Rub (got me) Down

The only time I make my own rubs are when I'm not going "traditional" and am using spices/herbs that are more normally found in Asian/Mexican etc... dishes. There are just too many really good commercial rubs available like Simply Marvelous, Oak Ridge, The Rub Co. and BigButzBBQ just to name a few of my favorites.

Tinkering with rubs is fun. However commercial rub companies have put in countless hours and tweaks into their product to appeal to the masses and I don't think there is anything wrong with using a commercial rub.

Rubs such as Plowboys and Simply Marvelous are amazing and quite hard to beat with a homemade rub. And both are tried and tested in peoples backyards/businesses and competitions. I don't think there is anything wrong with doing this.

Due to my family/work schedule, I rarely have much time to devote to bbq. I prefer to use commercially available stuff to maximize the time I'm able to find. But, while I prefer to use commercial stuff, I stick to brands like Simply Marvelous, The Rub Co., or Dizzy Pig. Made by people who actually are into bbq, vs. industrial - commercial rubs.

That being said, if you find something you like - use it. This is just what I've found works with me.

I used to make my own

But, now I use some of the ones mentioned in this thread.

it has really opened my eyes to what else is out there, and they are excellent.

I am really glad I decided to try them. May not go back to home made

I use the rub i learned how to make in Harry Soo's class, i have used other rubs to add varity to my cooks.

I have heard that you should taste for saltiness but not taste before cooking as the rub tastes different after cooking.

Up until I became a member to this forum, I always made my own rubs and sauces, it was what I liked and mostly a pride thing for me. With seeing some things other folks use I have tried a lot of commercial stuff. For me it's cheaper to buy sauce than to make it. I still like my rubs and sauces that I make, but like the variety from all the commercial stuff.

Most of the time recently, I just eyeball my rub by sprinkling various items on the meat. SPOG and a little P (paprika) is hard to beat according to my taste buds. This goes for all things pork and poultry. For beef, I like uncle chris' gourmet steak seasoning from Fiesta spices. It's a bit salty, but I don't cake it on. This is great on chuckies and all things steak. For brisket, I think SPOG works wonderful.

I make my own rubs when I want to play with the taste profile. Our top rub we use for comps is homemade but our base rubs are store bought.
IMHO I like adding a quality chili powder that I don’t get with the store bought rubs.

It's the engineer in you.:becky:

Seriously though for an analogy, my dad (Aerospace engineer) always prefered drawing up his OWN plans to scale when making flying model airplanes and generally hated kits. Different obsession, same thing.

kwas68 said:

I am always surprised by the number of people who would rather buy rubs and sauces than make their own on a message board dedicated to BBQ. I kinda figured everybody would have their “secret” blends.

I don’t think that there isn’t anything magic behind making a good homemade rub. There are plenty of recipes out there that you can start from. Wicked Good BBQ has a good one that I like. I use a modified Chris Lilly recipe on pork butt. Those recipes seemed to have served their inventors well.

I find the fun (and challenge) is in the tinkering. I guess that I would have expected more people to share this same desire/affliction.

So I’ll keep tinkering. It is good to know that there is a market out there. Because who knows, you all might be buying mine someday!:icon_smile_tongue:
(very unlikely)

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I think there are plenty of members on these boards that tinker with their own rubs. I recently started messing with making my own rubs after using commercial rubs for about 9months. This is because now I know what is out there and what I liked about some of the rubs and trying to use some of the different flavor profiles in the rubs I like and make something my own.

However I still do have some Simply Marvelous Cherry Rub and some Plowboy's Yardbird in my pantry whenever I do not have the time to tinker with a rub.

I guess I've done the opposite of some folks, I've always made my own rub and now I'm going to try commercial rubs. I've tried some that were available in the grocery store, and my family has always preferred mine. Now I'm going to try some plowboys and maybe SM. If I win again I'll be done with commercial (it's expensive). One thing I do differently is I cut way back on sugar in favor of a more savory profile. If it needs to be sweeter that's easy to add with sauce or glaze. That being said, I've only done low and slow, never tried 3-2-1, but I've got ribs in the fridge for another test run (woot!)

