Hot dago — United States

The hot dago is a hot sandwich built around a flat patty of Italian sausage, pan-fried or grilled and set inside a soft bun, on ciabatta, or on a hard roll. The base sandwich is a single patty in bread; from there, layers of provolone, marinara sauce and melted mozzarella turn it into a heartier, sauce-covered dish closer to a meatball sub than a burger. It is reported from Saint Paul, Minnesota, where it belongs to the city's Italian-American food scene rather than to Italy itself — the name plays on an old, now dated slang for Italian immigrants, kept by the neighbourhoods and diners that popularised the sandwich. It remains best known within Minnesota, served in local diners, bars and community events rather than as a nationally exported item. The sausage is shaped into a patty and cooked in a skillet or on a griddle until browned on both sides, then set on the bun. A slice of provolone is added while the patty is still hot enough to soften the cheese, echoing a cheeseburger assembly. From there, cooks either keep it plain, add banana peppers for heat, or ladle marinara sauce and mozzarella over the top for what is locally called the sloppy version, usually built on a hard roll to hold the sauce. What separates one plate of hot dago from another is mainly how far it strays from the plain patty-in-a-bun form: an open-faced version skips the top bun altogether and is eaten with a knife and fork, while the sloppy version is fully covered in sauce and melted cheese. The choice of bread, the heat level of the patty, and whether provolone, mozzarella, or both are used all shift the balance between a quick sandwich and a knife-and-fork plate.