It’s the question that roamed the Earth for as long as man can remember. The question that tears friendships apart. The question that even public officials have not come to agreement on. Is a hot dog a sandwich?
Once and for all, a hot dog is not a sandwich.
The formal definition of a sandwich, according to Merriam Webster is “An item of food consisting of two pieces of bread with meat, cheese, or other filling between them, eaten as a light meal.” A hot dog is a food product with only one piece of bread therefore not making it a sandwich.
While conducting my research, I went around to different classrooms and asked 42 students and 5 teachers if a hotdog is a sandwich” Out of the 47 that were asked, 36 people agreed that a hot dog is indeed not a sandwich.
“It doesn’t have sandwich-like qualities,” social studies teacher David Norman said.
“A sandwich has two pieces of bread and a hot dog has one,” said English teacher Mary Foster. “Maybe it’s the tubular meat that makes it a hot dog.”
“[It’s] not a sandwich because the pieces of bread are still attached,” said Riverside alum Ashley Cruz.
“The pieces of bread are still connected. Are you an idiot?” argued junior Reese Powell
A common theme about the piece of bread being connected emerged through these conversations with students and teachers. However, in an Atlantic article titled “A Hot Dog Is Not A Sandwich by Megan Garber” identifies four characteristics that make a sandwich a sandwich.
For one, the food item must structurally consist of two exterior pieces that are separate or mostly separate. Second, the pieces exterior must be made of carbohydrate ingredients or mostly carbohydrate ingredients .Third, the assembly of the food must be mostly horizontal. Lastly, it must be portable. Although a hot dog shares some of the characteristics said from the ones above, it doesn’t meat all of them therefore calling it not a sandwich.
Since my research shows that 36 people out of 47 students and teachers said a hot dog is not a sandwich and various articles state the same thing, the world can finally breathe a sigh of relief knowing that the most controversial question has now been answered.
