Thank Me for Smoking
Spent five hours yesterday smoking beef brisket, my first really elaborate outdoor cooking of the year. There’s something aggravating yet satisfying about feeding another three or four briquettes into the grill every half hour or so to keep the temperature in low 200s. Of course, in the process, I wind up smelling thoroughly like smoked brisket, which means I get really hungry every time I scratch my nose.
I’ve been using Alton Brown’s 8/3/1+1 formula for a barbecue rub for the last few years, although I don’t often use it on ribs as he originally intended. The idea is that whatever unit of measure you choose to use, you combine 8 units of brown sugar, 3 of kosher salt, and 1 of chili powder. Then you add one more unit of anything you like to get the particular flavor you want. I use tablespoons as my unit, and then break up that last tablespoon into six half-teaspoon units to get a mix of flavors. My most recent version combined celery salt, garlic powder, onion powder, mustard, coriander seed, and paprika. I think it worked out pretty well, and the rub does a nice job on pork chops too.
About Dave Thomer
Born and raised in Philadelphia. Studied philosophy at Fordham University in the Bronx, where I made many great friends and met my wonderful wife. We moved back to Philadelphia, where I studied philosophy some more and became a teacher. Online and off, I'm looking for ways that we can be better citizens and build stronger communities.