| Ingredients |
| Paprika | 16 oz. |
| Celery Seed (whole) |
8 oz. |
| Garlic Powder (or granules) |
8 oz. |
| Onion Powder (or granules) |
8 oz. |
| Black Pepper (coarse ground) |
4 oz. |
| Ground Comino Seed (cumin) |
4 oz. |
This recipe makes three pounds of mix but the proportions are such that the recipe can be easily cut to one half or one fourth.
| Sample Size Recipe |
| Paprika |
2 tsp. |
| Celery Seed (whole) |
1 tsp. |
| Garlic Powder |
1 tsp. |
| Onion Powder |
1 tsp. |
| Black Pepper (coarse ground) |
1/2 tsp. |
| Ground Comino Seed (cumin) |
1/2 tsp. |
The regular recipe is based on weights while the sample recipe is based on volume measurements so it's not "exact" but it's sufficient to get a taste, just to see if you like it.
My mom is on a low salt diet and some of my friends are allergic to MSG so I created this recipe without either ingredient. People who like salt will salt their food at the table anyway. Meanwhile, folks with allergies or dietary restrictions can enjoy some darn good groceries without "cheating" on their diet.
San Francisco Herb Co. is currently the best place I've found to purchase ingredients but they sell most spices in one pound packages so I adjust my recipe accordingly. You may wonder how you'll ever use such a quantity but the excess keeps very nicely in the deep freeze if you have sufficient space for it.
How To Use This Mix
Steaks (beef or pork), pork chops, hamburgers (in other words, things that will be cooked directly on the grill): Apply generously to both sides and grill as usual.
Chicken (whole): Skin the bird and apply mix to all sides. Tear off 18 to 24 inches of heavy duty aluminum foil, fold in half (shiny side out) and make a snug basket to fit under the chicken (breast up) that comes up just to, but not past, the drumsticks. Use a separate piece of foil, shiny side down, to cover the bird completely from the top. Cook on a covered grill for 30 to 45 minutes until nearly done (You'll have to experiment, but you'll get the hang of knowing when to proceed after a couple of tries). Remove the top piece of foil, and allow the bird to finish cooking. When it looks nearly ready, before I take it off the grill, I like to poke a couple of holes in the bottom of the foil basket and let some of the chicken fat run out so the bird won't be so messy to remove from the foil for serving.
Brisket: Rub in, or sprinkle on, a generous amount of seasoning, place the brisket in a covered roasting pan, and cook overnight (six to ten hours) in a 250 degree oven. A lot of liquid will cook out of the meat so use a nice large pot. Allow to cool to room temperature and, without removing the brisket from the roasting pan, refrigerate overnight.
Once the brisket has cooled overnight in the fridge remove it from the pan and cover the lower half of the brisket (fatty side down) with aluminum foil (shiny side up), add additional spice mix if desired, and heat to serving temperature on the grill. This allows the brisket to remain very tender while picking up a nice smoke flavor and, if needed, finish cooking.
When I remove the roasting pan from the refrigerator, after I've carefully lifted out the brisket, I skim off the hardened white fat then package and freeze the congealed broth for later use in soup, stew, or gravy.
This mix is pretty good on fish or seafood too.
My friend Steve Scott, along with my nephew Jeff Hood, insisted that the mix needed a "cool" name. I remembered that my neice, Genie Robinson, has always called me "Knuckle Donny", thus a "cool" name was born.
We keep a small shaker on the table to use on our breakfast eggs (or just about any sort of potato) and a large jar in the cabinet by the stove, to use when we're cooking. If you try it I hope you'll
drop me a line and tell me what you think of it.