Lets talk about sugar in seasongings

tmoneyag99

I'm about to make a brisket for tacos. In my rub recipe it calls for 2tbs of brown sugar. That's for a 4lb brisket. When I looked up 1tbs of sugar and it's got 4 carbs. So that's 2 carbs per Pound of brisket. That's 2 carbs for four servings of brisket.

Do many of you just do the sugar in cases like this or do you still opt out. Mind you i have a small child at home that is not diabetic so as a rule I absolutely do not give him artificial sweeteners of any kind. (he doesn't get juice or soda either)

I'm thinking just to keep my life simple I'm going to stick with my rub and not sweat the .5 additional carbs per serving. I'll log it and move on.

tcunbeliever

I've never understood the point of adding sugar to meat, I always just skip the sugar for meal recipes. I like my sweets to be sweets and my meals to be more savory.

kpk54

Except for when I was eating medically therapeutic keto, a little sugar in a rub that equated to a minimal amount per portion was not a hair I chose to split.

I concur with your decision of log it and move on.

baconslave

I leave out the sugar. If you need more rub to go around then add more of the spices. I just did a Boston Butt. No sugar in the rub at all. It was so delicious. My kids all, even the picky ones, ate it up.

kpk54

I think reality is: some folks leave sugar out of some things but then eat sugar in other things because that is somehow OK. It's individual.

Kinda like some folks think it is perfectly reasonable to eat a piece of low sugar chocolate and for whatever reason have their specifics such as it's OK if it is 80-85% but not 75% cuz carbs. Or the sugar carbs in chocolate are different than the sugar carbs in a rub. Because it's chocolate. I know, I know. Just cutting back somewhere. Many of us do it. So many choices. Pick and choose.

catherineg3

I once made the mistake of skipping the sugar in my dry rub for some ribs, but then stupidly added the same generous amount of dry rub to the meat, resulting in pretty much 2x the salt and spices. Way too salty, but ate em anyway. I won't make that mistake again.

mmultanen

I do what you're doing and leave it in when it contributes in such a minor fashion. Most of my "regular" recipes are already in MFP so I log it and move on. Doesn't trigger cravings etc for me and I detest sugar alcohols. They Eff up my digestive system so I'd rather have a small amount of the "real" sugar than try to sub it out.

tmoneyag99

@tcunbeliever

https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-sugar-makes-steak-more-tender-article

1st Sugar helps tenderize the meat and if used properly it doesn't give a sweet flavor.

For Texas Barbecue and helps create the "bark" on the outer edge of a brisket. It's not sweet or bitter. It's part of the sugar profile and actually accentuates the flavor of the beef.

Here's an interesting article
https://washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/food/2002/07/17/a-little-sugar-on-your-steak/add8a873-c0be-44e9-b576-7912d71745cb/?utm_term=.b0ff0733d5e8

I also have a recipe for chicken tenders where I use powder sugar in the rub after brining in pickle juice and milk. My kid loves them.

(now I wonder how carbarific it is with the extra heat)

mmultanen

what irks me more is when I grab the "onion salt" out of the cabinet at work to "spice" up my hard boiled eggs a bit. I liberally, and I mean LIBERALLY salted those suckers. Then thought to myself "not all seasonings are created equally" and checked the label. First ingredient is Sugar. Gah.

hud54014

I think we're talking a really small amount of carbs that could be adjusted elsewhere during the day. I think a little sugar in a meat rub really balances out the flavor of the seasonings. I'd use it happily.

ladipoet

If it's brown sugar, use this (Golden Lakanto):

https://www.lakanto.com/collections/sweeteners/products/50-off-golden-monkfruit-1-1-sugar-substitute-800-g

MistressPi

tmoneyag99 wrote: »

@tcunbeliever

https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-sugar-makes-steak-more-tender-article

1st Sugar helps tenderize the meat and if used properly it doesn't give a sweet flavor.

For Texas Barbecue and helps create the "bark" on the outer edge of a brisket. It's not sweet or bitter. It's part of the sugar profile and actually accentuates the flavor of the beef.

Here's an interesting article
https://washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/food/2002/07/17/a-little-sugar-on-your-steak/add8a873-c0be-44e9-b576-7912d71745cb/?utm_term=.b0ff0733d5e8

I also have a recipe for chicken tenders where I use powder sugar in the rub after brining in pickle juice and milk. My kid loves them.

(now I wonder how carbarific it is with the extra heat)

Thanks for the Washington Post article. This is something I'll try in the future.

I routinely add a little Worcestershire sauce (which has molasses) on top of my pan-fried steaks while searing the first side... makes them really scrumptious.

tmoneyag99

update... my recipe actually calls for 1 TBS of brown sugar and I actually only used 2/3 of the rub.

Point, we are now talking less than half a carb. Like someone else said I'm not splitting hairs over it.

FIT_Goat

1 tablespoon of sugar is 12 grams of carbs. A teaspoon is 4. That would be 8 grams for the amount you used. Spread over the number of servings. If that is a lot, or not, depends on how much you will eat and your personal goals.

GaleHawkins

I am more flexible personally on things like this than three years ago.