Took the rub advice from an old timer at a competition, ate my words

At the Memphis BBQ fest last October, this guy in his 70s told me to lay off the sugar in my pork rub, said it was masking the smoke. I figured he was stuck in his ways, so I ignored him and kept my usual brown sugar base. My shoulder came out with that candy-like crust, and while the judges didn't hate it, the guy's chicken took reserve grand champion and tasted way cleaner. Next weekend I tried his 2:1 salt to pepper with a little cayenne, no sugar at all, and honestly the bark was better and the meat actually tasted like the wood. Has anyone else had luck cutting sweeteners entirely, or is it just for certain cuts?

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rosek4420d ago

That sugar trick is hard to break because it feels like you're getting a win with that shiny crust. But once you drop it and actually taste the meat, you realize the sugar was just covering up for the cook, not helping it. For pork shoulders and ribs I've gone full no sugar for a couple seasons now, and the smoke flavor comes through way sharper, especially with hickory or oak. That said, I still keep a tiny bit of brown sugar in a rub for beef short ribs, just a teaspoon per cup, since the fat handles it different and it helps with a crust that doesn't burn. The real test is doing a side by side on the same smoker, same wood, same weather. That'll teach you more than any trophy ever will.