BBQ Chicken Rub
28 Comments
Posted: 08/20/25
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This homemade BBQ Chicken Rub is a flavorful blend of spices like smoked paprika, chili powder, and garlic powder that’s perfect for seasoning grilled or smoked chicken thighs, breasts, legs, or whole chicken with bold, mouthwatering flavor.
I love having a stash of homemade rubs in our cupboard for our pellet grill or for grilling. That way whenever we are going to smoke or grill meat I can reach in there and pull one out. This barbecue chicken dry rub is super easy, with pantry staples, and makes smoked chicken so flavorful. This rub is simple to prepare and you can customize it according to your personal preferences – add a little extra or a little less of whichever spice you want!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- This flavorful BBQ dry rub is made with pantry staples so you don’t have to make any extra trips to the grocery store.
- It’s easy to multiply this chicken rub recipe so you can always have this tasty dry rub on hand.
- The seasonings compliment each other so well so you have a sweet, smoky flavor with a little bit of heat.
Ingredients For BBQ Chicken Rub
- Brown sugar – This makes the dry rub sweet and also gives the meat a chance to have a bit of a crust.
- Salt – This will enhance the flavor of the seasonings and the chicken itself.
- Chili powder – Adds a little bit of a kick to the seasoning, but nothing crazy.
- Smoked paprika – Smoked paprika adds the smoky flavor you know and love. If you are unable to find smoked paprika, use regular paprika with a bit of liquid smoke, if you have it.
- Garlic powder – Adds depth of flavor to the rub and gives you the opportunity to have the garlic flavor without using fresh garlic. If you only have garlic salt on hand, be sure to decrease the amount of regular salt that you use.
- Onion powder – Adds the flavor of onion without having to use a fresh onion. No tears for you!
- Ground oregano – Enhances the overall flavor of this BBQ rub.
How To Make BBQ Chicken Rub
Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl then apply to chicken.
How To Use BBQ Chicken Rub
We love to use this rub our whole smoked chicken or our smoked chicken breasts. You can really use it on any type of chicken that you are smoking. Simply rub it on the chicken skin or meat and then smoke it according to directions.
It’s also great on grilled chicken! We love grilling chicken thighs, chicken breasts and wings with this simple seasoning because it gives it so much flavor.
We recommend letting your chicken sit with the dry rub on for a minimum of 15 minutes, but recommend 30 minutes. Remember to tuck it in the fridge while it marinates. Leave it for up to 24 hours.
Storage
Store BBQ chicken rub in airtight container in a cool, dry space. If store properly it will keep for months.
Pro Tips
- Double or triple this recipe so that you have extra so it’s handy anytime you need it.
- Rub some seasoning under the chicken skin to help the flavor really get into the meat and give it the best flavor.
- Chicken skin helps the meat retain moisture, so cook with it if you can.
No matter how you cook your chicken, this BBQ rub will bring it’s flavor up a notch or two. Everyone will love the sweet, smokiness and you’ll love how easy it is to throw together.
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BBQ Chicken Rub
This BBQ Chicken Rub is a flavorful blend of spices that adds the perfect sweet and savory kick to grilled or smoked chicken.
Equipment
- Mason jar optional, for storage
- Label maker optional
Ingredients
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon chili powder
- 1 Tablespoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground oregano
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together. Store in airtight container.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 302kcal (15%), Carbohydrates: 74g (25%), Protein: 4g (8%), Fat: 2g (3%), Saturated Fat: 0.4g (3%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.4g, Sodium: 7136mg (310%), Potassium: 513mg (15%), Fiber: 7g (29%), Sugar: 59g (66%), Vitamin A: 5828IU (117%), Vitamin C: 1mg (1%), Calcium: 124mg (12%), Iron: 4mg (22%)
More Great Dry Rubs
- Making a brisket? Start with this Brisket Rub that’s super simple and give your brisket a ton of flavor!
- Making Smoked Ribs? This Dry Rub for Ribs is the secret ingredient to give them the BEST flavor!
- My favorite versatile seasoning for smoking or grilling is this Sweet and Smoky Rub. Perfect for vegetables or grilled pork, chicken and more!
- No more dry, tough pork chops when you smoke them in our Dry Rub for Pork. This slightly sweet rub is great on pork loin, too.
Kolina says
Awesome Rub!
Brooke Kill says
Thank you!
Kim says
Best rub ever!!
Brooke Kill says
Thank you!
Carol Ashe says
Fantastic
Edward Matthews says
Does the chili powder make the rub too spicy/ hot?
the Evinks says
We don’t think so, but you could always cut it in half!
DeWayne A Strong says
we really enjoy this recipe for our grilled chicken
Sarah Hill says
I’m so glad you enjoy this rub! Thanks so much for commenting and rating!
Ihor says
Love this recipe!
Courtney says
Thank you!! 😊
Joe Greenup says
used on drumsticks in instant pot. very flavorful and easy to make and use
Courtney says
Yum, what a great idea!
Susan Maple says
Love this recipe! Doesn’t call for alot of ingredients I don’t have in my pantry!
Ed Matthews says
Basically a standard recipe for chicken rub. I suggest DRY brine the chicken over night. Spatchcock your bird and w/ a liberal amount of Kosher Salt, sprinkle all over and under the skin. Next day, rinse off the bird. I use Olive Oil as a binder for the rub. Coat bird all over with the oil and under the skin. Apply your rub all and agin under the skin. WHY? BC the rub will NOT penetrate thru the skin into the meat. Let the bird set about 20 minutes and let it get to room temp before your cook . I have a Z Grill Pellet Smoker 1000 Series. I set mine at 225*F for an hour and half…Low and Slow meat side down . Internal temp should be about 150*F. Apply BBQ sauce the last ten minutes of the cook. Good Luck.
USMC66′- / 77563
Wendy says
I have a husband who is a very picky eater! We both agreed this was a awesome rub! Thank you for sharing!
Megan Mitzel says
You’re welcome! I’m glad you both enjoyed it!
Kate says
Hi!
I’m from the UK and keen to try your rub this weekend! Can I check, what is the measure of brown sugar? I’m not familiar with c. as a measure.
Megan Mitzel says
Hi Kate! 1/4 cup of brown sugar
GMJ says
1/4 C of brown sugar is 50g. For other American recipes that do not post in gram weights, just Google a question. I just googled how many grams of BROWN SUGAR is in 1/4 c.
Jen says
1/4 cup is 4 TBSP
Gary M Smeaton says
What bbq sauce will best compliment you most excellent rub?
Julie Evink says
We usually use Sweet Baby Rays!
D Propp says
Great chicken rub. I used Ancho Chili rather than standard, nondescript Chili powder to give it a wonderful, rich flavor.
Julie Evink says
Great way to mix it up!
Sarah says
Love this chicken recipes ??
Mike says
Beautiful,
Family loves this chicken rub!
Julie Evink says
So glad you all enjoy it! Thanks for commenting/rating it!