Welcome to the EGGhead Forum - a great place to visit and packed with tips and EGGspert advice! You can also join the conversation and get more information and amazing kamado recipes by following Big Green Egg to Experience our World of Flavor™ at:
Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram  |  Pinterest  |  Youtube  |  Vimeo
Share your photos by tagging us and using the hashtag #BigGreenEgg.

Want to see how the EGG is made? Click to Watch

What spices do you deem necessary for smoking/bbq/cooking on the Egg

I was at Restaurant Depot today and looking at the spices which got me wondering...

What spices do you think are needed to have a well stocked spice rack for smoking or cooking on the Egg? Or to put it another way, what are your goto spices?

I'm sure that kosher salt, cracked pepper (fresh?), garlic salt/powder and Cayenne pepper are on the list but what other should I add?
Marshall in Beautiful Fruit Cove, FL.
MiniMax 04/17
Unofficial BGE MiniMax Evangelist
Facebook Big Green Egg MiniMax Owners Group


«1

Comments

  • Cavender's is a go to for us.   Strawberry's BBQ seasoning is another.   Garlic Pepper is another.
  • Toxarch
    Toxarch Posts: 1,900
    Salt and pepper, both in the mills. I like to use Plowboys Yard Bird, John Henry's Smoked Pecan, and a few Dizzy Pig seasonings. Oh yeah, lemon pepper on wings is a must. 
    Aledo, Texas
    Large BGE
    KJ Jr.

    Exodus 12:9 KJV
    Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof.

  • Teefus
    Teefus Posts: 1,204
    edited November 2018
    Kosher salt, coarse ground pepper. 

    I like other rubs like Penzey's Northwoods and Galena Street, Killer Hogs AP Rub and BBQ Rub, and Costco has a decent rub too.

    All that said, Kosher salt and coarse ground pepper is really all that's necessary. 
    Michiana, South of the border.
  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
    Your list is a good start. Almost all rubs have onion powder and paprika and brown sugar too. Many have mustard and cumin.

    Black pepper should always be fresh ground. And really, anything that can be bought whole, and ground just before use is going to be about 4 - 5 times better.


  • I like to arm myself with a wide variety of spices, store them in the most airtight jars possible and use them to make all of my own rubs. While there are some great commercial rubs, making your own is simple, fun, cost effective and allows you to tweak infinitely. 
  • Mickey
    Mickey Posts: 19,669
    Going more and more to just salt & pepper. 
    Salado TX & 30A  FL: Egg Family: 3 Large and a very well used Mini, added a Mini Max when they came out (I'm good for now). Plus a couple Pit Boss Pellet Smokers.   

  • tarheelmatt
    tarheelmatt Posts: 9,867
    SPOG is my base standard.  No need to get too cute.  
    ------------------------------
    Thomasville, NC
    My YouTube Channel - The Hungry Hussey
    Instagram
    Facebook
    My Photography Site
  • Jstroke
    Jstroke Posts: 2,600
    As others have said for the most part simple is often better. I will answer it from the broader perspective of cooking in general. The following I keep in larger quantities Aside from S&P: garlic granules, onion granules, paprika, thyme, rosemary, cumin, sage, bay leaves. Cayenne I keep in a shaker normally used for powdered sugar next to the olive oil on the counter. Everything else I buy in smaller amounts as needed.
    Columbus, Ohio--A Gasser filled with Matchlight and an Ugly Drum.
  • jtcBoynton
    jtcBoynton Posts: 2,814
    Need salt.  Base of a lot of rubs is paprika and pepper - need larger quantities of these.  Common spices to use: garlic powder, onion powder, ginger, mustard powder, cumin, chili powder, cayenne, other various dried chilies (ancho, chipotle), and various dried herbs (rosemary, oregano, thyme, basil).
    Southeast Florida - LBGE
    In cooking, often we implement steps for which we have no explanations other than ‘that’s what everybody else does’ or ‘that’s what I have been told.’  Dare to think for yourself.
     
