Tastefully Grace November 1, 2022

Best Ever Smoked Brisket (In the Oven)

4.9 from 39 votes

I have a BIG secret for you: amazing, flavorful, smoky, tender brisket can be made in your oven – no smoker required! This recipe includes a lip-smacking dry rub, mouthwatering smoking liquid (that’s also the perfect dipping sauce), and easy steps to make a crazy good piece of meat right in your oven.

Oven smoked? Yup, I said it! The secret to delicious oven brisket is to cook it low and slow. Tightly cover brisket for most of the cooking process, so it infuses with the smoky steam from the smoking liquid in your roasting pan.

The smoking liquid is a blend of beef broth, liquid smoke, Worcestershire sauce and a dash of tomato paste. After hours in the oven, infused with brisket drippings, the smoking liquid turns into the best dipping sauce.

The Best Smoked Brisket…In the Oven!

Why will you fall in love with this oven brisket, over and over again? Here’s 5 reasons:

That brisket crust. When the dry rub melts into your meat, infusing it with flavor and crisping up the outside of your meat…it’s next level.
It’s ACTUALLY smoky! The secret is liquid smoke in the smoking liquid, and smoked paprika in the rub. This oven brisket is truly smoked.
Any ordinary oven tested. You don’t need a smoker, just your oven and a roasting pan with a rack. A leave-in probe meat thermometer is highly recommended (but not required).
Just as good the next day. Make brisket up to 4 days in advance. It’s delicious reheated.
There’s no bad season for oven brisket. Summer BBQ staple or slow-cooked brisket dinner on a cold, snowy night…there’s no bad time for this brisket recipe! Just like my Slow Cooked Italian Pulled Pork.

Ingredients for Smoked Brisket

Boneless beef brisket – the amount of dry rub below is for a 3-5 pound brisket. You can purchase a brisket “flat” or brisket with a point. A brisket with a point is an extra layer of brisket on top of a portion of the flat, giving it a thicker appearance. The “point,” when cooked, turns into pieces of brisket called burnt ends! A brisket “flat” is easier to manage and cook, but you can use whatever cut you prefer. If you purchase a brisket with a “point,” be careful that you don’t insert your meat thermometer into the fat layer between the flat and point, which will lead to inaccurate readings. This recipe is NOT for a corned beef brisket. This website has an awesome photo of the difference between a brisket flat and a brisket with a point.

Dry Rub

Black pepper – black pepper adds a bit of back heat and a sweet, piney flavor.
Dark brown sugar – dark brown sugar adds a molasses note.
Chili powder – chili powder is a blend of savory and aromatic spices.
Dried mustard – dried mustard adds a zesty note.
Garlic powder – garlic…duh.
Onion powder – onion…duh.
Salt – salt…another duh.
Smoked paprika – smoked paprika mimics the smokiness you get from a smoker!

Smoking Liquid

Beef broth – you can use beef broth, stock or bone broth. I prefer low-sodium.
Worcestershire sauce – Worcestershire sauce is made from vinegar, cloves, molasses, and other flavors that will give your BBQ that “edge.”
Liquid smoke – liquid smoke mimics that smoker smokiness!
Tomato paste – a hint of tomato adds sweetness and acidity.

How to Smoke Brisket (In the Oven)

Cook beef brisket low and slow in the oven, covered for most of the cooking time, to infuse the meat with the smoking liquids. Uncover your brisket towards the end to let the outside crisp up. YUM. Full instructions in the recipe card; this is just an outline!

