Grilling Spices & BBQ Rubs

A good butcher's rub with salt & pepper, garlic, onion and dried herbs is incredibly versatile, which makes it one of the best grilling spices to have on hand. It's a coarse blend and will not "cook off" during grilling, no matter what type of meat you have on the grill. Smoky, salty, and peppery rubs & blends are also classic grilling flavors. Spices for grilling need to stand up to high heat. We recommend peppery Pikes Peak Butcher's Rub, coffee-based Great Plains Bison & Beef Rub, classic Flat Irons Prime Rib Rub, Hudson Bay Beef Spice (our version of a Montreal-style steak rub), or our salt-free dry rub, Mt. Evans Butcher's Rub.

The best BBQ seasonings include salt & pepper, sugar, paprika, garlic, onion, mustard powder, chili powder, oregano and cumin – it just depends whether you're into smoky, sweet, peppery or spicy barbecue flavors. Because traditional barbecue is low & slow, you don't have to worry about sugar-based rubs tasting burnt. We have a variety of dry rub blends inspired by classic BBQ styles and flavors, like Georgia Boys All-Purpose BBQ Rub, TSM BBQ Chicken Rub, and Santa Maria Sea Salted BBQ Rub. One of our more unique flavors, Park Hill Maple & Spice, is aromatic and good on pork, salmon, and root veggies. 

Salt & pepper, brown sugar, garlic, onion, paprika, and chili powder are some of the best spices to use when smoking your meat. You can blend your own but we also have a great selection of pre-mixed BBQ rubs. Our Red Rocks Hickory Smoke Seasoning is sweet, smoky and salty – making it great on beef, chicken, and more. To amp up the the smoke flavor, we also love Black Label Reserve Smoked Salt & Pepper, Alderwood Smoked Sea Salt and Whiskey Barrel Smoked Black Pepper.

The short answer: both! Grilling spices add flavor, but they can also "cook off," reducing the impact. One of the best ways to maximize your flavors is to season before grilling, as well as during (like a glaze or mop), or after grilling (with sauces and finishing salts). An easy tip for knowing how long to season before grilling is to season your protein when you pull it out of the refrigerator. It's best to let the protein come to room temperature before putting it on the grill and that's an ideal way to help your seasoning form a flavorful crust on your meat.