  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,671
    spog are the essentials, herbs i mostly use fresh but keep a bottle of each dried (have sage, thyme, oregano, bay and rosemary growing indoors right now. usually have a good assortment of whole dried peppers.  noticed im out of cumin again,dried mustard for the beans, go thru alot of that. need to find it in bigger bottles. then theres 30 other spices kicking around for 10 years or so
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
  • NPHuskerFL
    NPHuskerFL Posts: 17,629
    As heavy grain salt as I can find in regular and Himalayan. Black and medley peppercorns.
    With those 2-4 ingredients alone and either mortar and pestle or an adjustable mill you can make things happen. The rest would be fresh herbs and fresh garlic. These simple ingredients work well with anyting from proteins to veggies.  
    LBGE 2013 & MM 2014
    Die Hard HUSKER & BRONCO FAN
    Flying Low & Slow in "Da Burg" FL
  • SaltySam
    SaltySam Posts: 887
    Salt, pepper, chili powder, paprika, garlic, brown sugar.  

    If the spice cabinet belonged solely to me, that’s all I’d need in there.  But my wife bakes every four years, so we need to keep 279 other containers in there

    LBGE since June 2012

    Omaha, NE

  • NPHuskerFL
    NPHuskerFL Posts: 17,629
    @SaltySam ☝ yes! MUST have my NM Chile's both fresh and dried. 
    LBGE 2013 & MM 2014
    Die Hard HUSKER & BRONCO FAN
    Flying Low & Slow in "Da Burg" FL
  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,671
    everyone uses paprika, but is there one better than the others, maybe more flavor or heat.  the store bought ones have zero flavor impact for me, just seems to offer color. it could just be me, black pepper needs to be telecherry from a good source, swiss cheese is as good as cardboard, dried bay leaf is pretty much useless etc...

    which paprika is over the top
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    @fishlessman if you have a Patels or other Indian market, check their spices. I bought a 7oz bag of dry mustard yesterday for $2.49. Larger bags available too. Cumin too. Whole or ground, great selection.  

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

  • Acn
    Acn Posts: 4,424
    It completely depends on what you like to cook and eat.  The egg is just a tool, so there really isn't a difference between a spice rack for that and spices for other cooking.  I haven't purchased onion or garlic salt or powder in 15 years.  I generally prefer fresh herbs, but the dried I have are listed below.

    For me, these are what I need most for what I cook:

    Salt - I have kosher, fine sea salt, a homemade herb salt, and a finishing salt.
    Peppercorns - Always grind fresh, we have a dedicated spice grinder if we need a large volume
    Cumin
    Coriander
    Green cardamom
    Smoked Paprika
    Garam masala
    Ras el hanout
    Rosemary
    Oregano - both Mexican and regular
    Thyme
    Chile powders - NM red chile powder, aleppo pepper, cayenne, chipotle, ancho
    Dried chiles - New Mexico, guajillo, chile d'arbol, 

    LBGE

    Pikesville, MD

  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,671
    @fishlessman if you have a Patels or other Indian market, check their spices. I bought a 7oz bag of dry mustard yesterday for $2.49. Larger bags available too. Cumin too. Whole or ground, great selection.  
    mostly lebanese markets here that i go to routinely. just googled indian and theres one down te street.  they should write market or grocery on the building,  have gone by the bazar thousands of times and it just didnt stick =)
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,671
    Theophan said:
    I strongly urge you NOT to "have a well stocked spice rack."  Herbs and spices lose their flavor over time, and faster than you might suppose.  DO NOT buy herbs or spices that you don't have a pretty immediate plan to USE.

    Take the recommendations you've received, above, and choose one or more that you are going to USE in an upcoming cook, and buy those and only those. When you decide you're going to USE one or more other spices or herbs, buy those, and only those.

    No kidding, herbs and spices lose their flavor.  You can spend a lot of money and then find you have jars of powder with very little flavor when you finally actually need that one, and maybe wonder why someone recommended it to you.  Buy what you're actually going to use.  If you might use it some day, but you have no immediate plans for it, don't buy it!
    i agree with this mostly. things like dried thyme, bay, basil go down in flavor really quickly.  im surprised how things like nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon hold up over a year or two.   buy nutmeg whole anyways, it holds up for years.
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
  • lkapigian
    lkapigian Posts: 10,708
    FWIW for those making your own blends ( or store bought for that matter ) I like to cold smoke mine, especially plain old SPG, takes things that you use it on to another level
    Visalia, Ca @lkapigian
  • ColtsFan
    ColtsFan Posts: 6,310
    SPG, paprika, along with a slew of commercial rubs
    ~ John - https://www.instagram.com/hoosier_egger
    XL BGE, LG BGE, KJ Jr, PK Original, Ardore Pizza Oven, King Disc 
    Bloomington, IN - Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoosiers!

