Texican Tex-Mex Rub
Texican, 100g resealable pouch — a Tex-Mex blend for tacos, fajitas, chilli and nachos, from a Hobsonville maker and couriered anywhere in Auckland.
Texican
$8.49
$84.90 per kg · about 12 tablespoons in the pouch
Sold by MeatHeads NZ
Price and availability update live from the listing. The description above is the seller's own wording, reproduced as written and not endorsed or verified by DoorToShop. Any statement in it about ingredients, allergens or what the blend is free of belongs to the maker — the ingredient and allergen statement printed on the pack is the one that counts.
This One Is Not Really a Rub
It is sold alongside the rubs and it works as one, but most of what people buy this sort of blend for happens in a pan rather than on a surface:
Mince, for tacos
Brown the mince first, drain the excess fat, then add the seasoning and a splash of water and let it cook down for a few minutes. Adding it at the start means it sits in liquid and never blooms; adding it at the end means it tastes raw and powdery.
Fajita strips
Here it does behave like a rub. Toss the sliced beef or chicken in it dry, then sear hard in a very hot pan. The seasoning catches on the outside of the strips, which is the whole point of fajitas.
A pot of chilli
Bloom it in the oil with the onions before anything wet goes in. Thirty seconds in hot fat transforms a dry spice blend, and a chilli seasoned that way tastes fundamentally different from one where the powder went in with the tomatoes.
Nachos, wedges and corn
Straight onto something hot and slightly oily, tossed rather than sprinkled. It needs a fatty surface to cling to — dry chips will just shed it into the bottom of the bowl.
Beans, rice and roast vegetables
Works on all three, and this is where a Tex-Mex blend earns its keep beyond meat. Add it to the oil at the start of a rice pot, or toss vegetables in oil and seasoning before they go in the oven.
Blooming It Properly
The single technique that separates a good pot of chilli from a dusty one, and it takes thirty seconds:
Get your aromatics going first.
Onion, and garlic if you are using it, softened in oil over a medium heat. You want them cooked before the spices go anywhere near the pan.
Push them aside and add a little more fat.
The blend needs fat to bloom in, and softened onions will have absorbed most of what was there. A teaspoon more oil is enough.
Add the seasoning to the hot fat, not to the pan.
Straight into the oil, and stir it constantly. This is where the flavour compounds in a dry blend actually release — they are fat-soluble, and a dry pan or a wet pot will not do it.
Thirty seconds, and no longer.
You are looking for the aroma to change and lift. Ground spices burn very quickly at this stage and burnt spice makes a whole pot bitter with no way back.
Then add your liquid immediately.
Tomatoes, stock, whatever the dish takes. The liquid stops the cooking dead and carries the bloomed flavour through everything.
Taste at the end, and adjust then.
A blend that has been simmering for an hour tastes different from one that went in five minutes ago. Season to finish rather than assuming the start was enough.
Keep the container away from the raw meat. Tip what you need into a bowl and season from that, rather than dipping a hand that has touched raw meat back into the pouch or tin. Anything that goes back in the container has been in contact with raw protein and will sit there until the next time you cook. Wash hands, boards and tongs between raw and cooked, and never reuse a rub that has touched raw meat as a finishing seasoning.
General technique, not instructions for a particular product. Where the packaging gives its own directions, follow those.
Heat, and How to Control It
The seller describes this blend as having a hint of heat. How hot anything ends up on the plate is mostly a question of how you build the dish around it:
- Taste the blend on its own first. A pinch on the tongue tells you more than any description, including this one. Do it before you commit a whole pot.
- Fat and dairy soften heat; acid sharpens it. Sour cream, cheese and avocado on the table give everyone their own dial. Lime does the opposite.
- Build heat in stages. Season, taste, add. Once a pot is too hot for the person at the table who likes it mildest, the only real fix is diluting the whole thing.
