This beef brisket made in the oven is about as close as you can come to Texas-style smoked brisket without actually using a smoker. Juicy beef brisket is rubbed with an amazing dry rub and baked in the oven until tender. Learn how to make a great beef brisket right in your kitchen.
For this brisket and many other meats, I use my favorite Dry Rub recipe. Try making corned beef brisket in the oven as well, you won’t be disappointed. If you just love Beef Brisket in the oven, you must try my French Onion Beef Brisket.
BEEF BRISKET
Beef brisket comes from the lower chest area of the cow. It’s a very tough cut of meat because it comes from the area where there is a lot of muscle and tendons. Because it’s a tough cut of meat, brisket should be cooked at low temperature for a long period of time.
There are two basic parts of the whole beef brisket. The bottom part of the brisket is called a “flat” and it doesn’t usually contain much fat at all. Top part of the brisket is called a “point” and it is mostly fat with very little meat on it.
Ideally, the whole brisket is cooked at the same time because the fat juices from the top point part seeps into the flat. This makes brisket flat meat juicier. Unfortunately, many grocery stores don’t carry the whole brisket but only carry the flat. (For the whole brisket, check your butcher shops.)
Because flat is much more common, I normally work with that cut. Try to get beef brisket that has a little more fat on top, in the fat cap. (Flat brisket cut still had a small fat cap on top.)
Of course, for best results and for a true Texas-style brisket, it should be cooked in a smoker. Since not everyone has a availability and time to slow cook the brisket in the smoker, I want to share my recipe for making the beef brisket in the oven.
HOW TO COOK BEEF BRISKET IN THE OVEN
Note: Be prepared to start the brisket a day before cooking it. Giving it time to soak up the flavors from the dry rub overnight will give you a much better result.
Before Cooking
Let’s start with making our favorite dry rub, that should take a whole 5 minutes to make.
Take brisket flat out of the package, lay it on a cutting board and pat it dry with a paper towel.
Spread a generous amount of dry rub on top, flip the brisket over and spread a generous amount of dry rub over that. Make sure there is a good amount of seasoning and rub it all over all the sides of the brisket. Massage the rub into every nook and cranny and make sure it’s nicely coated all over.
Wrap rubbed brisket in a couple of layers of foil, covering it tight. Place in a pan or a dish just in case some juices leak out, so that it doesn’t leak all over the refrigerator.
Refrigerate the brisket overnight or up to 12 hours. Take the brisket out of the refrigerator an hour before cooking it, unwrap and let it get to room temperature.
Cooking Brisket
Preheat oven to 300° and place a rack inside the large roasting pan. Lay a couple of sheets of foil that are long enough to loosely cover the brisket, crisscross, on top of the rack. (You can layer the bottom of the roasting pan with aluminum foil to catch whatever drippings might leak through.)
Place the brisket, fat cap up, in the middle of aluminum foil prepared in the roasting pan. Bring the aluminum foil together and close it, covering the brisket loosely, leaving a little space between the brisket and the foil.
Place in the oven and bake for about an hour and 15 minutes per pound, until the brisket reaches 185°. Use a meat thermometer to measure the thickest part of the brisket.
Open the foil and bake brisket for another 45 minutes to an hour, until internal temperature reaches 200-202°.
Take the brisket out onto the cutting board, tent it with a sheet of foil, and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Make sure to cut the brisket against the grain.
BRISKET SERVING SIZE
Wondering how much brisket to get? That’s the story of my life. Recommended serving size for brisket is 1/2 lb of uncooked meat per person.
It’s also very subjective because it highly depends on the sides that you’re servings with it. Lighter sides will not fill guests as much, so more brisket will be needed per person. Heartier sides, will be more filling.
To me, recommended servings never seems enough so I get an extra pound or two of meat. It’s better to have meat leftover than not have enough.
HOW TO STORE BRISKET
If you have leftover brisket, store it covered in the refrigerator, covered tightly.
Wrap cooled brisket in a sheet of parchment paper and then wrap it in some aluminum foil.
Keep in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
HOW TO REHEAT BRISKET
Brisket is nicely reheated in the oven.
Preheat oven to 350°. Slice cold brisket and wrap the slices in foil.
Reheat the foil packets in the oven for 15-20 minutes, depending on how thick the slices are and how many slices there are in the foil. You can place foil wrapped brisket directly on the oven rack or on a baking sheet.
Note: the little fat layer on top won’t have the crunch once it’s been reheated.
SOME MORE RECIPES YOU WILL ENJOY:
Making Corned Beef Brisket In The Oven
Tips for Grilling The Perfect Steak
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Beef Brisket In The Oven
Instructions
- NOTE: Be prepared to start the brisket a day before cooking it. Giving it time to soak up the flavors and tenderize from the dry rub overnight will give you a much better result.
Meat rub and refrigerating:
- Mix dry rub ingredients. (This recipe for dry rub will cover a 6 lb brisket.)
- Take brisket flat out of the package, lay it on a cutting board and pat it dry with a paper towel.
- Spread a generous amount of dry rub on top, flip the brisket over and spread a generous amount of dry rub over that side. Make sure there is a good amount of seasoning and rub it all over all the sides of the brisket. Massage the rub into every nook and cranny and make sure it’s nicely coated all over.
- Wrap rubbed brisket in a couple of layers of foil, covering it tight. Place wrapped brisket in a pan or a dish just in case some juices leak out, so that it doesn’t leak all over the refrigerator.
- Refrigerate the brisket overnight or up to 12 hours. Take the brisket out of the refrigerator an hour before cooking it, unwrap and let it get to room temperature.