  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
    Theophan said:
    I strongly urge you NOT to "have a well stocked spice rack."  Herbs and spices lose their flavor over time, and faster than you might suppose.  DO NOT buy herbs or spices that you don't have a pretty immediate plan to USE....
    I'm the poster child for "Can't resist buying a new spice or blend." I have far more on hand than makes any sense.

    As I mentioned above, whole spices are good. They have a much longer shelf life than pre-ground.

    There are a few things that have a very long life. Whole nutmegs can last 100 years. I had a tin of whole cloves that my mother bought in the late 1950s, and I used the last of them a few years ago. More than 3 would overpower most dishes.  Likewise, some whole allspice, which was still about half as effective as fresh.

    Herbs are different. Most really don't last in my experience. I vacuum packed and froze some chive blossoms 2 years ago, and when I tried the recently, they were purple straw w. the slightest hint of flavor and aroma. I have some Mexican oregano in a mylar bag that is 4 years old, and it still is decent, but my own home grown Italian from last year is also now just straw. Just grew some winter savory, and think it will outlast a year given its aroma, and thickness of the leaves.

    Currently, I'm buying still more than I need, but its mostly whole spices & large leaves, in small tins.

  • The only one that I make is Mickey's Coffee Rub, the ingredients should be easy to find on this site. Other than that I like: John Henry's Sugar Maple, Honey Hog Hot by Meat Church, several Dizzy Pig rubs, Simply Marvelous Cherry, AlbuKirky's Green Chili and Red Chili, a 2 lb bag of rub that I got in the most recent exchange.
  • caliking
    caliking Posts: 18,727
    @fishlessman if you have a Patels or other Indian market, check their spices. I bought a 7oz bag of dry mustard yesterday for $2.49. Larger bags available too. Cumin too. Whole or ground, great selection.  
    mostly lebanese markets here that i go to routinely. just googled indian and theres one down te street.  they should write market or grocery on the building,  have gone by the bazar thousands of times and it just didnt stick =)
    Well, bazaar means market , so they kinda did :)

    #1 LBGE December 2012 • #2 SBGE February  2013 • #3 Mini May 2013
    A happy BGE family in Houston, TX.
  • GATraveller
    GATraveller Posts: 8,207
    MSG.

    "Social media gives legions of idiots the right to speak when they once only spoke at a bar after a glass of wine, without harming the community [...] but now they have the same right to speak as a Nobel Prize winner. It's the invasion of the idiots."

                                                                                  -Umberto Eco

    2 Large
    Peachtree Corners, GA
  • northGAcock
    northGAcock Posts: 15,164
    I have been using a fresh cracked smoked pepper recently that I am enjoying. I don’t use on something going on the grill, but rather on the plate items like macaroni, pastas, sauces etc. I only mention it because it is a little unique. Point is sometimes you have to try new things. 
    Ellijay GA with a Medium & MiniMax

    Well, I married me a wife, she's been trouble all my life,
    Run me out in the cold rain and snow
  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,671
    caliking said:
    @fishlessman if you have a Patels or other Indian market, check their spices. I bought a 7oz bag of dry mustard yesterday for $2.49. Larger bags available too. Cumin too. Whole or ground, great selection.  
    mostly lebanese markets here that i go to routinely. just googled indian and theres one down te street.  they should write market or grocery on the building,  have gone by the bazar thousands of times and it just didnt stick =)
    Well, bazaar means market , so they kinda did :)
    its not the best marketing strategy ;) to hang a tiny boutique sign in front of a brick building so far from the street you dont even see it....APNA BAZAR...its the only indian grocery within 90 minutes, well google lists walmart =)

    theres a lebanese market called liban d'or near me, pristine market so says google,  ive always been the only customer in that store,  i bet most of the neighborhood has no idea theres a grocery store now in the old hardware store
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
  • Ozzie_Isaac
    Ozzie_Isaac Posts: 18,944
    Necessary?  salt and pepper .... with that said, here is my mess of a main spice cabinet:


    A bison’s level of aggressiveness, both physical and passive, is legendary. - NPS