Jan's Dry Rub - Low Sodium Recipe Attempt

[smoker pete]

Jan's Dry Rub was perfected by Larry's wife Jan.  KyNola, as he is known on many BBQ Forums, and his wife reside in the great state of Kentucky.  I, among a multitude of others, use this rub which was primarily designed for Poultry but is great on Pork and Beef!  It's been said that Jan's Dry Rub can make a brick taste great ... Mix yourself a batch and be prepared to experience that WOW Factor!!

Here in KyNola's words is the reason Jan's Dry Rub was developed :

My friend has a commercial BBQ restaurant and gave me some of his rub. He would not however give me his recipe so I put my wife on a mission to find something very similar on the internet and then we would tweak it to match his. Here is the best effort. It only has 14 ingredients and makes a bunch. Thought you might like to take a look.



Ingredients :

    1 cup + 4 tbsp sugar
    1/4 cup Lawry's seasoned salt
    1/4 cup garlic salt
    1/4 cup + 1 1/2 tsp celery salt
    1/4 cup onion salt
    1/2 cup paprika
    3 Tbsp chili powder
    2 Tbsp black pepper
    1 Tbsp lemon pepper
    2 tsp celery seed
    2 tsp dry ground sage
    1 tsp dry mustard
    1/2 tsp dry ground thyme
    1/2 tsp cayenne

IMHO, there is no reason to tweak anything in the recipe except my Cardiologist strongly urges that I reduce my Sodium intake.  Since this is such a great recipe I looked to see what I could replace the sugar and salts with.   Here's my first attempt :



Low Sodium Jan's Dry Rub Ingredients :

    1 cup + 4 tbsp sugar 1 cup + 4 Tbsp Stevia Extract In The Raw
    1/4 cup Lawry's seasoned salt  1 cup  Original "No Salt"
    1/4 cup garlic salt  2 Tbsp Garlic Powder
    1/4 cup + 1 1/2 tsp celery salt 2 Tbsp Onion Powder
    1/4 cup onion salt  2 Tbsp Johnny's Garlic Spread & Seasoning
    1/2 cup paprika
    3 Tbsp chili powder
    2 Tbsp black pepper
    1 Tbsp lemon pepper
    2 tsp celery seed
    2 tsp dry ground sage
    1 tsp dry mustard
    1/2 tsp dry ground thyme
    1/2 tsp cayenne

I used the Low Sodium Jan's Dry Rub on a Stuffed Pork Loin and can honestly report that it was at best a mediocre substitute for the Original Jan's Dry Rub.  It was not a total failure and serves as a straw man.  I found an after taste that's hard to put my finger on but must be related to the "No Salt" whose main ingredient is Potassium Chloride and the Stevia that replaced the sugar.  I also found the Low Sodium version to be a touch sweeter than the original rub which must be attributed to the Stevia.

I want to reiterate that for me there is no reason to change Jan's Dry Rub other than it's sodium content because of the restrictions placed on me by my Cardiologist.  The Sodium content of Jan's Dry Rub is by no means an issue when compared to other Rub recipes ...

Any comments and/or suggestions on how to tweak this Rub will be greatly appreciated.  By all means, I strongly urge you to mix yourself a batch ... You won't be sorry!

[mikecorn.1]

It's good to see that you're looking out for your health :)


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- Mike.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Habanero Smoker]

Both Stevia and potassium chloride are known to produce a bitter metallic after taste in many people, that may be the cause of the after taste in your rub.

Splenda is more neutral without an after taste that I can detect. If you get the granular type; that measures the same as sugar.

As for the salt; salt is a flavor enhancer, and it is difficult to substitute that. There is a product called AlsoSalt; which is potassium chloride but they add Lysine which they say masks the bitter metallic after taste many get from potassium chloride. I've never used it, or any other potassium chloride products, because it can have a reaction with some high blood pressure medications. Other than that, most salt free rubs rely heavily on chile powder and citrus flavorings as flavor enhancers.

[muebe]

Good experiment Pete.

Maybe use the sugar substitute and just half the salt content in the rub. Also apply less rub to the meat ;D

[KyNola]

Pete,
Jan and I thank you for the accolades.  When we put the Rub on the forum, never did we think it would be so widely received.  I think your first effort in doing a low sodium version was a very good one.  I have no doubt that you will keep trying until you hit on a version you're happy with.

Thanks again Pete.

[CDN Smoker]

Good Day,

Going to try out your rub tomorrow on 8 babyback ribs. Will let you know what my friends think ;D