To-die-for Beef Brisket that really makes the most out of this cut of beef! This Slow Cooker brisket is cooked in a simple homemade BBQ sauce until it’s deliciously tender and infused with incredible flavour. Serve with a side of Coleslaw or Macaroni Salad and steamed corn. Or pile high onto rolls and make sliders!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Beef Brisket recipe!
I really am not a girls’ girl when it comes to food. I don’t gaze in wonder at stunningly decorated multi-tier cakes. I don’t ooh and aah over pretty little chocolates. I have no interest in learning how to make candy.
But I do go gah-gah over sights like this – a giant hunk of flavour loaded brisket.
I’m all class. All class. 😂
Cooking brisket – in brief
What is brisket? A cut of beef that needs to be cooked slowly to break down the connective tissues. The unique thing about this cut of beef is that it can be slow cooked so it’s fork tender, yet is still sliceable. It also has a better beefy flavour compared to other slow cooking beef cuts like chuck.
Is there another name for brisket? There’s no other name for raw brisket, that is the name of the cut. But you will see it sold in stores already prepared in the form of corned beef, pastrami and silverside which is brisket that’s been brined.
What cut of meat is similar to brisket? There is no cut of beef with the same cooking qualities. For this recipe, the best substitute for beef brisket is rolled chuck, like you use for Pot Roast. Otherwise, try the Beef Ribs or Pork Ribs version of this recipe – both terrific!
How long does it take to cook? 8 to 10 hours in the slow cooker on low, 1 hr 15 minutes in a pressure cooker, or 5 hours in the oven at 320F/160C.
Is brisket supposed to be pink? No. Cooked plain brisket should not be pink, if it is, it is massively undercooked and will be tough. You cannot eat brisket rare. HOWEVER, pastrami and corned beef are pink even after cooking due to the special curing salt they use (like bacon).
How to make slow cooker Beef Brisket
It’s a straight forward beef brisket recipe though there is a fairly long list of spices because we’re making a homemade rub and homemade BBQ Sauce here. Totally worth it – there’s no bottled sauce that compares to this!
Spice Mix – We start off with a spice rub. No need to marinate because we’re slow cooking it – the long cook time essentially has the same effect as marinating. If we were roasting it, I’d recommend marinating it.
Slow Cook – place the ingredients for the homemade BBQ Sauce in the slow cooker (vinegar, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and spices), add the beef and leave to slow cook for 8 to 10 hours.
Caramelise crust – After this, all that’s required is a few minutes in a hot oven (or even under the grill/broiler) to caramelise the crust;
Reduce sauce – Meanwhile, simmer the liquid in the slow cooker to reduce it down to a syrupy sauce consistency <– This right here is our homemade BBQ Sauce!
What is beef brisket?
Brisket is a cut of beef made for slow cooking, not fast cooking. It’s unique characteristic compared to other slow cooking cuts of beef is that it holds its shape even after hours and hours of slow cooking and can be sliced.
When you slow cook other cuts of slow cooking cuts of beef like chuck (like in Beef Stew), gravy beef (an Australian beef cut) and short ribs, they “fall apart easily because there is more connective tissues running throughout the meat which breakdown with slow cooking.
However, as you can see in the photos in this post, brisket holds together and can be sliced. But the slices are ultra tender and could be shredded easily, see? 🙂
Is brisket suitable for shredding?
Brisket does shred well, but I prefer using chuck beef or ribs for shredding for recipes like slow cooked Shredded Beef Ragu, Shredded Beef Chili and Shredded Mexican Beef.
Those cuts have more fat running through the meat and so the shredded pieces are nice and juicy. Though brisket has a layer of fat on the surface, there actually is not that much fat or connective tissues running through it, so if you shred it then it’s pretty lean.
What to serve with beef brisket
For this particular recipe, I’m keeping this Slow Cooker Beef Brisket whole and slicing it. Serve up a hearty Southern style supper with sides of Homemade Southern Style Baked Beans, Corn Bread (or try my favourite Corn Bread Muffins!), Creamy Corn Casserole, classic creamy Coleslaw or this No Mayo Coleslaw (it’s excellent!), Macaroni Salad, Potato Salad or mashed potato.
Or pile it onto sliders – this is the way I usually serve it because brisket is a perfect recipe for feeding a crowd! – Nagi xx
MORE GREAT THINGS TO PILE ONTO SLIDERS
• Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Shredded Chicken
• Easy Homemade Pastrami
• Chili – and Slow Cooked Shredded Beef Chili
• Cubanos (Cuban Subs with Mojo Marinated Pork, from the “Chef” movie)
• Slow Cooker Pulled BBQ Pork Sliders
PS If you love beef, don’t miss this Beef Pot Roast and Prime Rib / Standing Rib Roast recipes!
Watch How To Make It
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Slow Cooker Beef Brisket with BBQ Sauce
Ingredients
- 1.5 – 2 kg / 3 – 4 lb beef brisket (Note 1)
- 1 tbsp olive oil (or a neutral oil like vegetable, canola)
Rub:
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp paprika powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 3/4 tsp mustard powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
BBQ Sauce:
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1/2 cup / 125 ml apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups / 375 ml ketchup
- 1/2 cup / 110g brown sugar , packed
- 2 tsp EACH black pepper, onion powder, mustard powder
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper (adjust to taste re: spiciness)
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Mix Rub ingredients. Rub all over brisket. If time permits, leave for 30 minutes – 24 hours in the fridge, but I rarely do this.
- Combine BBQ Sauce ingredients in a slow cooker. Mix then add the brisket – squish it in if needed, like I did (see video).
