Salt free bbq rubs (ingredients, turkey, chicken, celery seed)

[MechAndy]

I have a couple salt free rubs that I use but would like to try/experiment with more.
Do any of you have some ?

I like a little salt but I hate others putting salt into my food.

I recently agreed to buy a jar of rub from a bbq specialty store sales person and it ruined an expensive brisket cook and I didn’t use all that much.
It was just packed with salt and not labeled as such.

I figure you can always add more if you want.

I normally just lightly sprinkle a tad of salt (no more than you would sprinkle on your eggs or whatever) on my bbq meat the day before the cook and then go salt less on my rubs the day of the cook.

My rubs are just basic.
Pepper based for beef.
Sweet based for pork.

The thing is is that there are probably better things that I haven’t learned so that is why I am asking.

Thanks in advance.
Andy.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

Salt is cheap and spices are expensive. Anytime you buy a blend, it is going to contain a lot of cheap salt and be stingy with the expensive spices.


Which is why I do my blends at home so I can be generous with the spices and stingy with the salt. The meat costs so much, what is a couple dollars more for spices? I'd be mighty ticked off if I bought a blend that ruined a brisket.



You can take any good rub recipe and simply cut back on the salt, although for barbecue you do need some salt in the rub since it affects how the meat cooks.


The family cook is working his way through a couple of different rubs and sauces cookbooks, so we haven't settled on a favorite. It's about impossible to choose because so far they have all been good.

[MechAndy]

I totally agree about them filling it with cheap salt.
We had to toss the meat out.
Heck I couldn’t even feed it to the dogs it was so bad.
Quite a shame because I woke up in the middle of the night to start the cook.
Other than the rub the cook was perfect.

Right now the meat prices are going through the roof.
That might be because of the ransom ware situation.

We don’t normally buy pre made rubs and that will be the last time.

[tnff]

Could there have been some other ingredient besides the salt? I'm like you in that I don't like to use a lot of salt when cooking. As much as possible I buy salt free products so I can control the amount used.

With that said, I wonder though if it was too much salt or some other cheap filler they slipped in there? I'm kind of surprised that a normal amount of rub would leave the meat that over salty that even the dogs wouldn't eat it.

I tend to be very simple in my rubs -- some salt, black pepper, garlic, paprika, and maybe some red pepper if I happen to want some extra heat that day. And even then I don't pack it on

[MechAndy]

The dogs will eat about anything, it’s just not healthy.

[astrohip]

I agree, almost every store-bought rub I've ever tried is too salty. I started making my own a few years back, and am much happier. It's really easy.

I have two rubs I use, one for chicken and one for pork (ribs, butt, etc). I tend to make more than I need for any single cook. So I store it in a shaker, use what I need, and seal it up until the next smoke.

And when it runs out, I don't always use the same recipe. Sometimes I'll surf the web, looking at rub formulas, and just pick one that looks good. They all tend to use the same 5-10 ingredients anyway. And if you notice, most of the rubs you see online use much less salt than the store-bought ones.

Here's the shaker I use....
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0027I1P2A


PS: Exception is Brisket. Very simple rub: Salt & Pepper, a decent amount of both. That's all. With a long slow cook (16+ hours), that's all it needs for flavor.

[lubby]

Make your own and add just a little salt. That's what I do.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

We are working our way through Barbecue Sauces Rubs and Marinades by Steven Raichlen. There are a lot of recipes and we've barely made a dent in them, but so far every recipe has been excellent.


This weekend the cook did a turkey with an herb rub. The recipe called for celery salt, but I never buy any "salt" combo flavorings. I don't want to pay herb prices for salt. So the cook used celery seed and added just a little bit of salt. The turkey was excellent and it was "reduced salt".


I'm pretty sure that the only way to get any reduced salt rubs or seasonings is to mix up your own and cut back on the salt that the recipe calls for.

[evening sun]

Originally Posted by MechAndy

The dogs will eat about anything, it’s just not healthy.

I would have fed them the middle,where there would have been less salt. If you want less salt, make & experiment with your own, it's not hard.

[gentlearts]

There are many rub recipes online. Just leave out the salt, I’ve used several and they are good. Typically, they contain chili powder, cumin, dry mustard, paprika, brown sugar and pepper....spices you probably have on the shelf.