Hot dog and hamburger buns sit at the end of the frontier of bakery products. They exist for convenience, because Americans cannot be bothered to bend their own bread in a suitable shape.
Grocery chains like Meijer have started introducing organic alternatives to many of their popular products; unfortunately, these offerings have not trickled down to the patio grill. It is easy to find organic bread; it is surprisingly difficult to find an organic hot dog roll.
In my neck of the woods, a natural hot dog roll (one not made with overly-processed crap) requires a special trip to Breadsmith or the local food co-op. Selection is limited, and they are not cheap.
The brand I buy most often is Rudi’s Organic Bakery. Rudi’s offers organic bread and organic buns (both the hot dog and hamburger variety).
Here are the ingredients on Rudi’s wheat hot dog rolls:
Organic unbleached wheat flour, water, organic whole wheat flour, organic evaporated cane juice, organic high oleic sunflower and/or safflower oil, organic wheat bran, organic vital wheat gluten, organic potato flour, cultured wheat flour, sea salt, organic cornmeal, yeast, organic oat flour, organic barley malt, vinegar, ascorbic acid, natural enzymes.
There are more than a handful of ingredients, but nary do you see high fructose corn syrup or any of the other industrial oddities.
Taste-wise, Rudi’s is not exciting. The roll itself is without flavor, quite unremarkable. Think of it as the organic version of premium hot dog buns you might find at the grocery store.