My first ever homemade rub...thoughts?

It seems pretty right on to me, just from eyeballing it.  It all comes down to personal preference.  Personally, I am constantly underwhelmed by paprika and so I tend to scale down on the stuff, but others love it.  Basically, if it makes you smile when you taste it, then it is a good rub.  I do like the addition of the Old Bay, though.
 

Looks like a good basic rub. Should work well. The brown sugar should work perfectly at 225˚, but if you do anything at a higher temp might wanna think about switching to turbinado (sugar in the raw) as it's less likely to scorch. By the way, Old Bay is about 95% salt, so if it comes out too salty you can skip the extra salt.

Also, a lot of people use a little (quarter tsp or so) clove or cinnamon to provide a bit of an earthy "bass note" to the rub. I put a half tsp or so of dry ginger in all my rubs for pork. I feel that it cuts the "heavy" taste of fattier meats and lightens up the overall flavor without tasting like ginger.

StartedSmokin said:

I usually just buy pre made rubs...here is my first attempt...I welcome comments or criticism. This is for baby backs:
One half cup brown sugar...slightly packed
One quarter cup paprika
One tbsp onion powder
One tbsp garlic powder
Two tsp kosher salt
One tsp old bay
One tsp cumin
One half tsp ground dry mustard
One quarter tsp cayenne pepper
Combine all ingredients then whisk until fine and uniform.
Will coat the ribs with some frenchs yellow mustard first then generously coat both sides with this...en route to a five hour smoke at exactly 225.
Anything major missing or overdone?

Click to expand...

 Comments-

I would increase the onion and garlic to 2 tablespoons each, I use the granulated versions of those two seasonings BTW

I prefer Old Bay on seafood, not for pork IMHO

Cumin is better on beef, it may overpower the mild taste of babybacks

the quantities of the dry mustard and the cayenne are too small, you need 2 teaspoons minimum of cayenne and perhaps as much of the dry mustard, although I'm not sure how the dry mustard will add to the overall flavor.

Try to find the freshest paprika that you can, it will make a difference and you will be able to taste it. I buy mine at a local boutique grocery that sells bulk everything.

The comment by Mdboatbum about the cinnamon is a good one, I use cinnamon in my rib rub, I recommend you start with 2 teaspoons and go from there.

There a few rub recipes posted in the Articles section of the forum(it's at the top of the page), if you want more ideas.