rockzilla

Wow... I think I may have lost that battle anyway. The only place I may have had an edge was with my spice rub. Using anything but freshly-ground whole spices is sacriledge in my book. Here's how I make mine :

1 tsp Whole Black Peppercorns
1/2 tsp Whole Pink Peppercorns
2 tsp Whole Cumin Seeds
1 Dried Chile De Arbol, broken into little pieces
1/8 cup Kosher Salt
1/2 tsp Whole Coriander seeds
1/2 tsp Epazote (if you can find it, otherwise add a little more coriander)
1 1/2 tsp Hot Paprika, of the best quality you can find
1/8 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder

Toast the whole spices (peppercorns, coriander, chile pepper & Cumin) in a dry pan, over medium-high heat until they start to crackle and give off smoke. Take them off the heat immediately and transfer them to a mortar & pestle or a coffee grinder. If you're using a mortar and pestle, add the salt right away, it'll provide more friction for better grinding. Otherwise, just grind the spices to a fine powder and then add the powdered spices & salt at the end.

I think I'm going to have to find a new Iron Chef title.