Although steak purists may turn their noses up at anything short of salt and pepper you can add a ton of flavor to your steak by using a dry rub. A dry rub is a blend of herbs and spices that coats the outside of your cut. It’s especially useful for barbecue recipes but it can also work well on a ribeye or New York strip if you apply it correctly. Applying your dry rub properly can be the difference between a great dinner and a disaster. The internet is full of horror stories of people who burned their rubs — it’s worth learning from their mistakes.
| Channel | Publish Date | Thumbnail & View Count | Actions |
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 Marx Foods | 2015-06-15 14:57:00 |  32,382 Views |
Technique video for applying rub to meat
The most important thing to know is that there are two ways to apply a dry rub to your steak. The traditional method is to apply the dry rub before searing and cooking your steak. This method should be reserved for a thinner layer of applied dry rub that does not contain sugar. Before you apply your dry rub you will want to pat your steak dry with a paper towel or cloth. This will help your rub stick to your cut better.
You may choose to use a binding agent such as olive oil to help your rub adhere to the meat. Consider using the wet hand and dry hand method to prevent cross-contamination. With this method you only touch your steak with one hand and use the other hand to handle spices and utensils. While this method is popular you may want to consider only using a thin layer. The other common dry rub method is to apply the dry rub after you have seared the steak which is what you want to do for thicker layers of dry rub.
A sore point for many home cooks seems to be accidentally burning your dry rub. If you plan on applying a thicker dry rub consider searing your steak first and then applying a layer of dry rub before you finish cooking. Steaks get that nice golden crust at high temperatures through a process called the Maillard reaction. However if you apply a thick layer of dry rub you’re essentially blocking the outer layer of the steak from the pan. In order to caramelize the heat has to penetrate the dry rub which in many cases causes it to burn. Conversely you shouldn’t have this problem if you only apply a thin layer of dry rub.
