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(More customer reviews)Sylvia's Restaurant in NYC is considered by many transplants to be the best place to grab real Southern-style chow in the city. I used to eat there when I lived in New York and I can tell you the meals she serves are pretty darned good. That's why I ordered this rub, mainly to use on the spare ribs and pork shoulders I smoke in my backyard.
This is a very good base rub. It has more of a kick than other rubs I've tried, which I like. It isn't blazing hot or anything, but the paprika and the mustard add a nice tang. The flavor is balanced but bold. It isn't a delicately-flavored spice mix, which, again, I think of as a good thing; BBQ should provide a little kick, and this rub does. You can control that zing by 1) how much rub you use (I add a lot), 2) how long you let the meat marinate with the rub (I go overnight with it) and 3) how many additional ingredients you add to the mix (I add a few).
I call this a base rub because I think adding a few things to your spice mix is a good thing. Me, I usually add to this rub some additional brown sugar and some Italian spice mix before applying to the meat. If I want something a little different, I'll add a bit of nutmeg or maybe some ground celery seed, which is something you'll find in BBQ rubs and sauces at places like Kansas City's Gates' Restaurants or the many Famous Dave's scattered throughout the Midwest. With BBQ, personalization is always a good thing. But don't feel you have to go crazy if you want to keep things simple; this rub is satisfying as is, straight out of the shaker.
I bought the pack of 12 because 1) the price is excellent (most competing rubs with this kind of flavor usually sell for at least twice the price) and 2) you'll likely use up the rub more quickly than you think. For every two racks of ribs I cook, for instance, I end up using at least two-thirds of a 5.5-ounce container. Since I cook ribs and pork shoulder pretty often, I run through this stuff fairly quickly, especially during the summer.
If you like to use rub on steak or chicken, you'll tear through your supply more quickly. If you don't use it as frequently as I do, you won't have much of a problem: Just store your rub someplace cool and dark and it'll keep a long time.
I've used a number of store-bought rubs over the years, including those from Arthur Bryant's and the aforementioned Famous Dave's (which are also very good, by the way). I can honestly say Sylvia's is one of my favorites -- not just because of the taste, but because of the bang you get for your buck.
By the way, here's a little trivia. Years ago, before I moved to NYC, I read an interview with Sylvia in Molly O'Neill's "New York Cookbook" where Sylvia said she doesn't smoke her pork ribs but just slow cooks them in an oven, using rub to add the BBQ-ey flavor. Not using smoke gets a lot of 'cue stalwarts riled up, but that's just the way her family had always fixed ribs and that's how she still fixes them today. And they're excellent. So if you catch grief from some food snob for cooking your ribs indoors without smoke, don't fret: Sylvia has your back.
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Sylvia's Rib Rub 'N More Seasoning, 5.5-Ounce Containers (Pack of 12)The ultimate. Great on steak. No preservatives. All natural ingredients. When we make our world famous BBQ ribs at Sylvia's Restaurant in the heat of Harlem, we use Rib Rub 'n More. This all purpose rub is amazing on just about everything. Try it on your favorite cuts of beef, pork, and lamb. It's great on steak! Just sprinkle it on, pat it down, and then let it set a while so the seasoning soaks in. For roasts, I use a long fork and first stick the meat, so it gets flavored throughout.
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