Last Updated on April 17, 2023

[ヴィーガンナポリタンドッグ]

Vegan Napolitan Dog is a Japanese style hot dog made with the Japanese ketchup pasta dish called Spaghetti Napolitan. It’s a hidden Japanese food discovery that you may never knew existed!

What is Napolitan Dog?

If you checked out my vegan spaghetti Napolitan [スパゲッティナポリタン], you may have an idea of what this is all about.

Napoitan dog is a Italian & American influenced Japanese dish. Basically, ketchup pasta on a hot dog bun. Yep, Carb on Carb…it’s totally my kind of food!

I know you may see the photo and the discerption of the dish and perhaps think it’s a bit bizarre. But, Napolitan dog is in fact one of a popular bakery items throughout Japan.

Just like the Spaghetti Napolitan, for the Japanese people, it’s a nostalgic food that reminds us of a great childhood memory. I didn’t really like ketchup (I still don’t) but Spaghetti Napolitan or Napolitan dog are the only exceptions. The ketchup make a slightly tangy but sweet & savory sauce that coats spaghetti very well.

Pasta for Vegan Napolitan Dog

Whether you are making the dog version or not, ingredients are basically the same. The main ingredients are:

Hot Dog Buns
Spaghetti
Olive Oil
Yellow Onion
Green Bell Pepper
Canned Corn Kernels
Garlic Powder
Ketchup
Unsalted Vegan Butter

I made vegan Spaghetti Napolitan with Italian style vegan sausage as an meat substitute.

For this recipe, I made the pasta part slightly different than the original. One of the the reasons is I wanted to make sure that everything fits in the bun. So, I didn’t use vegan sausage and mushrooms (that takes up quite some space.)

Instead, I added canned corn for some pretty color. Also, I used to love corn in any food when I was a child. So, using canned corn brings back more of that childhood memory as well!

Alternatively, use the same pasta recipe as Spaghetti Napolitan. That’s also a great way to makeover a leftover Napolitan pasta.

Be sure to check out the “Step-by-Step Instructions (w/ Photos)” after the Printable Recipe!

Print Recipe

5 from 22 votes

Vegan Napolitan Dog

Vegan Napolitan Dog is a Japanese style hot dog made with the Japanese ketchup pasta dish called Spaghetti Napolitan. It's a hidden Japanese food discovery that you may never knew existed!

Yield: the recipe makes 4 dogs

Prep Time10

Cook Time25

Total Time35

Course: Main

Cuisine: Japanese, Japanese Inspired, Italian Inspired, American Inspired

Servings:

Author: Plant-Based Matters

Ingredients

4 hot dog buns or pretzel hot dog buns
4 oz spaghetti break in half
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
1/4 cup thinly sliced green bell pepper
1/4 cup drained canned corn or frozen corn kernels
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp sea salt adjust to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper adjust to taste
4 tbsp ketchup
1/4 cup pasta cooking water as necessary
Unsalted vegan butter to smear on the buns
minced parsley to garnish, optional
Tabasco sauce optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat the oven at 375 °F (200 °C.)
Meanwhile, prepare the hot dog buns. Make a v-shaped slit on top of the buns then cut it out to make a cavity to place the pasta later. Set it aside.
Boil water in a large pot. Salt the water and start cooking spaghetti for 10-12 minutes (or follow the instructions on the package.) Reserve the pasta cooking water.
While the pasta is cooking, prepare the rest. Heat up a frying pan at medium high heat. Pour extra virgin olive oil. Add onion and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then, add green bell pepper and corn. Cook for another 2-3 minutes. Season with garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
Reduce the heat to medium and add ketchup and pasta cooking water (start with 2 tbsp then use more if necessary.) Mix well and continue to simmer until the pasta is done.
Drain the spaghetti then transfer to the sauce. Give a quick toss. Set it aside.
Toast the buns for 5-7 minutes. Take them out the oven and smear butter inside of the toasted buns.
Put the spaghetti in the cavity of the buns. Garnish with minced parsley (optional) and add a few dashes of tabasco sauce for a kick (optional.)

Notes

For the pasta part, use Vegan Spaghetti Napolitan recipe as an option.

Did you make this recipe?Mention @plantbased_matters or tag #plantbased_matters!

Step-by-Step Instructions (w/ Photos)

First, break the spaghetti in half and prep all the ingredients.

1. Preheat the oven at 375 °F (200 °C.)

2. Meanwhile, prepare the hot dog buns. Make a v-shaped slit on top of the buns then cut it out to make a cavity to place the pasta later. Set it aside.

3. Boil water in a large pot. Salt the water and start cooking spaghetti for 10-12 minutes (or follow the instructions on the package.) Reserve the pasta cooking water.

4. While the pasta is cooking, prepare the rest. Heat up a frying pan at medium high heat. Pour extra virgin olive oil or add vegan butter. Add onion and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Then, add green bell pepper and corn. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Season with garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.

5. Reduce the heat to medium and add ketchup and pasta cooking water (start with 2 tbsp then use more if necessary.) Mix well and continue to simmer until the pasta is done.