Cheese, Onion & Honey Mustard Sausage Buns

This is a delicious twist on the traditional hot dog. Perfect for bonfire night or any other night! Quick and easy to do as well!
In the UK you will find that any type of sausage, smoked or otherwise, tucked into a bun is called a hot dog. 😲

I suppose when you get right down to it, its all open to interpretation. Having said that however, being brought up in North America, a hot dog is a very different thing than merely any old sausage in a bun.

A hot dog is a frankfurter type of sausage, in or out of the bun.

I remember not too long after moving to the UK being down in London. We spied a "Hot Dog" cart on one of the streets and I was so excited to see it.
I could not wait to tuck into what I thought was going to be my definition of a Hot Dog. Oh my, how very disappointed I was when I got it. 😪

It was a sausage, and not a very nice one, tucked into a cheap roll. I was so disappointed. So, so, SO disappointed.
I have never been able to bring myself to call a sausage in a bun a hot dog. To me, no matter how tasty it is, it will always be a sausage in a bun, and I hope I don't insult any British by saying that, because I do not mean to do so!

Tonight is Bonfire Night in the UK and all over the country people will be tucking into meals just like this one I am sharing with you today, Friday or not!
Bonfire night is THE night to enjoy bangers/sausages, hot drinks, hokey pokey and the like. The recipe which I am sharing with you today was adapted by one I found on Good Food.

When I lived in the UK, one of the first cooking magazines I subscribed to (and they do them VERY well) was the BBC Good Food Magazine. I also used to watch all of their cooking shows and had several of their cookery books.
For the most part, their recipes were really wonderful and reliable. But then again, you would expect nothing less from the BBC.

I also used to go to the Good Food show in London every year when we were living down South. It was the ultimate experience in food for foodies!
There were hundreds of booths and displays, most with samples to try and to buy, cooking demonstrations by celebrity chefs, live entertainment, wine and drink, etc. They were a fabulously fun and tasty day out.

This is a photograph of me with Jean Christophe Novelli at one of the shows. That was the thrill of my life getting to meet him.
Through the years I also got to meet Curtis Stone, Jamie Oliver, James Martin, Paul Rankin, and a few others, not to name drop or anything.

But back to these tasty sausage buns! What you have here are grilled sausages on a bed of caramelized onions, with a honey and Dijon mustard cheese melted over top.
All tucked into a toasty brioche bun. Can you say scrummy? I hope so because they truly are!

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CHEESE, ONION & HONEY MUSTARD SAUSAGE BUNS
Very simple ingredients and very few ingredients!

Emmental cheese (this is a swiss type of cheese. You can also use Gruyere)
Strong Cheddar cheese ( use a good one, strong is the same as sharp)
Grainy Dijon mustard
Liquid honey (use a nicely flavored one)
Onions ( I used large cooking onions)
butter
4 meaty banger type of sausages
4 brioche style hot dog rolls

Lets talk sausages here, and about what constitutes a good sausage. In the UK they have some of the very best sausages in the world. Meaty and rich flavored, so long as you buy a quality one.
Like anywhere in the world, there are also some pretty cheap and nasty ones. Its as simple as getting what you pay for. If you don't want to spend a bit more, you will always end up with something of substandard quality.

A good sausage should be rich and meaty, plump and juicy, with not a lot of fillers and a skin that snaps when you bite into it.
Here in Canada I favor the PC Free From Bangers. They are quite simply the best in my opinion, or at least that I have tasted so far. Not too fatty with a nice skin and tasty filling, without a lot of fillers.

HOW TO CARAMELIZE ONIONS
Caramelized onions were my addition to this recipe. I adore caramelized onions and they work very well here. There is a huge difference between grilled onions and caramelized onions.
Grilled onions, delicious in their own right are cooked in fat over a high heat. Caramelized onions are cooked much slower over a lower heat, which helps to really develop and bring out their natural sugars.

You want to use a good sweet cooking onion. I like to cut them in half lengthwise, peel and then cut them crosswise into 1/4-inch wide half moons.
I melt some butter in a skillet over medium low heat. Once the butter begins to foam I add the onions. It will look like a lot, but onions tend to shrink by about half in cooking.
You will need to keep moving them around in the pan with a wooden spoon so that they don't burn. Onions do naturally contain a lot of sugar and this lends them to becoming burnt very easily.

At first they will appear soft and translucent, but keep going. Eventually they will begin to turn into that lovely golden brown color we all know and love as being caramelized.
I could eat a plate of caramelized onions and nothing else! They are also good in grilled cheese sandwiches, quiches, tarts, etc. They are also an essential element in a good French Onion Soup.

HOW TO MAKE CHEESE, ONION & HONEY MUSTARD SAUSAGE BUNS
There is nothing complicated here. Grilled sausages. Caramelized onions, tucked into a toasted bun and topped with a lush honey, grainy mustard and cheese mixture. Popped beneath a hot grill until the cheese melts and gets golden brown.
Ooey, gooey, deliciousness in a bun. You can't beat it!

I served mine with a few crisp crinkled salted potato chips on the side for a really delicious, yet very simple supper.

These would also go well with cups of hot soup.

One thing is for certain and that is that your family is sure to fall in love with these easy and delicious sausages in the bun. Not a hog dog, but a tasty and succulent, crisp skinned sausage in a bun.

What's not to love!