BBQ Rubs and Sauces (hard to find in the UK)


 
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Graham Timson

New member
After introducing myself 4 weeks ago I have read a lot, learned a lot and cooked quite a lot also. What have I learned? Well thanks to you guys I have not had a disaster, everything was well edible.

I would dearly like to master my favourite BBQ meat, which is Ribs. From what I read on this site it seems I must develop an understanding of Rubs and Sauces. However this sounds daunting and the learning process could be lengthy and expensive. Also here in the England we do not have many brand products referred too on this site. What do you recommend I mix to get me started that will not be too spicy hot?

As for the sauces, we do have on our supermarket shelves own brand BBQ sauces, but I think our supermarkets are pretty clueless about BBQ in general, they all just taste sweet and smoky. More recently I have seen some American products such as Bone Sucking Sauce and Cattlemans, Classic and Honey versions. How do these products compare with other US brands, they seem to me to be a cut above the supermarket brands we have here at the moment.
 
Graham,

Welcome to the board! It sounds as if you've been very successful so far; congrats! Now, when you say ribs are you speaking of pork or beef ribs? They are as different as soccer and American football...you get my drift. I'll assume you're speaking of pork ribs; not too many claim beef ribs as their favorite. For both your rub and sauce requests, I'd recommend mixing them yourself. There are plenty of recipes posted here and you can easily tweak them to your preference. On the rub, you might consider Sugarless Texas Sprinkle. If you're ready to customize it, 2 recommendations; cut way back or eliminate the paprika (very little flavor) and cut back on the cayenne if you're not ready for the heat. Taste it, and adjust it before rubbing onto the ribs. If the rub meets your approval before going onto the meat, you won't be ruining the finished product.

For a sauce, many of the commercial sauces found on either side of the Atlantic have a good deal of sugar in them. Again, I recommend making your own. A simple blend of apple cider vinegar, ketchup, onion, garlic, salt and some brown sugar will get you started. Browse through this forum for many ideas.

Many prefer to eat their ribs 'dry', that is with no sauce, and just a little rub.

Experiment and have fun! Let us know how your next rib cook comes out.

Paul
 
Many of your overly sweet BBQ sauces can be doctored up by cutting them with a little apple cider vinegar and maybe adding hot sauce to taste.
 
I did a party a few weeks back and searched for a simple rub and sauce with basic common kitchen ingredients.. Everything came out quite tasty.. I found these recipes either here or at www.thesmokering.com.
Kansas City Style Rub

1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup paprika
6 Tablespoons kosher salt
2 Tablespoons onion powder
1 Tablespoon garlic salt
1 Tablespoon freshly ground pepper
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon powder mustard
1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper



1 cup ketchup
1/2 apple or cranapple juice
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (more or less to taste)
2 teaspoons dry mustard
2 Tablespoons light brown sugar
2 Tablespoons molasses
1/8 teaspoon liquid smoke
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 Tablespoons honey

Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes
 
Graham, you are starting with the right attitude. Making your own rub and sauce is not difficult. I started with Steven Raichlen's recipes then read every one posted here. I also studied others on the web.

Start simple with flavors you like. Make small batches till you find what you like. Your tstes will change and broaden. Sometimes I like vinegar based sauces, sometimes I like a tomato based...and then there is mustard too.

Read Kevin Kruger's posts. He knows food. Let us know what you like.
 
Hey Graham,

Wow, I can't believe they have Bone Suckin sauce in the UK...shoot, it can be hard to find here! In my opinion, it is one of the best sauces out there. Can't comment on cattleman's because I haven't tried it, but it is kind of a bottom shelf sauce here if i'm not mistaken. Good luck in your saucemaking though. Oh and Btw...could you tell Jeremy Clarkson not to come back to the U.S. anytime soon? I recently saw an episode of top gear where he is driving around the south...apparently he is not too enamored with us Americans.
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Originally posted by Phil R.:
Hey Graham,

Wow, I can't believe they have Bone Suckin sauce in the UK...shoot, it can be hard to find here! In my opinion, it is one of the best sauces out there.
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Yeah hard to believe. I like Bone Suckin sauce, it's top notch. It is a sweet sauce but has plenty of flavor going on. I usually have a jar of it on hand. Good stuff. Cattleman's is just a basic run of the mill sauce, nothing special. Look for Sweeet Baby Ray's not bad either.
 
The help and advice contained in the responses to my posting is much appreciated. I have read them all and intend to follow up on the suggestions.

Vin, Thank you for the recipe and recommendation. Paul and Eric, I will try modifying some of the basic sauces I find in our supermarkets. The Sugarless Texas Sprinkle looks a good one to try this weekend. And yes, I was talking about Pork ribs.

Steve, I have just got hold of a copy of Steve Raichlen’s book, so I am getting sorted and thanks for the heads up on Kevin Kruger’s posts

Bryan, not only is the Bone Sucking sauce over here but we have the spicy version as well, costs just over $8, can you believe that!
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Quote
“Oh and Btw...could you tell Jeremy Clarkson not to come back to the U.S. anytime soon? I recently saw an episode of top gear where he is driving around the south...apparently he is not too enamored with us Americans”

Phil, sorry you have had to put up with ole petrol head Clackson. Most of us have got quote bored of him and his views on everything. The BBC is threatening to stop his show “Top Gear” since one of the co-presenters nearly died in a 100 plus mph crash earlier in the year.
 
I am new to smoking, just got my wsm 2 months ago. I went straight into making my own rubs and sauces.

I have done a few rub recipies here, the southern hog rub and Britu are favourites, the texan sugarless was also good.

In sauces I can strongly recommend that you try making your self a batch of Steves No 5 sauce, a favourite at my house.
 
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