BBQ Dry Rub Recipe

6 dry rub recipes for chicken, dry rub for pork chops, steak, salmon, ribs, turkey and tri tip beef. Take meat to the next level with sweet and savory mixes. Now you can skip the sauce when serving and other cuts because you need nothing more.

Dry Rub Recipes for Meat

We have covered all of the proteins over the years so I thought I would put them all together in this roundup. The base remains the same with a few tweaks here and there. Like when it comes to fish we like a bit more sweetness and less heat.

I will say that overall they are all in the mild category when it comes to being spicy, they aren’t. You can certainly change that if you would rather have heat with a few options. My favorite way to give it some heat for let’s say How to Make Fall-Apart Brisket in the Oven would be to add;

for Fish

Let’s start with our salmon dry rub shall we? If you haven’t tried our baked salmon recipe with a coating of this you’re missing out. We make it in the oven but have also used it on our smoked salmon as an added flavoring on the top and could massage into the skin too if you like.

for Beef

During the holidays we have started making things that we actually love, that isn’t always ham. If you’re like us and kinda’ ehhhh about typical choices, try this tri tip dry rub this year instead. Makes every bite delish.

This steak dry rub is best to use on every cut you can get your hands on. I haven’t found any red meat that it isn’t good on. You just throw it all together, crush so it is smooth and coat all sides. Let the excess fall off and cook as you wish.

Only ever had bbq sauce on your baby back ribs or chuck roast burnt ends? You’re in for a real treat when switching over to this (and it’s not as messy).

for Ribs

Now let’s talk about the best dry rub for ribs. You can use this to smoke ribs on your Traeger, bake a roast in the oven, a batch of air fryer steak bites or any other cut on the cow. We buy in bulk at the beginning of the year so we cook a lot of things. I know beef y’all. There are so many different flavors on the same animal, this makes it better.

for Chicken

We just added this to our site last week on our dry rub air fryer chicken wings. I don’t know why it took me this long to do so because we use it on our air fryer whole chicken all the time, but it did. If you love rotisserie from your local grocery store, this is so much better I tell you. As I said before you can make it a little spicier if you like, or leave as is.

Kids love lollipop chicken drumsticks because they are so easy to pick up and eat all the meat off of. You can bake them in the oven, grill or make smoked chicken. This coating works well on chicken legs for sure and you can skip the sauce entirely.

Most often this dry rub for chicken wings is used on, well….wings. I make these for dinner so often that I make a really large batch and store it in a container for later.

When it is time for cooking there’s no need for measuring. Just use a spoon to coat the outside of your drumettes or whole chicken wings in air fryer and seal up the rest for later.

for Turkey

When it comes to the holidays we love this too. Everyone at our house has always raved about our turkey dry rub when we cook it on the smoker or the oven.

for Pork

Moving on to the pig now. Sometimes we get lucky and are able to buy half of a hog each year too. That way we get all the cuts so we can try them all. We have made smoked pork steaks that are OMG out of this world with this mixture featured below, and so many other pieces.

Most of the time we make 2 inch thick pork chops and coat nicely with this. If I have had a forgetful moment and resigned to cook air fryer frozen pork chops you can still enjoy it. Only difference is it won’t stick at the beginning real well. Wait until you’re ready to flip, sprinkle it on the top, rotate, and add more to the other side.

Want a larger piece to serve a larger crowd? You can even use our pork chop dry rub (linked at top of post) on a pork roast in air fryer.

How long should dry rub sit on meat?

The length of time your seasonings should sit on meat depends on how much flavor you want to impart and the type of meat you’re using. 30 minutes is minimum but with larger cuts overnight can really be the ticket to a wonderful flavor.

1. Short Rest: If you’re short on time, letting the dry rub sit on the meat for 30 minutes to 1 hour can still enhance the flavor. The salt and spices will start to penetrate the surface of the meat and add some seasoning.
2. Medium Rest: Letting the rub sit on the meat for 1 to 3 hours allows the flavors to penetrate more deeply. This works well for smaller cuts like chicken breasts, pork chops, or steaks.
3. Long Rest: Best for large cuts of meat (like pork shoulder, beef brisket, or whole chickens), allowing the rub to sit for 4 hours to overnight is ideal. This gives the salt and spices plenty of time to season the meat thoroughly, enhancing both the flavor and texture.

If you’re letting the rub sit overnight, wrap the meat in plastic wrap or place it in an airtight container and refrigerate it to keep it safe.

How to save leftovers

No matter which one you choose to use you’ll fall in love. So much so that you’ll likely want to make a larger batch to keep it for next time. Just use an air tight container or mason jar to do just that. If you double or triple the amounts listed on each one you then will save prep time going forward.

You may find one you love more than the others and they don’t always have to be used on the items I specify. Want to use the brown sugar rib rub on your chicken breasts, it will still be an amazing spice blend.

You can print recipe for pork below, or click on the blue link(s) above and get the one(s) you want from there. Most of them have brown sugar, regular or smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper if you like. If you want a bit of a zing, dry mustard will do that for ya’. Let us know which you love best or if you tweak one that we should try!