- Serve the fierce parts separately. Fresh chilli, hot sauce and jalapeños on the side rather than in the pot lets one dish suit a whole table.
- Starch absorbs, water does not. If a dish has gone too far, more beans, rice or tortilla does more than adding liquid.
- Children and heat. If you are cooking for a mixed table, season the base mildly and let the adults add at the plate. It is far easier than trying to rescue it afterwards.
What a 100g Pouch Comes To
Used as a general seasoning rather than a surface rub, this goes through faster than the meat blends do — a pot of chilli or a taco night for four takes a good tablespoon or two on its own.
Working assumptions, stated so you can check them: a level tablespoon of dry rub is about 8g, and a common rule of thumb is around 15g of rub per kilogram of meat. Season to taste rather than to a number. All figures come from the live listed price.
Where to Buy It
This pouch is listed by MeatHeads NZ on DoorToShop, and it is the blend that distinguishes the Texas Grill'em pack. Our guide to meat and BBQ rubs in Auckland covers the whole range, and the wider Groceries category has other local stores you can add to the same order.
Consider how you will use it.
As a weeknight seasoning this gets used far more often than a specialist meat rub, which is worth knowing when deciding between a pouch and a pack.
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Frequently Asked Questions: Tex-Mex Rub
What is Texican for?
Tex-Mex cooking. The seller describes it as a blend for nachos, tacos, fajitas and chilli, with a hint of heat. It works as a dry rub on meat as well, but most people will use it as a general seasoning in a pan.
How hot is it?
That is a question for your own tongue rather than a page — nothing published gives a heat rating, and heat tolerance varies enormously between people. The seller describes it as having a hint of heat. Taste a pinch on its own before you commit a whole pot, and build up in stages.
When should I add it to mince for tacos?
After browning and draining, not before. Brown the mince, pour off the excess fat, then add the seasoning with a splash of water and let it cook down for a few minutes. Added at the start it sits in liquid and never develops; added right at the end it tastes powdery.
What does blooming a spice blend mean?
Cooking it briefly in hot fat before any liquid goes in. Many of the flavour compounds in ground spices are fat-soluble, so thirty seconds in hot oil releases far more of them than an hour of simmering in a wet pot. It is the single biggest difference between a good chilli and a dusty one.
How long do I bloom it for?
About thirty seconds, stirring constantly, then add your liquid immediately. Ground spices burn very quickly at that stage, and burnt spice makes a whole pot bitter with no way to fix it.
Can I use it as an actual rub?
Yes — fajita strips are the obvious case. Toss sliced beef or chicken in it dry and sear hard in a very hot pan so the seasoning catches on the outside.
How do I make a dish less hot after the fact?
Add fat, dairy or starch rather than water. Sour cream, cheese, avocado, more beans or more rice all work; diluting with liquid mostly gives you a larger amount of the same problem. Better still, season the base mildly and let people add heat at the table.
Does it work on things other than meat?
Yes. Beans, rice, roast vegetables, wedges and corn all take it well. Anything hot and slightly oily will hold a dry seasoning; dry chips will shed it into the bottom of the bowl.
What is in it, and is it suitable if I avoid something?
The ingredient and allergen statement printed on the pack is the only answer to that, and it is the maker's to give. This listing does not publish an ingredient list, and anything the seller's own description says about what the blend contains or is free of is their statement rather than ours. If you are avoiding an allergen, read the pack and ask the maker if anything is unclear.
How fast is delivery?
Orders are dispatched by the store the next business day and typically arrive within 1 to 3 business days by courier. Enter your address at checkout to confirm delivery coverage for your address.
How much does delivery cost?
The base delivery fee is $5 NZD, with free delivery on orders above $69 in the Auckland region — the exact amount is confirmed at checkout. There is no minimum order value.
What if it arrives damaged?
Photograph it as it arrived and contact the store the same day. Returns are handled by the store that sold the item, and nothing in a store's policy limits your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993.