Kansas City master of barbecue, Chef Paul, created this fantastic spice rub to use on pulled pork. This Kansas City Pulled Pork Rub is chock full of spices, herbs, and sweetness from the sugar. This pork butt rub is ideal for low and slow cooking.
Pork Butt Rub Ingredients:
- Brown sugar: I recommend dark brown sugar for a deeper molasses flavor; however, light brown sugar will work in a pinch.
- Paprika: Use regular paprika, not smoked.
- Salt and black pepper
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder: or granulated garlic
- Lemon pepper
- Dried herbs: Sage, Basil, and Rosemary: if you can get your hands on rosemary powder, all the better! If not, you can pulverize the rosemary needles in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle.ย This is a great way to disperse the herbs more evenly in the Kansas City pulled pork rub.
- Cayenne pepper: The measurement for this ingredient is simply a suggestion. Feel free to adjust the heat level in this pork rub to suit your tastes.
Steps to Making Kansas City Pork Butt Rub:
- Combine ingredients in a medium bowl. Use a fork to break apart the sugar and prevent clumping.
- To use: Start by applying a thin coat of mustard, oil, or your favorite hot sauce to the surface of the pork butt. Doing this will create an added layer of flavor and help the rub adhere to the surface of the meat.
- I recommend transferring the pork butt run into a large metal shaker. I have one of these, and it’s one of my favorite tools for flavoring meat!
- Apply the Kansas City rub evenly to the surface of the pork butt or pork shoulder roast.
- Increase recipe size (double or triple) if you are cooking more than one pork butt.
- Make a large batch and store your Kansas City pulled pork rub in a lidded jar or resealable container for up to 6 months after preparation.
- Sugar tends to dry out after a while, so check in on it periodically. This rub is great in marinades too.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons paprika
- 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoon lemon pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Mix together all of the ingredients listed above. Apply rub to the surface of pork butt or shoulder roast. What sticks is all that you'll need. Increase recipe size (double or triple if you are cooking more than one pork roast.
- Make a big batch and store in a lidded jar or resealable container for up to 6 months after preparation. Sugar tends to dry out after a while, so check in on it periodically. This rub is great in marinades too.
Notes
Photo by: Sabrina Baksh
Not the Pulled Pork Rub you were looking for? Try looking at my list of the Best Pulled Pork Rub Recipes!