Mix smoking liquid.
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a roasting pan with a wire rack, add Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, tomato paste, and just enough beef broth to fill the bottom of the pan without submerging the brisket which will sit on the wire rack (about 2 cups depending on size of pan). Stir.
Trim.
Trim fat layer (the fat cap), so that there is about ¼ inch thick fat layer still left on the brisket. Don’t trim too much fat, or you’ll have a tough, bland brisket! Fat is flavor and moisture.
Mix dry rub.
In a bowl, mix together all ingredients in the dry rub: black pepper, brown sugar, chili powder, dried mustard, garlic and onion powder, salt, and smoked paprika.
Rub meat.
On a large plate, rub brisket with dry rub, sticking as much dry rub as possible to all surfaces of your brisket. You should use all or almost all of the dry rub. Transfer brisket to the wire rack in your roasting pan, fat-side down. It’s okay if some of the rub falls into the smoking liquid.
Seal shut.
Insert a leave-in probe thermometer (highly recommended) into the center of the thickest part of your brisket. Make sure the thermometer’s tip isn’t in the center of a fat layer, as the temperature will be inaccurate. Tightly cover your pan in foil (you can poke a hole through the foil for the thermometer if needed).
Cook covered.
Cook brisket in the oven until a thermometer reads about 190 degrees in the thickest part. Cooking time varies based on many factors. Great brisket is all about temperature, not time!
Cook uncovered.
Uncover brisket and let cook until a thermometer reads 200-205 degrees, and the thermometer can easily slide in and out of the brisket (this signals a tender brisket!).
What happens if there’s “stall time?”
Stall time is when the internal temperature of your brisket stops rising and may even fall a few degrees. A stall time might occur when you uncover your brisket and steam cools your brisket down. If a stall time lasts for more than 30 minutes, I recommend re-covering your brisket with foil until your brisket’s temperature starts to rise steadily again. Stalls sometimes never happen, happen once, or happen more than once – don’t get discouraged!
Slice.
Let brisket rest at room temperature for 30 minutes before slicing against the grain.

What to Serve with Smoked Brisket

Serve brisket with or without barbecue sauce, and reduced smoking liquid as dipping sauce. Don’t forget brisket sandwiches with mustard and melted cheese! Some of my favorite side dishes with oven smoked brisket are:

Potatoes

Veggies

Breads

How to Store and Reheat Smoked Brisket

Brisket keeps well in the fridge for about 4 days. I like to slice brisket before refrigerating. The best way to reheat brisket is place slices in the smoking liquid, covered, at 275 degrees for 15-30 minutes, depending on how much meat you’re reheating.

You can also reheat unsliced brisket, covered, in the smoking liquid at the same temperature.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is brisket?

Beef brisket is a cut from the lower chest of a cow. There are two briskets per cow. Brisket is typically a cheaper cut of beef because it is tough from lots of connective tissue that needs to be broken down by low and slow cooking.

What are the different cuts of brisket?

A “full packer” is an entire brisket, usually weighing at least 10 pounds. At your local butcher or grocery store, you’ll be able to find a brisket “flat” which is a smaller, thinner piece of brisket that’s easy to manage and cook (recommended). You can also get a brisket with a portion of the point, which is a the brisket “flat” + an extra layer of brisket that’s connected to the flat by a layer of fat. This larger, thicker piece is delicious (it includes prized brisket pieces called burnt ends!), but it’s a bit more difficult and time consuming to cook. If you purchase a brisket with a “point,” be careful that you don’t insert your meat thermometer into the fat layer between the flat and point, which will lead to inaccurate readings.

What temp is brisket done?

Brisket is done when the center of the thickest part measures 200-205 degrees and a thermometer can easily slide in and out of the brisket with little resistance (a sign of tender meat!).

How long should brisket rest?

Let brisket rest for 30 minutes before slicing.

How do I slice brisket?

Slice brisket with a chef’s or serrated knife against the grain of the meat.

Can you make oven brisket ahead?

Yes! Brisket keeps well in the fridge for about 4 days.

How much brisket per person?

1 pound of uncooked brisket will yield about ½ pound cooked brisket because of the fat. Therefore a 4 pound brisket will yield about ½ pound of brisket for 4 people.

What equipment do you need for oven smoked brisket?

You’ll need a roasting pan with a wire rack, and a meat thermometer. It is highly recommended that you use a leave-in probe meat thermometer.

Can you freeze brisket?

Yes, although the texture may change a bit. You can freeze your brisket without the juices, wrapped tightly, or with the juices in a freezer safe container, for 4-5 months.

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