Spice Rub for grilled steaks

[Scooter]

This was from Cook's Illustrated some time ago. The thrust is that some spices are great..some are OK/Fair...and some are BAD..... when exposed to HIGH HEAT... as when grilling a steak for 2-3 minutes a side:

Good: Allspice, ancho chile, black pepper, chipotle chile, cinnamon, cumin and mustard seed.

OK/Fair: Cocoa, coffee, coriander, dill seed, fennel, star anise, tarragon and thyme.

BAD: Cardamon, celery seed, cloves, garlic (powdered or granulated), nutmeg, oregano, paprika and rosemary. THESE GET BITTER.

Article said that applying spice rub 5-10 minutes before grilling...is best, and....toasting before grinding...is not necessary as the high heat grilling negates the toasting.

[monitormix]

Check out Penzey's Spices and my personal favorite, Oakridge BBQ. Both have an excellent assortment and I really love a lot of the Oakridge competition stuff. My favorite is Santa Maria Rub and Carne Crosta. The chicken one is pretty amazing, especially if you marinade the chicken in Stubbs Citrus marinade first then add the rub.

[gtsum2]

Agree on oak ridge. Theo carne crosta rub was made for intense high heat searing. Has a lot of coffee in it too....quite good

[BigBlockTank]

I'm a big KISS person (don't be offended it's just a saying) Keep It Simple Stupid. But seriously, I'm an old school pit master from NC, and if a steak needs more than just a little salt and pepper, you need another steak, or type of steak.
Obviously, a lot of people don't agree with me, and I'm ok, my steaks are good enough for those that I've cooked for, for the past 42 years.

[Old-Biscuit]

Originally Posted by BigBlockTank

I'm a big KISS person (don't be offended it's just a saying) Keep It Simple Stupid. But seriously, I'm an old school pit master from NC, and if a steak needs more than just a little salt and pepper, you need another steak, or type of steak.
Obviously, a lot of people don't agree with me, and I'm ok, my steaks are good enough for those that I've cooked for, for the past 42 years.

Same here......K.I.S.S.

Course ground salt and slap it on the barbie ---charcoal

And it don't need no 'steak sauce' either

[saddlesore]

If you need to "add" anything to your meat...buy better meat...no salt/pepper spices/rubs.
bring meat to room temp(set it on counter),
place in oven @ 125 to 135 deg for 30 minutes then flip and repeat.
sear for 10 seconds and flip for 10 seconds
flip once again and sear for 1 to 2 minutes
flip and repeat
will be medium rare
slap on a plate
&
serve.
Steak sauces were invented to disguise rotting meat in the 1880's there was no refrigeration.

[Phil Perrin]

I'll second what BigBlockTank said. If you need more than salt and pepper, or SPOG (salt, pepper, onion and garlic powders) on your steaks, you might want to upgrade your steaks. Good beef needs just the simplest seasoning to be outstanding!

[texoz]

I love my steak plain (with salt and pepper). I also love it with Fiesta brand "uncle chris`s steak seasoning". Not sure if it's available nationwide or only in Texas.

[spinn]

Promise not to laugh. I heard a reference to using baking soda to help tenderize steak. My wife and i prepared 2 ny strip steaks cut from the primal, seasoned the same (we are salt, pepper, garlic powder junkies). One steak had a tiny, and I mean tiny sprinkle of baking soda rubbed in 20 min before grilling.
I cannot describe the difference in texture and taste between the two, it was amazing. Remember, TINY, too much and the baking soda will give a horrible taste. I typically use a small pinch.

[Afubar]

Yep, I'm with the coarse ground salt and pepper group. I do add a rubbing of a pat of real butter on the grilled side while waiting for the steak to grill on the other side. Yum!! (and always rare)