What's in supermarket spice mixes?
Have you read the ingredient list of a supermarket spice blend lately? Most people haven't. What you find there is surprising, and not always pleasant.
In this article, we explain honestly what is in supermarket spice blends, why that is the case, and what it means for the flavor of your meat.
The most common fillers
These are the ingredients you frequently encounter in ready-made spice blends that contribute nothing to flavor.
Maltodextrin
A carbohydrate derived from starch. Used as a filler and anti-caking agent. Has a slightly sweet taste and increases weight without adding flavor.
Rice flour or wheat flour
Cheap fillers used to increase volume. Contribution to flavor: zero.
Silicon dioxide (E551)
Anti-caking agent. A sign that there are very few real herbs or spices inside.
Sugar in high percentages
A little sugar has a function in a rub. But commercial blends contain 30 to 50% sugar as a cheap filler.
Read the ingredient list. If the first two ingredients are not spices, it is a bad blend. If maltodextrin, sugar, or rice flour are high on the list, you are paying for filler.
Why producers use fillers
The reason is simple: real herbs and spices are expensive. Quality cumin, gochugaru, allspice, and smoked paprika cost considerably more than maltodextrin or rice flour.
In addition, cheap spices are stored for a long time before being sold. Spices that have sat in a warehouse for months or years have largely lost their essential oils.
Rub a pinch of paprika powder from a supermarket spice blend between your fingers. Do you smell almost nothing? Then the essential oils have evaporated. Try the same with fresh paprika from a specialty shop. The difference is immediately clear.
What it means for your BBQ
Fillers don't taste bad, they taste like nothing. On the BBQ, maltodextrin and rice flour burn without adding flavor. Sugar in high concentrations gives a superficial sweetness without the complexity of real spices.
Supermarket spice blend
- ✗ First ingredient: maltodextrin
- ✗ 30-50% sugar as filler
- ✗ Spices months to years old
- ✗ Essential oils largely evaporated
- ✗ No transparency regarding origin
The Rub Kitchen
- ✓ Only herbs and spices
- ✓ No fillers or E-numbers
- ✓ Freshly blended on order
- ✓ Spices freshly ground in India
- ✓ Fully transparent ingredient list
How to read an ingredient list correctly?
Ingredients are listed in order of weight, from most to least. The first ingredient has the highest percentage in the product.
In a good BBQ rub, cumin, paprika, or another spice is in the first place. In many supermarket products, salt, sugar, or maltodextrin is listed first.
Can you pronounce all the ingredients on the list and do you know what they are? Then it is a good blend. Do you see E-numbers, maltodextrin, or rice flour? Then you are paying for filler.
- → Why freshly ground spices taste better Essential oils, oxidation, and the difference from supermarket spices
- → Product Knowledge All the herbs and spices we use
- → Our ingredients Where our spices come from and why
- → BBQ guide for beginners The complete overview for those just starting out
Pure stuff, no fillers
Only herbs and spices. Freshly blended on order, delivered for free via DHL within the Netherlands.
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