A Great Homemade Meat Rub (This One Uses Coffee!)

This post was originally published on DIY Network’s blog Made + Remade in June 2014.

Rub-a-dub-dub, who doesn’t love a good meat rub? (Sorry, that was super lame.)

Maybe the weekend of the 4th of July should be alternately named “Beef Days in America” for no other reason than that people like meat*. And grilling. And beef in any form counts: a roast, hot dogs, a rare steak, or burgers galore. Where can you get creative with beef? In the prep, of course!

In the true sense of Made + Remade, I tested out a new rub that features coffee grounds. Give it a try for your Independence Day (or any day) cookout.

For the rub, combine these dry ingredients:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp finely ground coffee (very fine, or else it might taste gritty, like your meat dropped in the sink)
• 2 Tbsp paprika
• 2 Tbsp garlic powder

Massage it into your roast (this will coat a 5-6 pound roast easily). Cook according to your butcher’s instructions (yep, always check with them for tips on grilling, they know it best!).

If you’re looking for something lighter than a giant roast, you might want to try flank steak, top loin, sirloin, T-bone, filet mignon, or tenderloin.

*Broad generalizations happenin’ here. If your family isn’t into meat, check out these alternate grilling suggestions for your weekend festivities:

• Homemade seasoning for Vegetables and Beans
• A whole slew of grilled vegetarian dishes
• Portobello burgers are always a big hit