middle of the night snack you eat to reanimate before continuing on. Buy bakery buns if you can, serve them warm, and boil, do not grill, the hot dogs for an authentic completo experience. ~Eileen Smith + Pilar Hernandez

Reprinted from The Chilean Kitchen: 75 Seasonal Recipes for Stews, Breads, Salads, and Cocktails, Desserts, and More by Eileen Smith, Pilar Hernandez, and Araceli Paz (2020) with permission from Skyhorse Publishing. Click here to purchase your own copy.