Beef Brisket Recipe In The Oven
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.
What Is 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.
Cooking Instructions For Juicy Beef Brisket
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 (Up To 12 Hours Before)
- 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°F 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°F. 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°F.
- 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.
Beef 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.
Storing Instructions
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.
Best Way To Reheat It
Brisket is nicely reheated in the oven.
Preheat oven to 350°F. 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 Beef Recipes To Try
Making Corned Beef Brisket In The Oven
Tips for Grilling The Perfect Steak
Beef Brisket with Balsamic Sauce
Bacon Wrapped Mustard Beef Brisket
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Beef Brisket Recipe 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°F 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°F. 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.
Video
Notes
- Plan ahead for best results: For the most flavorful and tender beef brisket, apply the dry rub and refrigerate overnight. This extra time allows the seasoning to penetrate the meat and helps tenderize it.
- Brisket cut matters: This recipe is written for a flat cut of beef brisket. Choose one with a visible fat cap for juicier results. Cooking time may vary depending on thickness and fat content.
- Cook low and slow: Oven temperature and time are key. Brisket should be cooked slowly until it reaches the proper internal temperature, don’t rush it, or it may turn out tough.
- Use a meat thermometer: Brisket is done when it’s tender and reaches the correct internal temperature, not just by time alone. Every brisket cooks a little differently.
- Rest before slicing: Let the brisket rest after baking so the juices redistribute. Skipping this step can cause the meat to dry out.
- Slice against the grain: Always slice beef brisket against the grain for the most tender texture.
- Foil alternatives: Parchment paper can be used instead of aluminum foil if preferred.
- Adjust seasoning to taste: If you’re sensitive to spice, reduce the heat in the dry rub to suit your preference.
- Leftovers & reheating: Brisket reheats best in the oven, wrapped, to maintain moisture and tenderness.
Nutrition
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Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
Thanks for sharing it’s so good!
I am glad you liked it, Mary!
Well understood but please help with exact temperature of the oven during cooking… because you said the oven has to be preheated Upton 300degrees….then what about during cooking as this is a low temperature cooking system…and please help with the dry rub recipe and what can I use to make it soft since the brisket is so tough.Thanks.
Hi, you are going to want to cook the brisket at 300 degrees. It is cooked low and slow to make it tender and not tough.
The recipe turned out perfect, thanks!
What do you do with the juice that collects while cooking?
You can make a delicious gravy with the drippings and a little beef broth here is a recipe for my pan-dripping gravy which you can adapt using the pan drippings from the brisket.
https://www.willcookforsmiles.com/the-best-turkey-gravy-pan-dripping-gravy/
The dry rub recipe that you have for the brisket shows sodium at 13,998mg – is that a typo ?? I need to watch my sodium intake and at 2000mg/day that is an entire weeks worth of sodium
Where do you see that? The sodium for this is 202mg per serving so you should be able to have this in your diet.
Can this be made without using a rack in the pan?
Hi Deanna,
The rack lifts the meat so it’s not touching the pan on the bottom, which is the hottest part. When the meat is lifted, it’s surrounded with even heat all around and cooks evenly on all the sides. If you don’t have a rack in your roasting pan, you can place like a cooling wire rack inside or even a couple of halved onions to lift the meat from the bottom of the pan.
Wow, it looks delicious. I will Cook Beef Brisket according to your instructions
I should have followed my instinct and not use the brown sugar in the rub. My brisket was burned so bad from the sugar that I had to cut the top layer off.
I am sorry to hear that, I have never had that issue with this rub.
I Love Beef Brisket so much, thank you for sharing with me this helpful recipe
When u say remove the foil and cook 45 minutes to an hour longer is that in addition to your 4.5 hours’ or just the last hour?
I wondered the same thing. I don’t think it really matters as long as that temperature reaches 200 degrees. Mine is in the oven now and I was going to take off the foil for the last 30 minutes. Hope the author replies soon.
Thanks, Shar! So glad you liked it!
Thanks, Shar! So glad you liked it!
Holy-Frijoles!
First, I rarely leave comments on random recipes I grab from the internet but this was AMAZING. I’d never made a brisket before but I wanted to do something special for my family. This was possibly the most delicious, juicy, savory piece of meat I’ve ever cooked. Thank you so much for the recipe, detailed instructions, and tips.
Suggestion: Before I smoke a brisket, I rub a little ketchup or mustard all over it first, then apply the dry rub. It allows the rub to stick to the meat better. You can use mayonnaise or olive oil, for that matter. By the time the brisket is cooked, the wet rub has pretty much cooked or dripped off.
Thanks, Dave that is a good tip.
really helps to have the temp unit, also both f/c
Really really good! The dry rub was perfection. I’ll keep that on hand for other applications as well. Had to adjust cooking time for high altitude, but overall a serious winner. Thank you!
Thanks, Shar! So glad you liked it!
I don’t have a smoker so I needed a recipe for the oven for my brisket. It was delicious. I had company that day and it was a hit.
Could I do this for a whole brisket and just increase the rub amount? And maybe the time??
You can do a whole brisket. Probably need to double your rub for it but make sure to discard the leftovers of rub if it comes in contact with raw brisket. It will take much longer to cook up to 6-8 hours you can look at my bacon-wrapped brisket to get a better idea of the time. Just remember you want to cook the brisket until it reaches 200°-202° here is a link to that recipe. https://www.willcookforsmiles.com/bacon-beef-brisket/
Would I cook this the same way using an electric roaster??
Hi April,
Unfortunately, I haven’t used a roaster to make this so I am unsure how it would work for this recipe.
Looks so good I am super excited to try this one.
Thanks, Sara! I hope you like it! 🙂