Baking the brisket:
- Preheat oven to 300° and place a rack inside the large roasting pan. Lay a couple of sheets of foil that are long enough to loosely cover the brisket, criss-cross, on top of the rack. (You can layer the bottom of the roasting pan with aluminum foil to catch whatever drippings might leak through.)
- Place the brisket, fat cap up, in the middle of aluminum foil prepared in the roasting pan. Bring the aluminum foil together and close it, covering the brisket loosely, leaving a little space between the brisket and the foil.
- UPDATE: Place in the oven and bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes per pound, until the brisket reaches about 180°. Use a meat thermometer to measure the thickest part of the brisket. (My 4.5 lb brisket takes about 5 1/2 hours but there are many factors that can affect exact time. Meat itself will take different time and brisket can also stall at a certain temperature in the oven much like a smoker. Use a leave-in meat thermometer to monitor the temperature of your brisket and that way you won't have to keep opening the oven .)
- Open the foil and place it back in the oven. Bake brisket for another 45 minutes to an hour.
Let it rest:
- Take the brisket out onto the cutting board, tent it with a sheet of foil, and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- Make sure to cut the brisket against the grain.
Notes
Nutrition
Tulio Rodrigues says
Great Recipe,
I really loved this one specially the dry herbs. Easy to cook and very tasty, congratulations! Now waiting to try other recipes.
LyubaB says
I am so happy you liked it!
Chris David says
Wow, this was tasty! My five-year-old inhaled it – he’s a meat lover. And we used organic beef shanks instead of veal, but the result was the same.
LyubaB says
Nice! I am so happy to hear that! Thanks for stopping by to let me know, Chris~
Anne Dawson says
This sounds delicious! Would I change anything if I get a brisket that has the point on it? Also, do you have a recipe for burnt ends?
Cindy DiCarlo says
I’m making this brisket for a retirement party for 2 folks I adore. Thanks for the help and I can’t wait to taste and share!
LyubaB says
That’s nice! I hope everyone enjoys it! 🙂
yamini says
Love non veg recipes , thanks for sharing about this How To Cook Beef Brisket In The Oven , will definitely follow instructions . Actually I planning for my weekend recipes and this one seems amazing for that.
LyubaB says
I hope you love it!
Mohd says
I will try it today … followed all instruction and hope the result will be great …
LyubaB says
I hope you liked it!
Janet says
Made this today. SO yummy and flavorful—best brisket ever. I did leave the rub on for about 24 hours. The only change I made was using a bigger piece of meat (approx 5#), so I cooked longer (5 hours). I doubled onions, but kept liquid the same. It stayed juicy all the way through cooking. I also used beef broth instead of chicken. Definitely will make again and would serve to guests.
LyubaB says
SO glad you liked it, Janet!
Kara says
Hi! I am not reading anything on this recipe about onions and liquids. Where’d I miss that? Can you please share?
LyubaB says
Hi Kara,
I think you’re looking at the wrong recipe, I believe the one you are trying to make is the French Onion Brisket. Here is the link and let me know if you have any other questions.
https://www.willcookforsmiles.com/french-onion-beef-brisket-in-the-oven/
Vamika says
How To Cook Beef Brisket In The Oven , this one seems so amazing and delicious . Love this one and will love to try this one. Thanks for sharing this one.
MeMate says
Your instructions on how to make Beef Brisket are excellent, and I appreciate your effort.
LyubaB says
Thank you!
khajana satta matka says
Good post thanks for sharing!
LyubaB says
Thank you!
Eva Barbarasch says
I tried this recipe yesterday. The taste was very good but it came out too tough. Is there something I needed to do to make it tender?
Eva
Fred says
That was amazing!!! I had never cooked a brisket but this recipe made it simple to make and it turned out great! The beef was very tender.
Thank you!
LyubaB says
I am so glad you liked it, Fred! 🙂
rudy gothenquist says
I had a large party and I cooked this. I checked the temp when I opened the foil and it was actually done so I did not cook any further with the foil opened. It came out so well that all the guys were standing around the meat as I cut it, saying in disbelief. “This is your FIRST brisket???”. It was delicious and everybody loved it. Thank you so much!!!
LyubaB says
That is awesome! I am so glad it went well and everyone loved it! 🙂
Marlene says
My comment is more of a question. Can I leave the brisket in the fridge with the rub for more than 12 hours or less than 12 hrs.? The timing of letting it sit for 12 hrs. doesn’t fit well for cooking it. I would have to let it sit overbite and cook it in the morning or let it sit for 12 hrs during the day and cook it in the late evening.
LyubaB says
You could keep in on a few more hours or a couple less hours.
Kara says
This was absolutely delicious and tender. Cooking time was spot on! Thank you for posting this!
LyubaB says
Thanks, Kara! So glad you liked it!
Rose says
Thanks for sharing about How To Cook Beef Brisket In The Oven, Super excited to try this one , thanks for sharing with us.
LyubaB says
You are so welcome, Rose! GLad you liked it!
Gail Heinsohn says
Absolutely delicious–but what do I DO with it?!! The drippings are mostly fat, so there’s no “gravy.”
Gail Heinsohn says
Absolutely delicious–but what do I DO with it?!! The drippings are mostly fat, so there’s no “gravy.” Use commercial stuff?
LyubaB says
If you want you could make my pan drippings gravy recipe with it. I used turkey so replace the turkey stock with stock and some of the pan drippings. Here is the link to the recipe
https://www.willcookforsmiles.com/the-best-turkey-gravy-pan-dripping-gravy/
Kelly says
How much time should I add if I am cooking 2 five pond briskets in the oven?
Elaine says
Before I try cooking my first brisket that’s a 7.43 lb flat cut, I calculate a little over 9 hours of cooking time following your recipe. Sound right? Thanks!