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Grilled Chicken Dry Rub – Creme De La Crumb

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close up of chicken on a grill.

Total Time: 5 minutes

Published: February 24, 2025

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This Grilled Chicken Dry Rub is a flavorful blend of spices you can keep at the ready for when you need a quick chicken recipe for any grilling occasion. 

If you like simple protein preparations, then you’ll also want to try this Garlic Lime Shrimp Marinade, the Best Quick Steak Marinade, or one of these excellent Chicken Marinades.

Why This Recipe Works

Convenient — This grilled chicken dry rub is a flavorful blend of spices you can keep at the ready for when you need a quick chicken recipe for any grilling occasion. 

Quick —  It’s true: I am quite frequently a marinade girl. I love the simplicity of letting protein sit in a delicious, flavorful liquid for 15 minutes to 8 hours and then cook the meat or seafood, tasting all the marinade ingredients with each yummy bite. Recently, though, I discovered the beauty of dry rubs. Every time you need a quick fix for a meat dish, ta da! Dry rubs to the rescue. 

Easy to batch — This dry rub for chicken breast is so very easy to put together and make up in one big batch to keep in your pantry with your other spices. Or, double it and give some as a gift! Who doesn’t love ready-made spices? 

Simple ingredients — This simple grilled chicken seasoning is simply made up of other seasonings all whisked together. Nothing fancy (until they all come together, of course, then that’s magic!)

top view of grilled chicken dry rub unmixed in a bowl.

Ingredients

  • Salt — Salt is always necessary in a dry rub. I use regular table salt but you could also use pink salt. 
  • Dried Italian Herb Blend or Herbs De Provence — Either one of these herb mixes will work in this grilled chicken dry rub recipe. 
  • Garlic Powder — Gotta have that garlic flavor! 
  • Smoked Paprika — Paprika is key for a bit of smokiness. 
  • Dry Ground Mustard — Maybe this one will throw you off a bit but I promise you don’t want to skip the ground mustard. 
  • Brown Sugar — Brown sugar is a great way to add a bit of sweetness to your grilled chicken. 
  • Onion Powder — Onion-y goodness in every bite. You can use dried, minced onion in a pinch.  
  • Black Pepper — Always need the black pepper to complement the salt. 
  • Cayenne Pepper — And, for a bit of heat add a pinch of cayenne pepper. You can skip this if you do not like the spiciness of cayenne in your chicken dry rub.

Here’s How You Make It

six steps of preparing dry rub for grilled chicken
  1. Making this grilled chicken dry rub couldn’t be easier! Simply stir together all the ingredients and store them in an airtight container at room temperature.
  2. To use the easy dry rub for chicken, simply rub the spices all over the chicken after it has been drizzled with olive oil. 
  3. Grill the chicken until it’s completely cooked through and served. Alternatively, you can slice the chicken for use in another recipe, or store for later use.
close up of grilled chicken dry rub with a spoon in a bowl.
What’s the Difference Between a Dry Rub and a Marinade?

First off, a dry rub is, well, dry. Made from a mixture of dried spices, a rub is literally rubbed on to meat before cooking. It can create a nice seared texture if you’re grilling, but an easy dry rub for chicken such as this one also adds tons of flavor and you’ll taste more of each spice with every bite. 

A marinade is made of spices plus liquid, like vinegar, olive oil, or wine. Because when you use a marinade, you leave the meat soak in the liquid and spices, it also tenderizes the meat somewhat, depending on the meat. For example, shrimp only need to marinade for 15 minutes, whereas you can leave tougher cuts of beef or pork in a marinade for up to 12 hours.

How Long Can I Leave a Dry Rub on Chicken?

If you are using boneless, skinless chicken, you rub the grilled chicken dry rub right on the breast. If you are using chicken with skin on it, put the rub under the skin (otherwise, the spices will just come right off with the skin and not penetrate into the meat as much). 

You can leave the easy dry rub for chicken on the meat before cooking for about four hours. I recommend rubbing and grilling right away though, otherwise you lose some of the flavor and the dryness of the herbs. Some might slide off, make a mess, and kind of defeats the purpose of using a dry rub in the first place.

Can You Marinate with a Dry Rub?

You cannot marinade with a dry rub. They are two different things. If you need your meat to tenderize, then you should use a marinade. If not, then a dry spice rub will do the trick.

close up of chicken on a grill.

Expert Tips + Tricks

  • Store the grilled chicken dry rub in an airtight container (I like to use clean, empty spice jars).
  • This simple grilled chicken seasoning makes enough for about 12 large chicken breasts. 
  • Assuming you’re using semi-fresh herbs and not ones that have already been in your pantry for five years, then you’ve got about two to three years to use your newly made spice rub. 
  • To check for spice potency, pour some out in your hand and give it a little crush between two fingers and give it a smell. If you smell very little or nothing, then it’s probably time to toss that spice out. I recommend doing this test BEFORE making the rub.
a piece of grilled chicken sliced with grilled chicken dry rub on it with a fork on the side all on a plate.
Simple Grilled Chicken Dry Rub easy tasty recipe | lecremedelacrumb.com

Grilled Chicken Rub

This Grilled Chicken Dry Rub is a flavorful blend of spices you can keep at the ready for when you need a quick chicken recipe for any grilling occasion.