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? 😝
LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe! This is the third time I’m making this. Let’s hope it makes it to the plate 😂
That’s wonderful to hear Nat! Thanks for taking the time to let me know you enjoyed this! N xx
The only problem with this recipe is that it produces a huge amount of leftover sauce. But, you know what? I bet that sauce will work just as well for making enchiladas as the canned enchilada sauce my mom normally uses– maybe even better, since it won’t have been sitting around in a metal can attempting to become can flavored.
Hi Duskkit! Yep it does make lots of sauce, better than the opposite problem of running out! 😂 It would be absolutely terrific used as an enchilada sauce, or even serving up a pan fried chicken or pork with it, just season and salt and pepper then use this sauce for flavour! N x
Would this be okay being made in a Dutch oven? I know it can be made in the oven but not sure how the foil and lid could produce different results.
Sure thing Colleen! It should work just fine 🙂 N xx
Have tried this before and making it again within a week! Amazing recipe, thank you so much. Coles sell brisket (at least in pyrmont) under the drivers choice label.
Fantastic to hear Tom! Thanks for letting me know! N x ❤️
Made this last night for a bunch of friends with a 2kg piece of beef rump roast. Cooked it in the oven for 4 hrs and it was fantastic. BBQ sauce had a bit of a bite to it but when eaten with everything else you didn’t notice it. Served it with all your recommended sides of cornbread, beans, coleslaw and a potato salad.
FANTASTIC to hear Nat!! Thanks so much for letting me know you enjoyed this 🙂 N xx
Made this last night for Good Friday dinner. Used a roughly 3.5 lb. (roughly 1.59 kg) grass-fed flat brisket. I mention the grass-fed past, as I have found that cooking with grain-fed beef often yields different results than with grass-fed, as grass-fed is usually leaner with tougher muscle meat. My slow-cooker is small, but the cut I had was shaped just right to allow room on the sides of the brisket for the meat. The dry rub allowed for even-coverage, but I image if I had a piece of brisket with more surface area (such as an irregular cut or if I had cut into several pieces), would likely have needed more rub. I used a good quality bottled BBQ sauce, which helped reduce the dishes and time to make this. The BBQ sauce recipe does sound good though, so will try that the next time I make this. Cooked in slow cooker for on high for 5 hours (would have gone less but husband let it go a little longer than was desired), and found it was perfect so didn’t do the final oven browning. If it had been in slow cooker a little less time, would have did the final oven broil. Will recommend this recipe.
Thanks so much for all that great info! Other people find it so helpful! N xx
Hi.
I did a trail run of this brisket last week and it was perfect! Everyone on our house loved it so have purchased a larger piece for the main event, our Easter Sunday lunch for approx 14ppl. The brisket I have is about 10 or so cm thick and weighs 3.5kg, just wondering how long I’d cook it for given I did the 2kg thin one for 10 hrs on low.
I made this yesterday and it came out perfect as well. I went with the cooking on high for 4.5 hours in the slow cooker, which didn’t impact the quality at all; was still great. That might be an option. However, with such big cuts of meat, there is the risk of not cooking through evenly. For the big brisket, are you planning on cooking in the oven or in a large slow cooker? Because I have a somewhat small slow cooker, I found that with larger cuts of meat, the heat is blocked by the mass of the meat, and it makes the meat cook more slowly and unevenly. If you don’t have a large slow cooker that allows some space between your meat and the edges of the cooker, you might want to opt for the oven. Another option to reduce cooking time would be to cut the brisket into equal sized pieces. That may take away from the aesthetic you are going for, but will be more manageable in terms of achieving even cooking within a manageable time frame (won’t take all day).
Hi Nagi
I browned the brisket on the BBQ first and then put it in the slow cooker with the sauce ingredients. I then shredded it, and mixed some of the sauce that I reduced through it.
I have lots of brisket left over as well as some sauce (which I kept seperetly).
I was thinking I’d make this into a pie with some veggies. What would be the best way to do this?
Thanks 🙂
Oooh YUM! I would mix through chopped veg them cover and bake for 15 minutes or so to get them started, then top with mashed potato drizzled with butter and breadcrumbs and/or parmesan OR puff pastry! N x
Hi
I cooked a 1.5 kg brisket in a slow cooker for 8 hours on low. The meat came out an was very easy to shred, When I tried the edge with a fork its fell apart
Followed the instructions in the oven after and the end result was very tasty but the meat was very dry and grainy.
Going to try again . Do i reduce the time in the slow cooker or would this be an oven issue?
Doing a small brisket today as a trial befor I make it as a family dinner tomorrow, will be done in 2 hours and so far so good!
Nagi – My daughter and I are now your biggest fans! Wow! I love your video and your writing style! You have inspired me today to take on brisket and celebrate a wonderful family St. Patrick’s Day Sunday dinner!
You are amazing and I know the sauce will be outstanding!
Thank you for sharing your time, talents and treasures for cooking!
Our Best, Sal & Soph
Hi there,
I’ve been reading about the 2 parts of the brisket…flat and point. I look forward to making this for a party soon and wonder what one you suggest I tell my butcher to cut. Thanks!
I’d probably go the Flat if asked 🙂 Just a bigger, more symmetrical slab! N x
I tried this recipe yesterday and was not disappointed! My 16 year old stepson, who can be picky, could have eaten the entire brisket. It was delicious and fairly simple. Thanks for sharing Nagi!
That’s so great to hear Anna! Thanks! N x ❤️
Coles in Perth sell beef brisket both rolled and unrolled .I have one in oven at the moment.
Hope you love it Jeanne!
Aldi sell brisket pieces in Australia – delicious
I SAW! I checked it out after another reader mentioned it!!
Aldi sell brisket pieces in Australia- delicious
What can I use instead of apple cider vinegar? My options are lemon juice or white vinegar….
White vinegar 🙂
is there any ready-made sauce you could buy that you would recommend in place of the homemade sauce?
You can use Sweet Baby Ray’s Hickory and Brown Sugar BBQ sauce, but definitely still add the vinegar.
Sorry, I don’t know Thorton, I have never tried!
Delicious! Bought my brisket in Aldi in Melbourne Australia.
That’s wonderful to hear Erika! 🙂 N x
This sauce is to die for! Just lovely. I did the slow cooker method and the brisket was perfect. Then I tried the searing method on the BBQ to get a nice crust – unfortunately this was not successful and the meat firmed up considerably. It was still extremely tasty but nowhere near as melt-in-your-mouth as you would expect with a 9 hour slow cooker dish. I will definitely make it again, perhaps without the searing at the end, or perhaps I’ll try the oven method.
Hi Jonners! if the meat was tender once out of the slow cooker then it should most definitely stay ultra tender on the inside if you sear on the BBQ! That should just give it a lovely crust 🙂 N x