Smoky Chipotle Spice Rub

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Now that grill season is in full swing I like to make new spice rub combinations to flavor my food. Salt, pepper and the taste from a well seasoned grill is actually pretty good on its own, but the right combination of flavors in a spice rub can take food to another level of delicious or even transport a meal to different regions of the world.

I build my spice rubs much like I do a soup or a sauce. I start with base flavors like onion and garlic in their powder form, and salt and pepper is always present to enhance other flavors. Once I have the base I move onto the spices that will be more prominent and work together, like rosemary and thyme for example.

For this recipe, I have an onion and garlic base and use Chipotle chili powder as the star with cumin and oregano as compliments. Chipotle is much hotter than regular chili powder so brown sugar is added to balance the heat. In the end, this rub will add a spicy, smoky Mexican flavor to anything cooked over a fire.

BEHIND THIS BITE

A lettuce wrap disaster photo!

I used this recipe for my print column but it is only part of what I intended the recipe to be. The rub was used on chicken tenders that I grilled, topped with sauteed onions and red pepper then drizzled with a creamy lime sauce. I wrapped everything in a lettuce leaf and it tasted great. I was really happy with the results.

The only problem was the pictures.

The lettuce was out of control! I tried everything to get a good shot that looked like a delicious lettuce wrap. It’s just that the lettuce was like curly hair on a humid day. I just wasn't able to get it to look the way I wanted it. It ended up being a good learning experience. I went to plan B and made a salad-looking dish with all the ingredients, which turned out ok, but in the end, the best overall shots were focused on the rub.

I have found that lettuce is one of the hardest things to get right when styling food and photographing it. I’m sure there are many stylist and photographers that would agree. Thank god I took a few styled shots of the rub, otherwise, I might not have even had this to publish!

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE

Smoky Chipotle Spice Rub

Makes 1/2 cup; 5 minutes
2 Tbs Chipotle chili powder
2 Tbs Brown sugar
1 Tbs + 1 tsp Cumin
1 Tbs Salt
1 Tbs Pepper
2 tsp Onion powder
2 tsp Garlic powder
1 tsp Oregano

Make rub
In a bowl mix together chipotle powder, brown sugar, oregano, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Liberally sprinkle on meat and rub in with fingers before grilling. Store in a tightly sealed jar.

FOR LESS HEAT
Replace the chipotle powder with regular chili powder for a less spicy and smoky rub that tastes more like a traditional Mexican seasoning.

Baby Back Ribs

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Ribs are not easy to cook on the grill. I spent an entire summer two years ago trying my best to figure out the perfect method.

What I learned: bake them in the oven first!

For the grill flavor, all that is needed is to finish them off over some charcoal, just a few minutes to caramelize the sauce and soak up the smoke does the trick. I was able to get good ribs on the grill but they weren’t fall-off-the-bone. I accomplished that starting them in the oven wrapped in foil then finishing over the coals.

This recipe features an original rub and sauce.

The rub features paprika and ground mustard with a little cayenne thrown in for some kick. The spice mix provided a great flavor foundation and alone would have made the ribs really tasty.

The sauce featured molasses and dijon mustard and was a sweet and mildly spice compliment to the rub. The molasses provided a sweet balance to the spice of the dijon and was the real star of the sauce.

Overall, these ribs were absolutely delicious. The cooking process, rub and sauce worked as planned and made for a restaurant quality rib.

I dug into these like a maniac.

If your looking for a rib recipe - this is it.

BEHIND THIS BITE
Every time I eat ribs I think of my 9-month stint working at the Texas Roadhouse. One of their selling points is fall-off-the-bone ribs. (As a server, they expected us to say that to customers.) The Roadhouse ribs are delicious but what I remember most about them is the mess that customers would make eating them, especially teenagers. Hands, faces, seats, tables, ketchup bottles - everything would be covered with rib sauce.

