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    Home » Recipes » Grill

    Kansas City BBQ Dry Rub

    Published: Jun 22, 2023 by Mollie · 2 Comments

    Jump to Recipe

    This Kansas City BBQ Dry Rub is so easy to make and tastes amazing on everything. Use it for pork, chicken, beef, sausage, or even fish. It's sweet, salty, and smokey, with just a hint of spice.

    A jar of Kansas City-style BBQ dry rub. A spoon is resting on the top.
    Jump to:
    • About Kansas City BBQ Rub
    • Why We Love This Recipe
    • Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
    • 📋 Step-by-Step Instructions
    • Cooking Ideas
    • Frequently asked questions
    • BBQ Side Pairings
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    About Kansas City BBQ Rub

    Wondering what makes KC BBQ special? Unlike other styles of BBQ, it's typically dry rubbed with a sweet and savory spice mixture that's not too spicy or tangy. Dry rubs can be made with a variety of different spices, but we use a combination of brown sugar, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, mustard powder, ground cayenne, salt, and black pepper.

    Kansas City BBQ is typically served with a thick, tomato-based sweet BBQ sauce. Check out our Apple Cider BBQ sauce for a perfect pairing to this rub.

    A top view of BBQ seasoning in a jar. A spoon is resting on the top.

    Why We Love This Recipe

    • It's easy: Throw some spices together and you're done.
    • It's great on everything: Put it on beef, pork, chicken, fish, sausage, turkey, or even veggies.
    • It's well balanced: This bbq rub is sweet, savory, smokey, slightly spicy, and caramelizes to perfection when cooked.

    Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

    Kansas City BBQ dry rub ingredients in a bowl.

    Brown sugar: We use brown sugar to make this rub sweet (it also caramelizes super well). If you want to use something more natural (or make this recipe Paleo-compliant), you can use coconut sugar instead.

    Smoked paprika: Smoked paprika adds a smokey flavor to this rub, but if you don't have it, you can use regular paprika.

    Ground cayenne: If you don't like spicy food, you can omit this or decrease the amount. If you just want a little bit of spice (but not the punch that cayenne provides), substitute chili powder.

    See amounts and full recipe list in the recipe card below.

    📋 Step-by-Step Instructions

    Step 1: Combine brown sugar, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, mustard powder, ground cayenne, salt, and black pepper in a small bowl.

    Step 2: Store in a jar or small air-tight container for up to a year. Use on beef, pork, chicken, turkey, sausage, fish, or veggies.

    Cooking Ideas

    Looking for something to make with this seasoning? Here are some ideas:

    • Pulled Pork: This recipe makes enough to cover a 7-9 pound bone-in pork butt.
    • Smoked Chicken or Turkey
    • BBQ-Seasoned Salmon Bites: Toss some chunks of salmon in this seasoning and throw them on the grill or smoker for a quick, delicious dinner that pairs well with everything.
    • Smoked Sausage
    • BBQ Veggies: Throw this seasoning on some veggies and toss them in the oven, air fryer, or grill for a quick, perfectly seasoned side dish. Try our BBQ Brussels Sprouts!
    • Beef Brisket
    • Beef or Pork Ribs
    Kansas City-style pulled pork on a plate.

    Frequently asked questions

    How long does BBQ rub last?

    You can store your homemade rub in a jar or air-tight container for up to a year. After that, it may start to lose some flavor.

    What is a dry rub?

    A dry rub is a mixture of dry spices and ingredients applied to a meat before the cooking process.

    What do Kansas City-style rubs taste like?

    They're typically sweet, salty, and smokey. Unlike some other styles of BBQ, they're usually not excessively spicy or tangy.

    BBQ Side Pairings

    Looking for something to serve with your BBQ? Try these great sides:

    • A top view of blue cheese potato salad in a serving bowl topped with bacon, fresh herbs, and blue cheese.
      Blue Cheese Potato Salad with Bacon
    • Macaroni and cheese in a serving bowl.
      One-Pot Copycat Kraft Mac and Cheese
    • Strawberries, basil, and halloumi on skewers on a serving plate.
      Strawberry and Halloumi Skewers
    • A close up of crispy air fryer BBQ brussels sprouts in a bowl.
      Air Fryer BBQ Brussels Sprouts
    Print

    📖 Recipe

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    A jar of Kansas City-style BBQ dry rub. A spoon is resting on the top.

    Kansas City BBQ Dry Rub


    ★★★★★

    5 from 2 reviews

    • Author: Mollie
    • Total Time: 5 minutes
    • Yield: 3.25 ounces 1x
    Print Recipe
    Pin Recipe

    Description

    This Kansas City BBQ Dry Rub is so easy to make and tastes amazing on everything. Use it for pork, chicken, beef, sausage, or even fish. It's sweet, salty, and smokey, with just a hint of spice.


    Ingredients

    Scale

    ¼ cup brown sugar

    2 teaspoons smoked paprika

    1 teaspoon onion powder

    1 teaspoon garlic powder

    1 teaspoon mustard powder

    ½ teaspoon ground cayenne

    1 teaspoon salt

    1 teaspoon black pepper


    Instructions

    1. Combine brown sugar, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, mustard powder, ground cayenne, salt, and black pepper in a small bowl.
    2. Store in a jar or small air-tight container for up to a year. Use on beef, pork, chicken, turkey, sausage, fish, or veggies. 

    Notes

    We use brown sugar to make this rub sweet (it also caramelizes super well). If you want to use something more natural (or make this recipe Paleo-compliant), you can use coconut sugar instead. 

    Smoked paprika adds a smokey flavor to this rub, but if you don't have it, you can use regular paprika.

    This recipe makes enough to cover a 7-9 pound bone-in pork butt. 

    Store in a jar or air-tight container for up to a year. 

    Nutritional information is only an estimate. 

    • Prep Time: 5 minutes
    • Category: Seasoning
    • Cuisine: American

    Nutrition

    • Serving Size: 3.25 ounces
    • Calories: 240
    • Sugar: 49.5 g
    • Sodium: 2347.2 mg
    • Fat: 1.6 g
    • Carbohydrates: 58.2 g
    • Protein: 2.3 g
    • Cholesterol: 0 mg

    Did you make this recipe?

    Share a photo and tag us @hangryeconomist — we can't wait to see what you've made!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Mollie says

      June 22, 2023 at 5:01 pm

      Love this on veggies, fish, and pulled pork.

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    2. Sarah M says

      July 17, 2023 at 10:16 pm

      Love this on everything. So versatile.

      ★★★★★

      Reply

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    Recipe rating ★ 5 Stars ☆ ★ 4 Stars ☆ ★ 3 Stars ☆ ★ 2 Stars ☆ ★ 1 Star ☆

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    hi, we're Michael and Mollie

    Welcome! We are Michael & Mollie, a hangry economics enthusiast and her husband. Our goal is to provide you with delicious, accessible, and healthy-ish recipes that are both time- and money-efficient.

    More about us →

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