Does anyone else go low sugar/sweet?

ps. I love the fact that I've now "Got Wood" funny stuff

I've only been BBQ'ing for 2-3 years, and on occasion I did make my own rub based on others recipes, but I found it to be more expensive than buying some of the rubs already mentioned here.

Also, there's been a few rubs that had a unique flavor that I enjoyed, and by reading the ingredient label I've been mentally thinking of what I'd add to my own blend. So there's more than one good reason to use the commercial rubs.

David

I too have played with making some rubs. But, with the quality of commercial ones out there I rarely do it anymore. Much easier to go to the store, lol.

Some of us make rubs to make everything, to save money, some are happy with basics like salt and pepper. That's all fine and dandy, nothing wrong with that. I too, at one time, felt this way. I felt smaller bottles of rubs were just too expensive. It wasn't until my small cooks grew into catering events that I found that I did not have the time needed to order and mix the rubs. That's when I began using a commercial rub. I'll be the first to say that I am as cheap as the day is long, but I also feel that you get what you pay for. Somewhere in the middle is a balance that we all adhere to, but at different levels of compliance.

I will probably have some opposition here, but in the end I think it is best to leave the rubs to the professional suppliers. They are commercially mixed in bulk at extreme discounts. They have professional mixing, measuring, and packaging equipment. In the end they have the quality control labs to provide you with a consistent product that will not change from cook to cook. It will save you a lot of work, effort, and yes even money in the interim, and there are so many choices out there.

At first I was not crazy with the idea of trying something new, after all is our basic human nature to reject change. I think we all get locked into this same frame of mind as we progress. However I think that when the opportunity allows, we should all let our guard down and try something new from time to time.

Also not all commercial rubs are created equal... I have used some that appear to be all salt, others have high sugar content. These may be a desired flavor profile for some, but not for me. I feel these manufacturers who use too much salt or sugar are using these as fillers trying to get a larger return and gain greater profits.

Yes making home made rubs can be a fun experiment and the outcome can be good. I have tried over 100 recipes and even varied them from time to time, but never created anything outstanding. From my personal experience, by the time you buy the spices, take the time to weigh and mix them, test them, and vac-pac to keep them fresh.... You really don't save any money by doing it yourself.. Add the cost of the spices, the time required to process them (time is money), and you have saved nothing.

The bottom line is that making multi-layers of flavors in rubs at home is not an easy task. I takes time to order fresh ingredients, properly measure and mix them to get that product you are seeking. To many of us, time is an important commodity much like money. Just as we spend our money wisely, many of us have to manage our time with the same principals. Some of us have the time to do this and others do not, in the end we have to do what is best for our individual needs.

We choose and use what works best for us, what suits our tastes, our preferences, and what time allows us to do.

Making rubs or buying rubs will always be a personal choice. Doing either does not make your "Q" better or worse. Either can expand your flavor horizons and help you find the apex of your cooks. Not everyone cooks in large volumes and buying in bulk can be a bad choice you have small cooks.

Rubs are like tools, a good design can help make the "BBQ" great, while others may not, use your tools properly. Think of using a pair of pliers to remove a screw, it'll get the job done, but not as good and effectively as the proper screwdriver. It can also be like trying to invent the wheel when it already exists. Look past your current horizons at other items, not just rubs, but cookers, types of wood, and so many other products. Some of these have had years of design, and development in creating a great product.

Keep an open mind and don't be afraid to try something new once in a while. Think of it as treasure hunting, maybe you'll find something good or maybe you won't, but you'll never know unless you try.

If you find a product you like, but feel it is too expensive to use, try to replicate it, at least you have a grounded reference point to reach for but you need to keep an open mind to be able to reach this point.