I remember one kid on his 13th or 14th birthday. He had sauce covering his face and I won’t ever forget him looking at me and telling me how great they were as the sauce literally dripped from his cheeks. It was comical.

Even when I’m alone I don’t like to get anywhere near that kind of messy when I eat. It amazed me that people would actually do that, or let their kids do that in public. As amazed as I was at the messes, it was often a great laugh or a highlight of a shift, which would sometimes be a grueling marathon of slinging steaks and ribs at customers for hours on end.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
Serves 4; 3 hours
THE RUB
3 Tbs Paprika
3 Tbs Salt
2 Tbs Pepper
2 Tbs Ground mustard
1 Tbs Garlic powder
1 Tbs Onion powder
1 tsp Cayenne pepper

1 - 4 to 5 lb slab Baby back ribs

THE SAUCE
1/4 C Onion, diced
1 Tbs Garlic, minced
1 C Ketchup
1/2 C Molasses
1/4 C Vinegar
2 Tbs Dijon mustard
1 tsp Liquid smoke
2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce

Make rub, prepare ribs
In a bowl mix together paprika, salt, pepper, mustard powder, garlic powder, onion powder and cayenne pepper. Remove membrane from bone-side of ribs. Liberally rub the seasoning over both sides of the ribs, wrap in aluminum foil and let marinate in fridge at least 25 minutes or up to overnight.

Bake ribs
Place ribs in a preheated 325° oven and cook until meat is tender and has receded from the bones, Approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest 20 minutes.

Make sauce While ribs bake, in a sauce pan over medium heat sauté onion in a little olive oil until soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Season to taste. Add garlic cook 1 minutes more. Add ketchup, molasses, cider vinegar, dijon mustard, worcestershire sauce and liquid smoke. Bring to a simmer and remove from heat.

Finish ribs
Slather ribs on both sides with sauce. Place on a prepared charcoal or gas grill for a few minutes on each side to caramelize sauce. Slather more sauce on ribs after each turn. Total time on grill 8 to 10 minutes. Remove to a cutting board, slice and serve.

Homemade Taco Seasoning

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A few years back I tried an enchilada recipe and it called for chicken seasoned with a chili powder-cumin mix. After tasting the results store-bought taco seasoning became a thing of the past. This recipe is a little more complex than the original enchilada spice mix, but it’s not just for making taco meat, it can also be used on steak, chicken or any other protein as a flavorful rub.

For an even simpler mixture with the same resulting flavor as meat seasoned with an Old El Paso or Ortega taco seasoning packet, eliminate everything except the chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. By making the seasoning at home, all the preservatives and crazy junk that manufactures put in their mixes is eliminated and the cook, not the company, controls the amount of sodium. It is also much cheaper in the long run to have a stocked pantry with the correct spices available rather than buying a packet every time taco flavoring is desired.

BEHIND THIS BITE

Two years ago, I did a test with packets of taco seasoning and found that a 2.5 oz, bottle of chili powder and a 2 oz. bottle of cumin could make the equivalent of 13 packets of taco seasoning creating around $5 worth of savings.

The last time I had taco seasoned with a packet was a taco salad at a small gathering. I was amazed at how salty and over seasoned the meat was. The packets are cheap, between 50¢ and 75¢, so many Americans just grab them without thinking.

Well, I have thought about it, and for all the artery-clogging, saddle-bag creating meals I cook, I have a better-for-your-health tip: Make taco seasoning with chili powder and cumin. (1 Tbs chili powder and 2 tsp cumin per pound) It tastes better, you control the salt and it's cheaper in the long-run. That is all.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE

Makes 1/2 C
3 Tbs Chili powder
2 Tbs Cumin
1 Tbs Salt
1 Tbs Pepper
1 Tbs Garlic powder
1 Tbs Onion powder
1 tsp Mexican oregano

Mix, store
In a bowl mix together Chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and oregano. Place in an airtight container and store away from light.