I love cheddar jalapeno cornbread, and I really love a good corn dog. And since we’re cracking open cold ones all summer long, there’s no reason to NOT make these beer battered jalapeno cheddar corn dogs! They have the perfect hot dog to breading ratio.

pile of corn dogs with a small bottle of beer in the background. Two of the corn dogs have bites taken out. this recipe

I had never made corn dogs before until I began developing this recipe. I’m really familiar with deep frying, though. This orange chicken is a repeat weekly dinner, and I love making my own donuts and fritters from scratch.

Through thick and thin

I just really didn’t understand what the right consistency for the corn dog batter was supposed to be, and that tripped me up for a bit. It needs to be thicker than you think, especially with the addition of the cheese and peppers. Nailing that ratio of breading to hot dog was a real trip, lemme tell ya.

The first test was absolutely FRAUGHT with troubles. But all of them usually are. The batter was too thin, because I was so focused on “dunk-ability” that I neglected to think about “stay-put-ability” once the batter was actually on the hot dog.

assorted ingredients to make cheddar jalapeno corn dogs, including hot dogs, cheddar cheese, jalapeno pepper slices, honey, flour, cornmeal and pilsner beer.

The oil was hot and ready to go, and as soon as I dunked the first hot dog, all the batter slid off back into the glass once I pulled it up. Don’t panic, self. After I removed the oil from the heat, I added a cup of flour. That worked to thicken up the batter to the right consistency, but got in the way of that yummy cornbread flavor in the final product.

The chunks of cheese were too big, the largest of which burned a little by the time the breading was fully cooked and the corn dog was golden. AND there was so much leftover batter, it was almost unbelievable. Don’t know how I messed that up so badly, sheesh. The one thing I had right was the amount of jalapenos. A win is a win.

Getting schooled

Round 2. I reduced the amounts of all the ingredients and made the ratio of flour to cornmeal about 50/50. Since the first corn dogs were lacking the cornbread flavor, I wanted to make sure I had it this time. The batter was a good consistency, but pretty much fell apart in the oil. The cornmeal doesn’t bind things together as well as the flour does, so that was another lesson learned. Use flour than cornmeal, but enough cornmeal to add flavor. Ugh.

I swapped out the block cheese for shredded cheddar and reduced the amount just slightly. It blended into the dry ingredients a lot better and was more evenly spread out in the batter. Getting closer!

tray of jalapeno cheddar corn dogs with different dipping sauces and a few bottles of beer in the top left hand corner of the picture.

Finally!

The last test made the perfect amount of batter to cover all 8 hot dogs. There is going to be about a cup of leftover batter, but that’s necessary since there has to be enough to completely dunk each hot dog. I used an ice cream scoop to drop the batter in one scoop at a time and make fritters. It’s up to you.

The thickness of the batter was great, clinging to the hot dog while still being easy enough to dunk in. Toasty cheese woven throughout along with little green dots of jalapeno. Totally fluffy and delicious on the inside and perfectly crisp on the outside. And when the beefy hot dog juices soak into the breading a little bit? Hallelujah.

Serve with ketchup, mustard, BBQ, burger sauce – all of the above. Just make sure to enjoy these jalapeno cheddar corn dogs with a chilled beer!

pile of corn dogs with a small bottle of beer in the background. Two of the corn dogs have bites taken out.
Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
pile of corn dogs with a small bottle of beer in the background. Two of the corn dogs have bites taken out.

Jalapeno Cheddar Corn Dogs

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 3 from 1 review
  • Author: Megan
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 8 corn dogs 1x
  • Category: Dinner
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: American
Print Recipe

Description

These beer battered corn dogs are dotted with jalapeno peppers and savory cheddar cheese.

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1/2 gallon peanut or vegetable oil, for frying
  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup fine ground cornmeal
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 large jalapeno pepper, deseeded and stem removed
  • 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
  • 2/3 cup pilsner style beer (I use Modelo)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 TB milk
  • 3 TB honey
  • 2 TB cornstarch
  • 8 skinless beef franks, regular length (bun length franks are too long and you won’t have enough batter)

Instructions

  1. Heat the peanut oil over medium high heat in a large, heavy bottomed pot. A 5 quart Dutch oven works well here. You can also use a stock pot. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pot (or whichever thermometer you prefer to use) to monitor the temperature of the oil. We want it to reach 365 degrees F.
  2. While the oil is heating up, make the batter. Whisk the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in the bowl of a food processor. Add the deseeded jalapeno pepper and shredded cheese and pulse until well blended. You shouldn’t see any large chunks of either cheese or pepper. It should be almost difficult to see the cheese.
  3. Pour the dry ingredient mixture into a mixing bowl and add the beer, beaten egg, milk and honey. Use a spatula to fold everything together until a thick, cohesive batter forms. It should drop off of the spatula in large “plops.” Set the batter aside and prepare the hot dogs.
  4. Pat the franks dry with a paper towel and push a skewer into one end of each frank. The skewer should go about 3/4 of the way through the hot dog and not come out the other end.
  5. After all the franks have skewers, add the cornstarch to a shallow bowl or plate. Gently roll each hot dog in the cornstarch and use your hand to cover and brush it over the entire hot dog. They don’t need to be encrusted in it, just a dusting on the outside. Be sure to do this over the plate of cornstarch to catch the excess as you coat each hot dog. Set the prepared hot dogs aside.
  6. Give the batter another mix with the spatula and fill a tall glass (Collins or highball works well) up to about an inch from the top with batter. By now, the oil should be close to temperature.
  7. When the oil has reached 365 degrees, dunk a prepared hot dog in the glass of batter, sinking it completely into the batter to cover the entire hot dog. Swirl it a bit to make sure the batter is well above the hot dog and onto the stick, and gently remove it from the glass.
  8. Working quickly, allow a little of the excess batter to fall from the hot dog, and then carefully drop it into the hot oil. Repeat right away with a second corn dog, and allow them to fry for about a minute. The batter should puff up and the corn dog will take shape within a few seconds.
  9. Use a spider skimmer to remove the corn dogs from the oil once they are deep golden brown. Check the oil temperature to make sure it has rebounded (the temperature will drop once the corn dogs are added) and continue repeating the process until all the corn dogs have been fried. Allow the finished corn dogs to rest on a wire rack set over a sheet of tin foil.
  10. As soon as you’re done frying the corn dogs, remove your pot of oil from the heat, shut off the burner and let the oil cool to room temperature before cleaning up.
  11. After the corn dogs have rested for 5-10 minutes, serve hot with your choice of condiments!

Equipment

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 corn dog
  • Calories: 552
  • Sugar: 11 g
  • Sodium: 1397.2 mg
  • Fat: 33.8 g
  • Saturated Fat: 13.6 g
  • Trans Fat: 0.1 g
  • Carbohydrates: 43.5 g
  • Fiber: 2.6 g
  • Protein: 22 g
  • Cholesterol: 132.2 mg

Did you make this recipe?

Let me know what you thought!

Leave a comment below or tag me on instagram with the hashtag #loveeveryplate.