Smoked spice-rubbed ribs. How about edamame (soybeans) with matcha salt?

Carolina style pulled pork, barbecued ribs both benefit from a smoky spice rub. Here's how to make your own at home.

Smoking Salt

Don't reach for a pipe, we're talking about making smoky salt as a spice rub base. You will need:

• a cookie sheet, shallow roasting pan or half-sheet pan
• Maldon salt, sea salt or Kosher salt
• liquid smoke
• foil, ice.

Maldon salt can be found in gourmet shops and crystallizes into beautiful crunchy flakes. Sea salt or kosher salt are fine, too, just avoid Iodized salt.

To smoke salt:

Place a ramekin or small saucer on a rimmed cookie sheet. In it place a TBSP of liquid smoke. (Liquid smoke is a natural distillation of smoke that comes from a fire in a smoker. It is not an artificial product.) Next, place about one-third to one-half cup of salt in a second saucer on the sheet. Put a few ice cubes on the cookie sheet itself and seal the whole thing with foil. Be sure to make a tight seal all around the rim.

As the ice melts and the liquid smoke heats, you are recreating what a smoker would do at a smokehouse. The trapped smoky vapor will infuse the salt with a lovely aroma.

On its own this smoked salt is a terrific finishing salt to any steak or pork roast.

Smoked Salt Rub

• 1 TBSP smoked salt (½ C salt; 1 TBSP liquid smoke)
• 1 tsp chipotle and habanero pepper flakes, onion flakes, pimentón, oregano
• ½ tsp cumin
• 1 TBSP ground black pepper
• light brown sugar

Excellent as spice rub for baby back ribs. Marinate 1 hour in spice rub with OJ to moisten.

Pimenton is Spanish smoked paprika. It adds an additional depth of flavor to this rub.

Matcha Salt

Matcha is the powdered green tea that is typically used in Japanese tea ceremonies. High-end tea shops are flourishing and that's good news as matcha is now becoming more widely available to tea drinkers of all stripes.

This slightly bitter but rich flavor is suited to a finishing salt for egg and seafood dishes. It is also wonderful on edamame or boiled green soybeans you may have had at a sushi restaurant. Green tea has many health benefits as well so edamame with matcha salt is a snack you can feel good about.

• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/4 teaspoon matcha

Mix the salt and matcha in a small dish or jar. In Japan, this is often served as a dip for fried foods like tempura. Sprinkle it over eggs, fish.

You can also mix matcha with sugar and sprinkle it on yogurt, cakes or cookies.

Check Eric Gower's great blog for a new umami blend and another great matcha trick.