Note:This is a reprint from Justin’s Journal October 12, 2002. There appears to be some problems with the old weblog’s PHP script retrieving the archives. Because I’m going to be doing barbeque this weekend I wanted this recipe available.
I’ve got some folks coming over tomorrow afternoon for a barbeque. Just a few minutes ago I finished preparing the pork shoulder roast for smoking in the morning. I mixed up about a cup of my special rub and covered this 4lb. roast with the rub, covered the roast with plastic wrap and put it back in ther refrigerator. I really should have done this about two days ago if I wanted a really superb barbeque roast but this will still be long enough for it to be a pretty doggone good barbeque.
I’ve got a friend who runs “The Deck Chef” website who has some very good rubs for sale but I like my own. If you won’t tell anyone else I’ll share the recipe with you. Shhh, though, remember this is a secret recipe.
- 2 T. Sugar
- 2 T. Brown Sugar
- 2 T. Salt
- 2 T. Ground Cumin
- 4 T. Paprika
- 2 T. Chile Powder
- 1 T. Cayenne Pepper (maybe a little bit more Cayenne Pepper)
- 1 T. Freshly cracked black pepper.
Just throw all these ingredients together in a bowl and then mix until the seem to be mixed about as well as they can be. Put this in a shaker of some sort and sprinkle liberally over your meat. It’s called a rub but there isn’t a need to rub this stuff in, it’ll ball up on you and not completely cover the meat. Just cover the meat with it, wrap it up in butcher paper or plastic wrap and put it back in the refrigerator at least overnight. Two days will make it better.
Sometimes I’ll add a little rubbed sage to the mixture, other times maybe a little rosemary gets added. If you have a favorite herb go ahead and add it to it. The key that I’ve found is, though, not to stray too far from this basic rub when playing around with different ingredients. You can add just about anything you want to give it your own special flavor just as long as one or two things is all that you add.
Tomorrow, around 7a.m. I’ll get up and go fire up the smoker. Around 8:30 I’ll put a cup of wet hickory chips on the charcoal, add water to a pan that will sit between the fire and the meat and then place the meat on the rack. Around 3p.m. the meat will be ready for the finishing sauce and at 3:30 it will be ready to pull from the bone and serve.
Good barbeque requires time… and a few bottles of beer.
