Watched a pitmaster in Kansas City use nothing but salt and pepper and I was sure it was a gimmick

I've been doing the whole brown sugar and paprika rub thing for years, the sweeter the better I figured. Then I stopped at this spot called Slaps BBQ in KCK last month and watched them pull a brisket off the smoker that looked like it had maybe 2 ingredients on it. The guy told me he only uses coarse salt and black pepper, nothing else, and I almost laughed in his face. But he sliced me a piece and it was the most beefy, smoky, perfect brisket I've ever had in my life. No sweetness at all, just pure meat flavor with that deep smoke ring and a killer bark. Made me realize I've been covering up the meat instead of letting it shine. Has anyone else tried going minimal on their rub and actually liked it better?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_anthony5d ago

Funny you mention that, I was the exact same way until I messed up a batch of ribs and forgot the rub entirely. The smoke flavor was so clean it made me wonder why I ever bothered with fifteen different spices in the first place.

gavin4695d ago

I read somewhere that a lot of traditional pitmasters in the Carolinas actually just use salt and pepper on their whole hog cooks and let the wood do the heavy lifting. I guess with pork ribs you've got that natural fat and sweetness from the meat plus whatever mop sauce you're using, so the rub might just be covering up the smoke character you're paying for with good wood. It's cool how one mistake can totally change how you look at something you thought you had figured out.

elliotm575d ago

You really think a little salt and pepper is gonna give you that bark that a proper rub does? I've done whole hog a few times and yeah the wood is important but without a good rub you're basically eating smoked meat with no crust texture. @the_anthony your mistake probably worked because you got lucky with fresh pork or a good mop, but most of the time you need that sugar and spice layer to glue the pepper and salt to the meat long enough to form a real bark. I've seen too many plain S&P cooks come out with a wet, soft exterior that just doesn't hold up compared to a rub that sits on there overnight.