The Exploding Hotdog Project

An experiment looking into how long it takes for a hotdog or sausage to explode in the microwave. Presented at annual school science fair.

¬ Experimental Design
¬ Scientific Method
¬ Word Processing
¬ Tables and Charts
¬ Presentation

In the not so-distant past, there were a series of commercials featuring exploding hotdogs. The hotdog, often covered in toppings, was placed in the microwave, and would heat until it violently exploded. How long would a hotdog need to be heated before exploding, and what factors may affect this?

Methodology

In order to conduct this experiment, I have purchased a variety of different hotdogs packages from a variety of companies. Additionally, I have also purchased a few sausages as well, to see if there is any significant difference between the two as well.

Each package of hotdogs has 8 hotdogs, and each package of sausages has 6. To maintain consistency, all food products will remain in the refrigerator when not in use. Starting at 1:30, hotdog/sausages of the same brand will be microwaved increasingly longer by an additional 30 seconds each.

Between each test, the hotdog (or its remains) will be inspected and the inside of the microwave will be cleaned. The microwave will also be allowed to rest 10 minutes between each test, allowing everything to return to room temperature.

They will be supervised during the whole experiment. By doing this, I can note exactly when they explode, as well as immediately stop the experiment should there be any problems.

Results

Unfortunately, the well-known commercials likely use some Hollywood trickery. Despite microwaving hotdogs and sausages for more than 5 minutes, none of them explode. All of them heat up to the point where the casing becomes taut, and then the casing breaks. It does not do this in a dramatic fashion, but instead with just a pop and a bit of steam.

The Beddar Cheddars and sausages were slightly more eventful than the regular hotdogs, but only in that when the casing breaks, they may splatter a bit of the cheese sauce and/or juices. While the desired result could not be reproduced, data was collected across the brands and hotdog types as to win the casing broke.

A more in-depth write up of the scenario, procedure, and results were presented at my school's annual science fair. This included presenting all data sorted and presented in charts and tables.