- Slow cook in slow cooker for 8 hours (1.5 kg / 3 lb) to 10 hours (2 kg / 4 lb). (Note 2 for pressure cooker and click here for oven)
- Remove brisket onto a tray.
- Pour liquid in slow cooker into a saucepan. Bring to simmer over medium high heat and reduce until it thickens to a syrup consistency (it thickens more as it cools).
- Meanwhile, drizzle brisket with oil then roast in a 200C/390F oven for 15 minutes until brown spots appear. Remove then baste generously with Sauce, then return to oven for 5 minutes. Remove and baste again, then return to oven for 5 – 10 minutes until it caramelises and looks like the photos. (See note for BBQ option)
- TO SERVE: Slice brisket thinly across the grain and serve with remaining BBQ Sauce. This is terrific served as a meal with sides or piled high onto rolls with Coleslaw as sliders. See Note 3 for more ideas.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Brisket recipe originally published July 2017. Updated to improve writing, and created separate recipe card for oven baked brisket directions. No change to recipe – much loved by readers as is, I wouldn’t dare!
Life Of Dozer
So. Much. Sand.
Anyone for a puppy kiss? 😝
thanks for the recipe 🙂 somehow my 1.5kg brisket became super tender within 4-5 hours in my slow cooker, so much that i didnt need to finish it in the oven. the sauce was very good paired with your creamy mash recipe 🙂 also served with honey roasted carrots! was a hit with my family and generally low-effort, will make again. (i couldnt get mustard powder where i live so i used a lot of dijon mustard)
I used to be the same until last time when I made this recipe I included steps 5 & 6. Elevated it so much that I am going to keep on following the full recipe
Absolutely awesome. Bona petite.
it was great!!!!
Made this a few times, my hubby loves it & I like how Navi gives different methods to cook too! Thankyou! I find it difficult to print the recipe which is probably my tech competence!
This is our second time making this and it is amazing. the kids make sandwiches with homemade honey rolls. I do go light on the barbecue though
Do I need to cook it in the oven at the end or can I omit that step? My brisket turned out too dry and I think it might have been from putting it in the oven after cooking for 8 hrs in the slow cooker.
YALL! MAKE THIS RECIPE. Huge hit with the family.
Tonight, I took on my very first beef brisket. Our local farm has such amazing flavorful and tender meats, that I was interested in trying to cook a meat I never have before. I scoured online to find a recipe and landed on this one. This recipe is an easy 10 out of 10! I will now be getting a brisket or two a month, and will forever use this recipe. Thank you SO much, the meat was so delicious!! Meat was falling apart from the crockpot to the pan, and basted beautifully. BBQ sauce was yummy, and had the absolute perfect amount of heat, felt warm, but not spicy. Well thought out recipe!!!
🔥
I’ve made this and we loved it. Now I need to know how I can modify it for corned beef brisket. My local store doesn’t have brisket right now, just the brined corn beef brisket. What do need to do differently to make this?
For those who don’t have a slow cooker.
STEP 3 I placed my beef brisket and sauce in a cast iron casserole dish with lid in oven at 160c for 3-4 hours then continued to follow recipe for STEP 4.
Thanks Sandra! In her cookbook Naji says to add 500ml water for oven cooking, PLUS all the bbq sauce ingredients. Did you do that? But then it also says (after it’s cooked) to ‘transfer the tin juices to a saucepan to add to the bbq sauce’ — which indicates to me that I haven’t cooked the brisket with all the bbq sauce. Just not sure whether to put ALL the bbq sauce ingredients in at the start! Any advice?
I don’t have a slow/pressure cooker. How can I cook this using stovetop or oven?
hi – there is a hyperlink above where it says “OVEN: Click here for directions.”
I used a cast iron casserole pot with heavy lid and cooked on the cooktop, low heat, for 6 hours and left in the pan overnight, finished the next day. Came out great!
Put it in a Dutch oven in the oven at about 225.
Worthy of all the positive feedback, it’s dangerously addictive and no matter how much brisket I use it’s never enough! 😂 Have made many times following different heat/time guidelines and always turned out great but I find adding foil over the top half way thru keeps it juicier and finishing by charring on a bbq just elevates it above the oven method 👍🏼
Cooked this today – and it was awesome – so tender and so full of flavour – used smoke paprika as had no cayenne pepper and passata instead of ketchup but added spice with hot sauce (Tapato -salsa picante) _ I’ve tried a few Recipetineats meals and they have all been great form crispy skin batter, to retro curried sausages and now this – got my quality brisket from the butchers at TAFENSW and the recipe did the rest! Thanks
Hi I made this to the recipie and it was delicious however my sauce did not thicken very much any tips to thicken the sauce please?
I made the slow cooker beef brisket with bbq sauce and it was simply delicious! Thank you!
It was good but the caramelizing times weren’t accurate for me the final 10 minutes burned the sauce and dried out the meat a little more that I expected. Despite this I was able to save it and the sauce/rub made it delicious. I also added a bacon jam at the end. My only recommendation is keep a close eye on it in the oven it may only take 5-10 min total
Please write ALL instructions down. Why do you think it’s okay not to put whether to cook on high or low in the written instructions?
Why don’t you put that it needs to be cooked on low in the written instructions? You are bad at giving directions. Ruined my food and wasted my money
Do you cook fat side up or down?
Can you spray with olive oil rather than drizzle?
Were you skimming off the fat in the video to discard?
I was going to do a slow cook on the Weber but saw this recipe. I’m going to this recipe just because it seems fool proof. However, I was wondering after you slow cook can you still utilise the Webber BBQ for an and put a smokey flavour?