The Barbeque Thread

Other alcoholic drinks, decadent smokes, and hearty eating
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Glenn E.
Graham’s 1977
Posts: 4311
Joined: 22:27 Wed 09 Jul 2008
Location: Seattle, WA, USA

The Barbeque Thread

Post by Glenn E. »

Since we talked about it today during the first virtual tasting of 2021, I thought I'd go ahead and start a thread with a recipe for a very basic BBQ rub. This rub works well as a base on just about any kind of BBQ.

All-purpose BBQ rub

1 Tbsp fresh ground black pepper
1 Tbsp salt, preferably Kosher or other large-crystal salt
1 Tbsp onion powder
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp mustard powder
2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
1 tsp cayenne pepper, optional or to taste

Mix thoroughly and apply generously to meat before cooking. For brisket you'll probably want to change the ratio by adding additional Tbsps of both black pepper and salt.

Despite containing 2 Tbsp of dark brown sugar, this is not what one might call a "sweet" rub. Almost all barbecue rubs contain at least some sugar, because the sugar helps with the formation of the bark. A sweet rub would normally have at least double this amount of brown sugar. I also go light on the salt as I've done with this recipe. As any cook knows, you can always add salt later, but it's very difficult to take it out if you've accidentally added too much.

Variations on barbecue rubs are endless! Most will start with something close to these ingredients and then alter the ratios, add ingredients, or subtract ingredients. (Mustard powder is something I use, but isn't in all rubs.) There are dozens of styles of barbecue in the US and I'm familiar with many of them. I've even tried cooking several of them, some with more success than others. (Texas style brisket, which is the holy grail of brisket, looks very simple but is frustratingly difficult to perfect.)
Glenn Elliott
ScottLinn
Cruz Ruby
Posts: 1
Joined: 21:00 Sun 09 Jan 2022

Re: The Barbeque Thread

Post by ScottLinn »

Thanks for this recipe, I'll try it!
Glenn E.
Graham’s 1977
Posts: 4311
Joined: 22:27 Wed 09 Jul 2008
Location: Seattle, WA, USA

Re: The Barbeque Thread

Post by Glenn E. »

I modified this recipe to use again recently to make a pork butt (shoulder) for pork carnitas. The modifications were simple: add 1 Tbsp dried oregano and 1 tsp ground cumin. I also used smoked paprika this time around. The results are delicious and make great street tacos!
Glenn Elliott
Glenn E.
Graham’s 1977
Posts: 4311
Joined: 22:27 Wed 09 Jul 2008
Location: Seattle, WA, USA

Re: The Barbeque Thread

Post by Glenn E. »

Some brisket tips for Ben:

At this past weekend's competition (the Hudson's Bay Heritage Days BBQ Cookoff), I was reminded that most competition teams use the "Texas crutch" when cooking brisket. Which means that after smoking your brisket for several hours, you pull it off the smoker, add additional seasonings and sometimes even liquid such as beef stock, then wrap it in butcher paper (or aluminum foil if you're adding liquid) before putting it back on the smoker to finish cooking.

Why?

Meat only takes on smoke for a few hours - possibly even as few as 1.5 or 2, but certainly no more than 4-5. After that you're just baking it in a smoker anyway. (This cooking technique is part of why competition judges do not judge a smoke ring - the smoke ring is all the deeper the smoke penetrates, but it can be created artificially so isn't a reliable indication of smoke penetration in a competition setting regardless.) By wrapping the meat after it's done taking on smoke, you help retain moisture and in particular fat. The added seasonings and liquid that you've added to the wrap do help the flavor a bit, but they're more there to flavor any further moisture that comes out so that it is pulled back into the meat when it is resting after you're done cooking.

If you like a firm bark you'll need to unwrap the meat once it is done and put it back on the heat for ~30 min to re-set the bark, but I'm starting to come to the opinion that bark is over-rated. Or perhaps more specifically, it compensates for flavorless meat. If your meat tastes good, no one really cares if it has bark on it.

Many teams will rest the meat in a tray in a Cambro and add additional beef stock to the tray. A Cambro will keep a full packer brisket at food service temp for as much as 6 hours, so it's a great way to hold a finished brisket until you're ready to serve it. And it keeps soaking up beef stock and whatever other liquid (think barbecue sauce) you've added to the tray the whole time.
Glenn Elliott
winesecretary
Taylor Quinta de Vargellas 1987
Posts: 2070
Joined: 15:35 Mon 13 May 2019

Re: The Barbeque Thread

Post by winesecretary »

For those who don’t immediately know, a cambro is basically a cool box repurposed to hold hot food.
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