Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Food & Drink

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

8 Best Dry Rubs for Barbecue To Rub Your Meat With This 2022

By
Deliciously smoked ribs chopped finely in a wooden cutting board.
DebbiSmirnoff/Getty Images

The difference between delicious barbecue and a smoky piece of meat is the rub. Seasoning rubs are a huge part of the BBQ tradition and legendary pitmasters pass down their rub recipes from generation to generation and tweak them to add their own bit of flare. Many people think it’s all about the BBQ sauce, but that’s a flavor enhancer that goes on toward the end of cooking or when it comes off the grill.

Dry rubs go onto the meat well before it hits the flame. Not only do they greatly enhance the flavor of the flesh, but they also assist with some of the scientific properties of the cooking process, such as curing the meat and forming the “bark.” Some dry rubs are combined with a wet component like vinegar or mustard and become wet rubs. These wet rubs are typically used on more dry cuts of meat.
Recommended Videos
If barbecue is starting to sound like a lot of work, well, it kind of is. But, thanks to finely crafted pre-made rubs, you don’t have to go through the tedious process of perfecting your own seasoning blend, as this has been done for you. The rubs below have crafted their own distinct blend of spicy, savory, sweet, and smoky. And recently, the umami flavor profile has entered the mix. While rubs can be all-around additions for everything from meat to veggies, some of them are made specifically for certain meats. Check out our list below for the best barbecue rubs.
Related

Bone Suckin’ Sauce Seasoning & Rub

Bone Suckin Sauce Seasoning and Rub features a 5.8 ounce of its product with a white and simple text on its packaging.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

As evidenced by the name, Bone Sucking Sauce’s first product was a barbecue sauce that was originally based on the owner’s mother’s western North Carolina barbecue sauce, but the brand has since branched out into other flavorings. A mix of brown sugar, garlic, paprika, and other spices, it is great on ribs but equally useful on everything from pot roasts recipes to popcorn.

Bad Byron’s Butt Rub

The Bad Byrons Butt Rub features a minimalist packaging with a female pig in a chef's uniform, all in its 128g barbecue rub.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The barbecue realm is a place where people have fun — with meat, with each other, and with words. If you didn’t laugh a little at the words “butt rub,” well, good for you. Bad Byron’s was created by a Culinary Institute of America grad over 20 years ago and, in that time, he has won numerous awards with this Texas-influenced rub. If you couldn’t tell, it shines on pork products.

Plowboys BBQ Yardbird Rub

The Plowboys BBQ Yardbird Rub features a pig on its packaging that's wearing a construction uniform while riding on a tractor.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Coming out of the Kansas City barbecue tradition, this rub was created for competition barbecue. Due to its success (2009 American Royal Invitational winner), it has made its way — thankfully — into our hands. The slogan is “Created for chicken, but made for pork,” and they’re not wrong. Try it on chicken wings or chops and you won’t be disappointed.

Bull City Bar-B-Cue Rib Rub

The Bull City Bar-B-Cue Rib Rub features its award-winning barbecue rub.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Another entrant from the North Carolina barbecue field, Bull City was created over the course of a decade during and after the owners attended the University of North Carolina. Their rubs and sauces were developed to match a low and slow approach to cooking meats (we’re talking cooking for 10 to 20 hours). Even if you’re not hosting a pig pickin’, this rub is great for all parts of a hog.

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que Big Action Spice Rub

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que Big Action Spice Rub features a black label on its 5.5 oz. bottle, packed with sweet, savory, and spicy flavors.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Hailing from upstate New York, Dino Bar-B-Que doesn’t come from a canonical barbecue location, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t delicious. This rub is a great balance of the sweet, savory, spicy, and smoky flavors that define good ‘cue. While great on cuts of meat, this is a good rub to branch out and try on something like fish.

Traeger Coffee Rub

The Traeger Coffee Rub packs wonderful roasty coffee notes and black pepper for your meat, all in its 233 grams container.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you’ve spent time around pork, you know that a nice coffee rub does wonders for a tenderloin and Traeger’s Coffee Rub is a perfect example of that. Roasty coffee notes and black pepper will liven up any piece of beef you’ve got in mind (think of the breakfast brisket possibilities).

