The Best Dry Rub for Fish and Seafood

Fish and seafood cook fast, which makes them especially great for weeknight meals. Even better? When you give that fish or seafood a punch of flavor with a spice rub.

While you can buy commercially-made spice rubs, it’s satisfying (and economical) to make your own blend, because then you can customize it to your own taste!

WHAT’S IN THIS SPICE BLEND?

This fish and seafood rub leans heavily on the celery salt, which plays really well with the briny taste of seafood and fish. It also has a complex blend of garlic, ginger, paprika, and dry mustard as well as a few hints and notes of earthiness from allspice, nutmeg, and black pepper.

CUSTOMIZE THE RUB

As with all spice rubs, you can customize the blend to your own taste:

• Omit the cayenne if you don’t like spicy things.
• Consider more pepper or reduce the kosher salt as desired.
• Add additional herbs and spices such as dried dill, parsley, thyme, or oregano, which will make the rub more herbal.
• Add coriander or lemon zest for a citrus touch.
• Crumble and grind down dry bay leaf if you want a grassy pine note.

USE THE FRESH SPICES FOR THIS RUB

Pantry herbs and spices have a shelf life! Spices don’t necessarily go bad, but they do lose potency and flavor. For this rub, you definitely want to use fresher dried herbs and spices.

Most spices last a good two years in a dark pantry, depending on what sort of herb or spice it is. The best test is to take a pinch of the spice and crush it with your fingers into your palm. Give it a whiff; if the herb or spice smells dusty or doesn’t have a lot of odor, it’s not worth keeping around. Toss it and get some new stuff.

Pro tip: Use an airtight glass jar to mix the ingredients together and you’ll save on cleanup!

HOW LONG DOES THIS RUB LAST AND HOW SHOULD I STORE IT?

That depends on how old your herb/spice is! Store this spice rub in an airtight container in a dark pantry, clearly labeled with the date. If the spices you used are fresh, the rub should last a good two years, though hopefully you’ll use it all up before that. If your spices aren’t quite that fresh, the rub won’t last as long.

WHAT TO USE IT ON

This rub is great on most firm flesh fish suitable for grilling, like salmon, tuna, or halibut. It’s also great on shellfish like shrimp, crab, or scallops.

HOW TO USE IT

Drizzle a little bit of oil over the fish or shellfish, then sprinkle as much rub on as you want. Grill or cook in the oven as you normally would!

NEED SOME INSPIRATION?

• Use this rub the next time you make Easy Grilled Salmon.
• Rub the shrimp before grilling and then drench in butter for these Grilled Garlic Shrimp Skewers.
• Add a boost of flavor to your Fish Sticks.
• Use this rub before you cook the shrimp for these Shrimp Quesadillas.
• This Baked Fish with Parmesan Breadcrumbs would be fantastic with this rub.

Three More Rubs to Know:

• The Best Dry Rub for Steak
• The Best Dry Rub for Ribs
• The Best Dry Rub for Chicken