No secrets...but any Rub tips? (place to start)

[zwiller]

Went down the "pure" chili powder rabbit hole after getting Texan cookbook. LOL Like 3 chapters on peppers etc... Grew my own. One cool thing I did when I grew mine was grill and char them prior to dehydrating... But no real big deal for me. Later, tried 5-6 different powders from The Spice House. Tried them and found they just didn't work for me. I have come to realize we prefer Tex Mex not true Mexican food I think. I use Mild Chili Powder from GFS. Pretty good stuff and much less other ingredients than store bought. That said, I've always wanted to try Gebhardt's which is supposedly the locals go to. Similarly, made green chili sauce from scratch (which is a huge PITA blanch peel deseed) only to find LaVictoria green canned just as good or better. You guys got me fired up to try and make some Texas style chili... Maybe with some smoked chuck.

 

[chef jimmyj]

You are 100% right, I have access to a ton of chili peppers ready to toast/dry and grind. :)

My main issue is setting aside the time to fool with it along with the fact that my only grinder is the magic bullet with the grinder blade lol. What I may do is buy a bottle of chili powder to hold me over and buy some chili's to dehydrate in the smoker (no smoke going) and grind but I may not get time for doing those until mid January :eek:

Hmmmm, I may check around for freshly ground chili powder. That is something I may have access to with all the Mexican grocery stores and markets. I'll pay a little more to save myself the time that I don't have and cut myself out as the middle man!!! :D

Ok time to search around for freshly ground chili powder at one of those places online hahahaha. Thanks for sparking the thought with this conversation :)

If the local Mex Store does not have ground chile, Spicesinc. Carries Whole, Flaked and Ground of all their chiles...JJ

 

[tallbm]

Went down the "pure" chili powder rabbit hole after getting Texan cookbook. LOL Like 3 chapters on peppers etc... Grew my own. One cool thing I did when I grew mine was grill and char them prior to dehydrating... But no real big deal for me. Later, tried 5-6 different powders from The Spice House. Tried them and found they just didn't work for me. I have come to realize we prefer Tex Mex not true Mexican food I think. I use Mild Chili Powder from GFS. Pretty good stuff and much less other ingredients than store bought. That said, I've always wanted to try Gebhardt's which is supposedly the locals go to. Similarly, made green chili sauce from scratch (which is a huge PITA blanch peel deseed) only to find LaVictoria green canned just as good or better. You guys got me fired up to try and make some Texas style chili... Maybe with some smoked chuck.

That sounds like an interesting journey! I like both Mexican and Tex-Mex foods and spices, and like you discovered there is a difference :) I like Gebhardt's chili powder it has great flavor but I believe they also mix a few things in with it. It is noticeably better tasting than others and I think generally costs more.

If the local Mex Store does not have ground chile, Spicesinc. Carries Whole, Flaked and Ground of all their chiles...JJ

I did some looking online for my area on freshly ground chile peppers and didn't find too much info. It seems the Central Market grocery store (high end grocery) grinds whatever you pick out and they have all kinds of variety. I have one near work so I may stop by and see if I can pick out some peppers and get them to grind them for me and see what the cost is. They are not a cheap place at all lol. Outside of that I would need to hit one of 2-3 Mexican grocery stores near the office and see if they have something similar. I wouldn't doubt if they do, I just don't think that info is so available online.

Spicesinc may be what I used should I need to order out :)

 

[radioguy]

Care to share the name of your book Radioguy?

I checked and don't own the book. A very good friend had made a copy of that chart for me. The book is "Soaked, Slathered,and Seasoned" by
Elizabeth Karmel. Very helpful book with salad dressings, rubs, mops and sauces.

RG

 

[sdkid]

Thank you sir.

 

[zwiller]

Jeff's Texas Rub Recipe is very good on beef of any kind but I've recently used it a couple of times on Beef Ribs and my wife and I agree those might be the best beef ribs we've every had. I mix it to the exact amounts as per the recipe. No need to change anything. It's simple, basic, & I recommend trying this recipe on beef.

I did before (chuckie) and was excellent. Was watching some foodie show an Cen Tex BBQ and one guy said equal parts SPG and it stuck with me. Did beef ribs last weekend with that on oak and everyone said do NOT change a thing.

 

[AP514]

I checked and don't own the book. A very good friend had made a copy of that chart for me. The book is "Soaked, Slathered,and Seasoned" by
Elizabeth Karmel. Very helpful book with salad dressings, rubs, mops and sauces.

RG

I had to pull the trigger on that book was $6 new(Sale). 350ish pages....


and of course JEFF's RUB :)

 

[sdkid]

I found S S &S on ebay for $4 shipped.

 

[AP514]

I found S S &S on ebay for $4 shipped.

Yup, but thought I would help out by use'n the links....

 

[SonnyE]

Woo-eee!
I finally opened my can of powdered Honey, and made some Cyan Honey powder.
I did 1 Tbs Cyan powder, to 5 Tsp Powdered Honey.
POP goes the taste buds.

This might grow into a new rub for me. :p

 

[radioguy]

I tried honey powder for a different sweet on my rib rub. Give tomato powder a try, bump in red color and wonderful tomato flavor. Taste like creme of tomato soup.

My SPOG is one part salt, 1 part pepper and 1/4 part onion/garlic powders.

