Easy Beef Brisket

Make this easy 3-ingredient beef brisket in the oven. Just slather it in a mix of BBQ sauce and soy sauce, wrap in foil, and bake until fall-apart tender.

Looking for an easy way to prepare beef brisket and still impress your friends? This is it! Bake the brisket in the oven. What's crazy is how good it is given how ridiculously easy it is to make.

How to Cook Brisket in the Oven

There really is no easier way to prepare a beef brisket than this oven-baked version. With just a handful of ingredients including the beef brisket, an oven, and a few hours, you have amazing brisket that took very little effort.

  1. Mix together some barbecue sauce, soy sauce, and water
  2. Slather the beef brisket with the sauce
  3. Wrap the beef brisket in aluminum foil
  4. Bake brisket in oven for several hours, until it's falling apart tender

Many thanks to Karen Matthys for this great recipe!

Easy Beef Brisket

Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

Beef Brisket in the Slow Cooker

To make this in the slow cooker, skip the water — the brisket will release plenty of its own liquid — and use just the soy sauce and barbecue sauce. Add the brisket to the slow cooker and pour the soy-BBQ mix on top. Cover and cook for up to 8 hours on low. We don't recommend cooking brisket on high in the slow cooker.

Slice Across the Grain

When the brisket is done, you'll want to let it rest for 30 minutes before slicing to serve. You'll want to make slices across the grain of the meat to break up the muscle fibers and make it even easier to eat.

Easy Beef Brisket

Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek


What to Serve With Beef Brisket

Round out your meal of beef brisket with a few vegetable sides like Roasted Baby Carrots or Roast Potatoes and Asparagus. Serve with baked potatoes, cooked rice, or buttered noodles for a starch.

Storing and Freezing Brisket

Leftover brisket will keep refrigerated for up to a week. Brisket also freezes well for up to three months.

Can't Get Enough Brisket?

Easy Beef Brisket recipe after cooking in the oven and slicing

Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

Finding the Grain to Cut Your Brisket

A brisket is the chest muscle of a cow. It's large and very tough. It has two parts: the point (the fatty part) and the flat (the less fatty part, which lays flat). Butchers usually separate the two. You'll almost always find the flat cut at the supermarket, and it's what should be used for this recipe.

The grain is easy to find on a piece of uncooked brisket. Whether you're cooking the point or the flat, if you cut a notch in the meat in the direction of the grain before cooking it, you'll easily be able to find the grain and cut across it.

Not into Barbeque Sauce? More Brisket Seasoning Options

Brisket can take on all sorts of flavors. Here are some other directions if you want to experiment. You'll want to omit the 1/4 cup soy sauce called for in the brisket recipe, but keep the 1 cup water.

Quick Tips for Fall-Apart Beef Brisket

  • Follow the 1 hour for 1 pound guideline when cooking this brisket, but keep in mind every brisket tends to do its own thing. Keep cooking it low and slow until it's fork-tender. You may need an additional hour, or even longer.
  • Use a thermometer if you have it. To be tender, a brisket needs to be at least 180°F. Over 210°F is overcooked, so you have quite a range.

5 Sides to Serve with Brisket

From the Editors Of Simply Recipes

Easy Beef Brisket

Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 4 hrs
Resting Time 30 mins
Total Time 4 hrs 40 mins
Servings 8 servings

Beef brisket does not like to be rushed. Follow this method and you should have a nice, tender brisket. Remember, go by the tenderness of the actual brisket more than how long it's been in the oven. When in doubt, use a thermometer. To be tender, a brisket needs to be at least 180°F. Over 210°F is overcooked. Get the brisket somewhere between the two temperatures and you're golden.

Ingredients

Foil Method

  • 1 (3 to 4) pound beef brisket (do NOT trim the fat)

  • 3/4 cup barbecue sauce

  • 1/4 cup soy sauce

  • 1 cup water

  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, optional

Oven Roasting Bag Method

  • 3/4 cup barbecue sauce

  • 1/4 cup soy sauce

  • 1 (3 to 4) pound beef brisket

  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, optional

Method

Beef Brisket Wrapped in Foil

  1. Preheat the oven:

    Preheat the oven to 300°F.

  2. Make the sauce:

    In a bowl, mix together the barbecue sauce, soy sauce, and water.

    Mixing a bowl of sauce for an Easy Beef Brisket recipe

    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

  3. Wrap the brisket in foil:

    Place a large piece of aluminum foil in a roasting pan (use heavy-duty foil if you have it). Add the brisket fat-side-up and pour the BBQ sauce mixture generously over meat.

    If using the optional 1 tablespoon of flour (to thicken your sauce) sprinkle it over the meat.

    Wrap the brisket in the aluminum foil so it's well sealed, like a package. Cover it with more foil, if needed.

    Beef Brisket in a foil-lined pan with sauce on top, ready to bake in the oven

    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

    Easy Beef Brisket recipe wrapped in foil to bake in the oven

    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

  4. Roast the brisket in the oven:

    Bake for 3 hours for a 3 pound roast and 1 more hour for every additional pound of meat. (Times are a guide. You may need to roast longer to get falling apart meat if your cut is particularly tough.)

  5. Let the brisket rest:

    Remove from oven and let rest in the foil for 30 minutes before slicing.

  6. Slice across the grain of the meat:

    The easiest way to serve the roast is to first cut it in half along the grain of the meat (poke the meat with the tip of a knife or tines of a fork to see which way the grain or lines of the muscles are going if you can't see it from the surface).

    Then make 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch thick cuts across the grain to serve. (Cutting the meat across the grain will make it much easier to eat, as the cuts break up the muscle tissue.)

    Cooked baked beef brisket on a carving board

    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

    Slicing a cooked Beef Brisket across the grain

    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek


Beef Brisket in an Oven Bag

  1. Preheat the oven:

    Preheat the oven to 300°F.

  2. Combine the barbecue sauce and soy sauce:

    In a small bowl or measuring cup, stir the barbecue and soy sauce together.

  3. Put the brisket in the bag:

    Set an oven bag (the small size should work, but you can use the large size if that's all you have) in a roasting pan. Put the brisket fat-side-up in the bag and add the barbecue-soy mixture.

    If using the optional 1 tablespoon of flour (to thicken your sauce) sprinkle it into the bag. Fold the top of the bag over and poke a couple small holes in the bag.

  4. Bake the brisket:

    Bake for 3 hours for a 3 pound roast and 1 more hour for every additional pound of meat. (Times are a guide. You may need to roast longer to get falling apart meat if your cut is particularly tough.)

  5. Let the brisket rest:

    Remove from oven and let rest in the bag for 30 minutes before slicing.

  6. Slice across the grain of the meat:

    The easiest way to serve the roast is to first cut it in half along the grain of the meat (poke the meat with the tip of a knife or tines of a fork to see which way the grain or lines of the muscles are going if you can't see it from the surface).

    Then make 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch thick cuts across the grain to serve. (Cutting the meat across the grain will make it much easier to eat, as the cuts break up the muscle tissue.)

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
671 Calories
42g Fat
3g Carbs
66g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories 671
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 42g 54%
Saturated Fat 17g 83%
Cholesterol 240mg 80%
Sodium 613mg 27%
Total Carbohydrate 3g 1%
Dietary Fiber 0g 0%
Total Sugars 2g
Protein 66g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 42mg 3%
Iron 6mg 31%
Potassium 576mg 12%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.