Townsend’s Magic Chick Dust

The Townsend's Magic Chick Dust provides a nice flavor not just for your meats but also for just about anything. This is their 12oz container.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you’re looking for something to put on just about (okay actually) everything, then Magic Chick Dust is for you. Hailing from Arkansas, this rub is just as good on chicken as it is on pork as it is on French fries as it is on popcorn. See what we’re saying here?

Hardcore Carnivore Black: Charcoal Seasoning for Steak, Beef and BBQ

The Hard Core Carnivore Black Beed Seasoning has an activated charcoal in its rub to give your meat a deeply seared look.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Some may call this seasoning a “cheat” seasoning because of the activated charcoal that adds to your meat’s deeply seared look. This seasoning does just that, but it’s also delicious. It can be used for a long, low-and-slow brisket or a quickly seared rare steak. This rub is also great if you’re into sous vide cooking and need an excellent reverse sear on your piece of meat. It’s also great for those of us that don’t have the luxury of owning an outdoor grill but want to try and replicate the effect on a cast-iron skillet or electric grill.

Editors’ Recommendations

Sam Slaughter
Sam Slaughter
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Sam Slaughter was the Food and Drink Editor for The Manual. Born and raised in New Jersey, he’s called the South home for…
9 Best Beef Jerky Brands You Won’t Find at a Truck Stop
country archer beefy jerky teriyaki

Nothing against truck stops or gas stations, but the beef jerky brands you'll find there are much like the egg salad sandwich you'll find in the cooler; not the freshest and packed with preservatives. You're probably thinking, "Yeah, but what do you expect from a truck stop?" Wherein you'd be correct. We don't expect fine culinary delights or organic, farm-fresh brands to be readily available. Our point is, the jerky brands you'll find there are the same ones you'll likely find at your local supermarket. They're owned by large conglomerates that have the money to mass-produce jerky and fund nationwide distribution, along with ad campaigns.

When you first think of jerky of any sort, it's likely a trucker or mountain man will pop in your head before a two-star Michelin chef. But, as with any food, the more dedication that is put into the preparation and using premium ingredients, the more delicious it will be. For many of us, "truck stop jerky" is all we know, and there's no judgment if that's what you like. However, we'd be doing the world a disservice if we didn't at least tell you about the brands that have taken beef jerky, and other meats, to new deliciously amazing levels. All without the help of chemical preservatives, nitrates, nitrites, or msg and using natural ingredients. Some of the below brands use only grass-fed, organic beef in their jerky.

Read more
The 9 Best Coconut Cocktails That Bring Instant Tropicality to Your Tastebuds
Junoon Coconut Cocktail, coconut cocktails

Nothing beats coconut when it comes to bringing instant freshness and tropicality. It can send a deftly made cocktail on a warm jetstream headed somewhere breezy and much closer to the equator. Even the fruit's lifestyle is enviable, shaded by palm fronds in a warm locale, often close to a beach. The most intrepid drinkers source them whole, draining the fresh juice or using the spherical nut as a vessel.

What sets coconut apart from many ingredients is its many forms and how they all do so well in a cocktail. Simple coconut water is a great option. Using coconut-flavored sodas, liqueurs, and spirits or even making your own house coconut cream for mixing is fine as well. Even better, you can integrate your own spirits and create refreshing twists on classic cocktails like the Old Fashioned.

Read more
The 11 Best Bacon Brands for a Hearty, Meaty Breakfast
best bacon

Ah, bacon. Besides being delectable and one of humankind’s most fabulous creations, there are numerous other reasons why you can allow yourself to revel in the tasty cured meat more often. For one, bacon has nutrients. A 3.5-ounce (100 grams) portion of bacon has around 37 grams of protein, a good amount of B vitamins, and 89% of the daily recommended amount of selenium. Also, if you plan to go on a keto diet, bacon will be your most trusted ally.

Of course, we’re not going to come out and say you should be eating bacon every day. But, in moderation, almost anything we can consume can help us out somehow (except smoking -- we all know nothing good comes of that).

Read more