RG

 

[dan the mano]

Flavor Bible is a good book for any cook, I have a copy myself

I use a standard 8-3-1-1 measure for the rubs I make.
8 part sugar, 3 parts salt, 1 part leafy green spice, 1 part other spices

type of salt are a discussed issue item, and amounts to make 3 parts is different depending on the type of salt used.
e.g 3 parts table salt is much greater then 3 parts coarse salt as mentioned previously. (the 3 parts is for course salt, and adjustments need to be made when using table salt or seasoned salt)

I've come to a mighty good mix, but am dealing with issues where the sugar balls up when rub sits in container for a few days. Trying to get past that, and I'm not sure how. I've tried a coffee grinder, but that make the rub too fine.

hello there i have a question for you ... when you say 8-3-1-1 (parts) so how would you break that down for say 1 pound of meat ?i guess what i am asking what is 8 parts and 3 parts and 1 part .. i hope that makes sence . thank you

 

[dan the mano]

Flavor Bible is a good book for any cook, I have a copy myself

I use a standard 8-3-1-1 measure for the rubs I make.
8 part sugar, 3 parts salt, 1 part leafy green spice, 1 part other spices

type of salt are a discussed issue item, and amounts to make 3 parts is different depending on the type of salt used.
e.g 3 parts table salt is much greater then 3 parts coarse salt as mentioned previously. (the 3 parts is for course salt, and adjustments need to be made when using table salt or seasoned salt)

I've come to a mighty good mix, but am dealing with issues where the sugar balls up when rub sits in container for a few days. Trying to get past that, and I'm not sure how. I've tried a coffee grinder, but that make the rub too fine.

hello there i have a question for you ... when you say 8-3-1-1 (parts) so how would you break that down for say 1 pound of meat ?i guess what i am asking what is 8 parts and 3 parts and 1 part .. i hope that makes sence . thank you

 

[chef jimmyj]

The amounts depend on how fast you will use the Rub. You smoke meat once in awhile, use Tablespoons. 8 Tbs Sugar, 3 Tbs Salt, 1 Tbs Black Pepper, 1 Tbs Granulated Garlic, etc.
If you are starting a BBQ Business. Measure 8 Pounds Sugar, 3 Pounds Salt and so on.
A cup of rub, 16 Tbs, will cover two big Butts, 16 to 20 pounds, or 4 racks of Ribs. For small amounts of meat, 1-2 pounds, sprinkle on to your taste, like S&P....JJ

 

[Rmartinez2]

I've cooked for a loooooong while (but not a chef) and basically meat seasoning for standard cooking is pretty much the same for meat smoking.

I agree with your hunch that the types of seasonings are pretty much the same and that it just comes down to the amounts. Hell look on any seasoning/rub mix ingredients list and you will see they almost always start with the same 4 seasonings and the ingredients list must be in order from Most used to Least used.

In short you have your big 4 seasonings. Salt, Pepper, Onion, and Garlic (SPOG).
I guarantee that if you just go SPOG on any cut of beef, pork, or poultry that you will be amazed at the flavor from such a simple seasoning! You can even improve SPOG by getting better quality SPOG ingredients (Kosher Salt, fresh cracked or ground Pepper, Onion that is granulated or my favorite dehydrated minced/chopped, and Garlic that is granulated).

Go equal 1 part of POG and add Salt to your preference/needs/liking.
If you make up a blend of the big 4 it is good to do an SPOG all in equal parts and a POG in equal parts where you will add Salt separately because some cuts of meat like ribs can be EASILY over salted when you are trying to get more POG on them.

From SPOG you simply add to get to different flavor profiles.

• SPOG + Chili Powder, Paprika, and Cumin will give you Mexican/Tex-Mex flavor
• SPOG + Cayenne, and Bay Leaf will give you some Cajun flavor (probably a bit of paprika as well)
• SPOG + Ginger and using toasted Sesame Seed Oil will give you Asian flavor (Add sea weed/Nori for Japanese flavor), (Sub Salt for Soy Sauce as well for more Asian flavor)
• SPOG + Paprika will give you pork BBQ flavor
• SPOG + a little bit of Cayenne or other ground Red Pepper gives you a pretty close Montreal Steak seasoning knock off

You get the idea.
Now you can go wild and make a 15 spice mix like some beginners do and I guarantee you that it is basically overkill compared to the simplicity and flavor of SPOG and SPOG+

Once you get good with SPOG/SPOG+ then you can go as wild as you like. I think the book Dave mentions might go to a whole other level but I imagine we are starting to get into much more nuanced seasonings at that point which again may not fit the bill when Aaron Franklin is making the best brisket in the world with just 2 parts Pepper and 1 part Salt.
(I personally go SPOG on my brisket lol)

So that is my 2 cents and if you are ever a skeptic it is simple to go buy even the cheapest $0.50 seasonings of SPOG and grill or smoke a chicken thigh/quarter with it to try it out :)

I hope this info helps :)

This could be one of the more simplistic helpful post I've ever read in any and all forums concerning whatever subject. thank you.

 

[tallbm]

This could be one of the more simplistic helpful post I've ever read in any and all forums concerning whatever subject. thank you.

Hi there and welcome!

Wow thanks! I'm glad you found it helpful.
I'm a huge fan of simplicity and with most things in I life often find that if you start simple and go from there you generally find that the journey to satisfaction or happiness wasn't too far off from the starting point

 

[jcam222]

Man bumping this up! What a great thread discussing rubs and spices. Ended up ready to buy the Flavor Bible and going to check out spicesinc