The BBQ Pro Shop Factory Team has been in the lab all year, assessing the newest rubs for our Flavor Guide -- the world’s only comprehensive flavor decoder for BBQ and grilling seasonings. With the BBQ Pro Shop Factory Team Flavor Guide, you can easily find products with just the right level of salt, sweet, savory and heat for your tastes and get professional tips to help you discover exciting new protein pairings.
One of the collections we're really excited about is the 2021 Essential Seasonings Kit, consisting of 10 of the most exciting and noteworthy new rubs added to our catalog this year. We like to think of it as the the ultimate collection of killer new rubs.
Balanced Masterpieces
The 3-3-3-3 is one of our favorite Flavor Guide profiles, because it connotes an equal balance of salt, sweet, savory and heat flavors. These two rubs hit the store this summer and quickly became go-tos whenever we’re cooking on our drum smokers.
Elk Creek BBQ - Hog Knuckle Honey Chipotle Rub delivers a big wave of salt, sweet and savory all at once, followed closely by a terrific chili pepper kick
R Butts R Smokin’ - Butt Kick’n Chicken adds a smoky vibe to the classic salt, sweet and savory flavors along with a creeping chili pepper heat
Both are amazing on pork shoulder -- alone or in a 2-rub combo. Also fantastic on pork ribs and tenderloins, BBQ fattys, chicken and cedar-planked salmon.
Bestowers of Grilling Greatness
For high temp cooking, look for seasonings that register a bit lower on the Flavor Guide sweet scale. We find lower-sugar rubs are easier to work with on the grill, because they’re less likely to burn and leave a bitter taste.
Pit O Heaven - Ribeye Ranch PitGrit opens with a blast of salty garlic that hits all the right notes and never looks back
Pancho & Lefty - Texas Black SPG features “Texas black garlic” to boost the umami factor in this awesome salt-and-pepper based blend
These two blends are suitable for a variety of grilled proteins and work well as part of a multi-layer flavor strategy. (Looking at you, SCA cooks.)
Awesome APs
“All-purpose” seasonings -- aka APs -- have been around since, well, whenever someone decided to use salt and pepper at the same time. Today there are tons of great seasonings that fit the AP bill; these are two of our newest favorites.
Dead Bird BBQ - DB 180 Grill All Seasoning starts the flavor show with complex savory sensations, followed by lovely salts and a moderately spicy finish
All Qued Up - Bayou Bandit boasts cajun flavors but it’s the beefy umami that really stands out to us, deepening the already-appealing savories even more
When we say AP, we don’t just mean pork chops, chicken or beef, but also in stovetop or oven dishes like chili, casseroles, sausage gravy… the list goes on and on. Get creative!
Hot (but not too Hot) Rubs
For those that like a kick of heat, we’ve picked two seasonings that deliver awesome mouth “tingles” but stay within most people’s zone of tolerance. (You’ll feel the heat, but it won’t make ya sweat.)
Heath Riles - Hot Rub brings classic BBQ flavors and a creeping, smoldering heat that’s addictive
Mississippi Meat Mafia - Heavy Hitter Hot Rub delivers a sweeter heat profile that pairs a fantastic honey sweetness with spicy chili pepper heat
Use whenever you want to spice things up, whether you’re cooking outdoors or in the kitchen. We like to mix a hot seasoning rub into smoked queso to add both heat and complexity.
Flexible Flavor Boosters
These two flavor bombs have been trending at BBQ Pro Shop ever since their highly anticipated release dates, and they’re the perfect way to round out this collection.
Boars Night Out Midwest Dust is a full-bodied seasoning that’s rich and flavorful without being too sharp
Hotty Totty - Climax XX BAM lives up to its name, with full flavor delivery right from the first bite, along with a slight sting of heat that’s really nice
These powerful blends deliver tons of flavor, so we tend to use them in smaller amounts, usually in combination with other products. They also work great as a finishing seasoning to add a big pop of flavor.
Send and eMail To The Factory Team
That’s our 2021 Essential Seasonings List, be sure to tell us your picks for our next list at factoryteam@bbqproshop.com and be sure to check out the BBQ Pro Shop Factory Team Flavor Guide listed on the product pages of over 200 seasonings only at The BBQ Pro Shop.