Seasonings & Rubs

Championship rubs since 1983

First Place Ribs at Memphis in May in 1983 and again in 1984, and at the American Royal in 1994. The rub that went on those 1983 ribs is still on this page – W’ham® Seasoning – Original Mild.

Which one

  • W’ham® Seasoning – Original Mild — the foundation dry rub, and where most people start. Ribs and chops, prime rib, tenderloin, meatloaf. Mild enough to feed a table.
  • W’ham® Seasoning – Cajun — the same foundation with heat and Gulf-coast character behind it. A multiple Scovie Awards Winner in 2025.
  • W’ham® Seasoning – Lost At Sea — seafood first: shrimp, lobster, fillets. Also lamb and goat, and — not a typo — fresh mango and pineapple, or a margarita rim. First Place Seafood Rub, NBBQA Awards of Excellence 2023.
  • W’ham® Seasoning – Hot Stuff — less a pairing than an additive. It goes into whatever you are already cooking, and it is hotter than most heat scales bother to measure.
  • Depot Dust – Reserve Blend — from Big Shanty Smokehouse, the Kennesaw, GA restaurant in the Willingham’s® family since 2024. The gentlest of the group, and what we reach for on fish and game.

Binder, rub, finish

The Original Mild went on over W’ham® Marinade and finished with Sweet’n’Sassy sauce. Back then those three were the whole line, and the Marinade was the first thing Willingham’s® ever made.

If that order sounds familiar, it should — it is still how we tell people to do it on the W’ham® Pairing Matrix. The method did not come from a grid; the grid came from the three products that won.

They are all built to a standard we have not moved off since: a light, even coat that draws moisture up and builds a crust, then gets out of the way. The meat is the star. If you have to pile it on, it is hiding something. The full championship record is on our Awards page.

Asked at the trailer

Common questions

Is a dry rub the same thing as a seasoning?

Ours are both. Every W’ham® Seasoning is a dry rub — it goes on before the meat cooks and builds the crust. The same bottle works in a pot or on a vegetable, which is why we call them seasonings rather than rubs.

How long before cooking should it go on?

A light, even coat on both sides, then rest about twenty minutes so it draws the moisture up. That rest is the part most people skip.

Do I need a binder underneath?

It helps the rub stay put. A thin wipe of W’ham® Marinade or Original Mild Sauce is enough — just enough for the rub to grab, before the rub goes on.

Do I need more than one?

No. Original Mild covers most of what comes off a grill or out of an oven. The others exist for specific jobs — seafood, heat, game — not because you are meant to own the set.

Can I use these with another brand’s sauce?

Yes, and plenty of people do. These are built to enhance what you are already cooking rather than take it over, so they slot into whatever you already use. We are happy to be one part of it.

Which one is mildest for a crowd?

Original Mild. It carries the seasoning without heat, which is why it is the one we reach for when we do not know who is at the table.

Why does the color vary from bottle to bottle?

Because we do not correct it. A lot of rubs are built on paprika, which holds one color batch after batch — ours uses it only as a trace color extractive, alongside a small amount of caramel color, both in the under-two-percent portion of the label. What is left is the spice itself, and tamarind extract is the main variable: a different growing region gives a different shade. The recipe does not change. The color follows the spice.

My bottle is clumpy, or finer than the last one. Is something wrong?

No. There is sugar in the blend and sugar draws moisture, so it will clump — break it up with a fork and it works exactly the same. The grind varies a little between runs for the same reason the color does: it is ground spice, not a manufactured powder.