Dry rub – summer’s best friend
For meat-eaters, nothing beats the smell and taste of just-grilled meat. It can be quickly grilled and eaten with just a sprinkle of salt and pepper, or you can also marinade with a dry rub. Rub means just that – massage and rub the spices into the meat. You could call it a spa for meat – the more you rub, the better it tastes.
What is a dry rub and why use it? Today dry rubs are put on almost anything – from meat to cheese. A look into the past will reveal that rubs were used mostly for meat – rub and grill. Rub usually means a dry rub (the main topic of this article), but there are also pastes and liquid rubs (yes – a marinade).
What does a rub do?
The main goal is to improve the flavor, or more precisely – enhance it (depending on the quality of meat, of course, because sometime improvement is needed). But the rub has many functions and tasks during its short lifespan:
It must enhance the flavour of meat or any other food it’s put on.
It must help create a crust on cooked meat. A dry rub creates the crust in several ways – firstly, the salt draws out the moisture, as well as some of the protein. As it’s cooking, it creates a ‘bark’ that becomes crunchy.
The ingredients in a rub will caramelize, helping develop the crispy bark.
The sweeteners in the rub will also help tenderize the meat slightly.
What does it go with?
As I mentioned, today’s world of recipes reveals experiments and courage, which show that rubs are not just for meat anymore. They go with cheese, vegetables, and even fish. But there are things that are just divine with rubs:
chicken
steak
pork
lamb
turkey
fish
prawns
And what about sauce?
The world has two types of meat-eaters – with sauce and without. If you don’t want sauce, a rub is a great way to enhance the flavour of meat. You can, of course, make sauce, but sometimes it’s not even needed.
On the outside, not the inside
The dry rub is actually a type of marinade that works on the outside of the meat, unlike marinades that use vinegar, lemon juice or other things to flavour the inside of the meat itself. The outer bark has great flavour nuances, but the essence of the meat inside remains untouched. Perfect for when you have a piece of especially tasty meat.
Rub basics
Truthfully, a rub can be made from anything, but if we look at the classic recipes, they all have some commonalities.
Spices used most frequently:
dry paprika
dry mustard
chilli, garlic or onion powder
cayenne and black pepper
cumin
coriander
the green trinity – sage, thyme, and rosemary
Salt and cane sugar are also standard, which are necessary to create, as I mentioned before, the outer bark.
Smokey ingredients – most frequently smoked paprika, but not only, because they add a hint of smoky flavour
Today it’s become fashionable to use various berry powders, starting with cherry (because many people like to grill with cherry wood) all the way to raspberry. Why? Flavour, of course, is the main reason, but they also add juiciness and a distinct berry taste.
How to prepare and not burn it?
The meat must be at room temp. Rub with olive oil, the dry rub, and then grill as usual – that’s it. No long waiting while it marinates. And the end result is great taste.
One of the main problems for those who don’t have much experience or for those who don’t look after their meat while it’s cooking is – how not to burn the bark? Some have this problem all the time, but others, who like a softer bark must use the one ingredient that burns quickly – sugar.
There is only one suggestion for beginners (a tip from the professionals) – meat with a rub is cooked on indirect heat. That means, next to – not over the hot coals. In this way, the meat will cook slowly and the heat from the coals won’t burn the spices. Those more experienced start closer to the heat to get the caramelization going, and then push the meat away from the direct heat to finish the cooking process. Both these processes are not complicated, but we suggest you choose the first option and leave the second to the experts.
Suggestions
Steak. Steak is the simplest – rub some oil, then the spices you desire, and grill.
Chicken and turkey. The meat must be rinsed and patted completely dry, and then add the rub.
Pork. If the pork is relatively lean, then some rub should be added during the cooking process as well. But start off with a generous coating. When the meat is just about done, mix some of the rub with water or oil to create a paste and brush some on. Just remember – balance. Too much is not a good thing. You want flavour, not just a mouthful of spices.
Fish. Place the rub on just before grilling. An herb-based rub is suggested.
Prawns. Just as with fish, rub just before grilling, but the choice is wide, because prawns go with so many flavours.
When to use a dry rub?
When you have no time to marinate, but flavour is important. Of course, leaving the rub on for a while is good for some cuts of meat. Time is the key, but if you don’t have it, using a rub is better the using a vinegar-based marinade and expecting impossible results
Use for cuts of meat and fish that don’t require long cooking. This is very important.
Use a dry rub for fish, because the fat in the fish suits dry rubs perfectly by forming a great bark and caramelization.
Mild steak when you want just a bit, but not too much to compete with the flavour of the meat.
Use with meats whose structure does not alter much during cooking (get softer) like chicken and prawns.
If some of your guests like spicy food, but others don’t, you can cater to their desire by creating various rubs and everyone will be happy.
When to use a wet rub?
To understand what a wet rub is, just remember it’s the same dry rub, but with some sort of liquid: water, oil, beer, bourbon, wine, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, honey, molasses, mustard, tomato sauce, fruit juice, melted butter, etc.
It’s best to use a wet rub for longer cooking times because that when it does it’s work the best and goes deeper into the meat.
Use for short and regular ribs and chicken with bone in because the wet rub does the opposite of a dry rub: wet adds moisture but dry sucks it out and caramelizes the bark.