This is gourmet rub
A salty, sweet and flavorful BBQ dry rub built from scratch. Moneycluck goes great on chicken, pork, burgers, salmon, vegetables, popcorn and more. One bottle. No other seasonings needed.
Make your food taste expensive.
Cook something they remember
Nobody remembers who brought the beer. Everyone remembers who brought the chicken.
You know the chicken.
Not restaurant chicken. Not competition barbecue chicken. The chicken at someone's house you had last summer, the backyard, the kitchen, the folding table with the paper plates. The chicken that made everyone go quiet for a second. The chicken that someone went back for before the first plate was cleared. The chicken that got brought up in the car on the way home.
That chicken doesn't happen because someone went to culinary school. It happens because somewhere along the way, they found the thing, the rub, the method, the move, that turned a $7 pack of thighs from the grocery store into something people remember.
It started with a question.
What if you could take everything a great cook knows about seasoning, the balance of salt and sweet, the layered smoke, the umami that makes food taste deeper than it should, the acid that cuts through fat and makes you want another bite and put it all in one bottle? Not a simple rub with six ingredients. Not a sauce that covers everything up. Something with real depth. Something built from scratch.
The result is a blend of ingredients that work together the way a recipe works together.
Porcini mushroom powder for an earthy richness most people can't name but everyone notices. Smoked Spanish paprika for color and warmth. Sumac and lemon peel for a brightness that cuts through chicken fat. Honey powder and brown sugar for a caramelized bark that looks like you spent all day on it. Soy sauce powder and nutritional yeast for a savory depth that amplifies everything else on the plate.
Moneycluck Ideas
Oven-baked Mac and Cheese
Stir a tablespoon into the cheese sauce. The smoked paprika and porcini do something to mac and cheese that we can't fully explain but you're not going to stop eating.
Seasoned Popcorn
Toss it on right after popping while the oil's still hot. Sweet, smoky, savory, a little bit of heat. Best popcorn you'll have.
Smashburger
Thin, crispy-edged, caramelized. The rub does all the seasoning so you don't think about it. Just beef, heat, and Moneycluck.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Moneycluck?
It's a dry rub. 22 ingredients, built from scratch. You shake it on whatever you're cooking and it makes your food taste like you tried a lot harder than you did. It started as a chicken rub but it works on pretty much everything. Chicken, pork, burgers, salmon, vegetables, eggs, popcorn. People keep finding new things to put it on and we've stopped being surprised.
What's in it?
The full list: smoked paprika, brown sugar, sea salt, granulated garlic, granulated onion, black pepper, soy sauce powder, honey powder, porcini mushroom powder, nutritional yeast, chipotle powder, cayenne pepper, coriander, celery seed, sumac, lemon peel, thyme, rosemary extract, and silicon dioxide (anti-caking agent).
Every ingredient is there for a reason. The porcini and nutritional yeast create a deep savory flavor most rubs can't touch. The sumac and lemon peel add a brightness that cuts through fat. The sugars help create a delicious skin and bark for perfect BBQ.
What does it taste like?
It's savory first. Deep, rich, a little smoky. Then sweet comes in from the caramelized sugars. Then a slow warmth from the chiles that builds but doesn't burn. There's a brightness underneath from the sumac and lemon peel that keeps everything from getting heavy. People usually describe it as "I don't know what that is but I want more of it." That's the umami. Porcini, soy sauce powder, and nutritional yeast working together.
How much should I use?
More than you think. Don't be shy with it. As a rough guide:
Chicken thighs or breasts: about 1.5 teaspoons per piece.
Whole chicken: 3 tablespoons, rubbed all over and under the skin.
Burgers: 1 teaspoon per patty mixed into the meat, or pressed onto the outside.
Pork chops: 1 tablespoon per chop.
Vegetables: 2 teaspoons per sheet pan, tossed with a little oil.
Popcorn: 1 tablespoon tossed with freshly popped corn.
You'll figure out your own preference after a couple of cooks. Some people like a heavy coat for a thick bark, some like a lighter touch. There's no wrong answer.
What does it work on besides chicken?
Everything we've tried so far. Pork chops, pulled pork, ribs, pork tenderloin. Smash burgers. Salmon. Wings. Turkey. Lamb. Roasted cauliflower, sweet potatoes, carrots, corn on the cob. Popcorn. Roasted chickpeas. Roasted nuts. Mac and cheese. Eggs. We've stirred it into compound butter, mixed it into aioli, and used it as a stir fry base. Someone put it on avocado toast and we're not going to tell them they were wrong because they weren't.
It was designed for chicken. It didn't stay there.
Does it contain allergens?
Yes. Moneycluck contains soy and wheat (both from the soy sauce powder). It also contains mustard, which is a declared allergen in the EU, Canada, and the UK.
There are no tree nuts, peanuts, dairy, eggs, fish, shellfish, or sesame in the formula. If you have questions about specific allergens or cross-contamination, reach out to us directly and we'll give you the full details.
Is it gluten-free?
Not currently. The soy sauce powder is made from traditionally brewed soy sauce, which contains wheat. We're exploring a tamari-based version that would eliminate the wheat and qualify as gluten-free, but for now, it does contain wheat.
Do I need to add salt when I use this?
No. There's sea salt and soy sauce powder in the rub, so it's seasoned. You shouldn't need to add any additional salt to whatever you're cooking. If you're using it in a recipe that already calls for salt, cut the recipe's salt in half and adjust from there.
Can I use it as a marinade?
The rub itself is dry, but you can mix it with olive oil to make a wet rub or paste, which works great for getting it under chicken skin or coating a whole bird. You can also mix it into yogurt for a marinade, or stir it into melted butter to make a compound butter.
As a dry rub, it works best applied directly to the meat and cooked within a few hours. For a deeper flavor, apply it the night before and leave it uncovered in the fridge. The salt draws moisture to the surface, dissolves into it, and gets reabsorbed into the meat. This is called a dry brine and it's the best way to use the rub on chicken.
SMOKE MEAT EVERY DAY
