Oven-Cooked Brisket With Worcestershire & Balsamic Reduction

Learn how to slow-cook a whole beef brisket in the oven with a delicious, caramelised balsamic and Worcestershire reduction, onions and garlic. This oven-cooked brisket is braised in the broth that is then caramelised and the meat is browned during the roasting process, resulting in the most succulent meat full of flavour.

I am going to cover a few brisket basics first, but feel free to press the Jump To Recipe button above to get straight to business.  This is a gluten-free, paleo-friendly, dairy-free beef brisket recipe.

Slow Cooked Brisket In The Oven

I’ve been meaning to do a beef brisket recipe on the blog for A LONG time! I know it’s something my readers have asked for and also because many people are a little intimidated by this cut of meat.

Many think that the brisket requires a BBQ or smoking or that it takes a very long time. But, while it is one of those cuts that needs a little love and time to cook, it’s actually very easy to handle and I will show you how to make a beautiful baked brisket in the oven. 

In this recipe, we are slow-cooking the brisket in the oven for 3 hours on low to moderate heat. It’s half-braised in a delicious broth, which slowly cooks down to form the most decadent reduction – our brisket sauce.

Once you’ve done all the prep, you only need to check on the brisket a few times; otherwise, it’s a very simple process. DO NOT FEAR THE BRISKET! 

What Is Beef Brisket?

Brisket is a cut of meat from the breast or lower chest of beef. This part has a lot of connective tissue so it’s considered a tough cut and requires the correct cooking method to make it tender. 

The brisket is made up of two different muscles or parts: the point and the flat. The point cut is more elongated and is the fattier part of the brisket; the flat cut is a bit leaner and is more square/rectangular looking, allowing it to lay flat.  You can use either of those in this recipe.

Both parts (which often are sold as one whole brisket) should have a fat cap or fat layer on them. You can trim some of that back but it does render (melt away) during cooking and provides a lot of flavour and moisture to the meat, so don’t cut all the fat off! 

Brisket nutrition is very similar to other beef cuts; it’s high in protein and moderate in fat and zero carbs, with lots of iron, selenium and zinc and B-vitamins, especially B12 so it will give you lots of energy and antioxidants.

How Much Brisket Per Person?

This is actually a very good question because as with most slow-cooked meats, brisket will shrink during cooking (from 100% to about 60%) so you need to take that into consideration when planning your menu. As brisket has a bit of fat on it and some marbling throughout, it’s a satiating beef cut so you don’t need as much of it as lean beef. Plus, it also depends on what else you are serving with the brisket.

If you’re serving mostly brisket, you’d want to allow for 200-300 grams or 8 ounces of cooked brisket or more for hungry tummies. In my case, we served the meat with a coleslaw salad and sweet potatoes on the side, so 150-200 grams or 5-7 ounces of brisket was sufficient. I purchased a 1kg/2lb flat cut brisket with a fat cap on the top (outer side), and trimmed fat on the bottom. It served 6 (4 adults and 2 kids). 

For 6 adults and a couple of sides to go with the meat, I’d say get a 1.2-1.5 kg / 2.5-3 pound brisket. The recipe will work for that amount of meat as well. 

How To Cooke A Brisket In The Oven

You will find the full list of ingredients, instructions and nutritional breakdown in the recipe card below. Here are some steps showing you how to prepare and cook a brisket in the oven. Begin by removing the brisket from the fridge to bring it to room temperature (if you plan to cook it right away).

Brisket Rub

The first thing I do is prepare the spiced brisket rub. To be honest, you can use whatever spices you have on hand. Even just salt and pepper will work. I went with a few of my favourites like smoked paprika, onion and garlic powder and cumin. Mix it with salt and put it aside.

How To Trim A Brisket?

As I mentioned above, the brisket will come with a layer of fat on top (usually). I like to trim off some of the thicker parts, I just slice the top layer of the fat off. But, I still leave a lot of the fat on to flavour the meat and keep it moist while cooking.

You can leave all the fat on as it will melt down while roasting. I find that too much fat would end up in my broth and the sauce can get a little oily but that’s a personal preference.

Next, rub the brisket with the spice rub evenly on all sides. At this stage, you can store the brisket in the fridge overnight to infuse it with all those spices or you can get straight to cooking. 

Step 1. Preheat the oven to 170 C/ 338 F. 

Step 3. Sear the brisket on both sides. You can do this in a frying pan or directly in the oven tray over medium heat on the stove. I add a little oil first and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side. 

Step 3. Prepare the ingredients for the broth in the meantime. Remove the brisket and pour in the stock to deglaze the bottom of the pan. Turn the stove off. Stir in the garlic, onions, Worcestershire sauce, balsamic and Tamari soy sauce (or coconut aminos). This will be our braising broth that will turn into a sauce/reduction.

Step 4. Place the brisket on top of the onions (fat cap side up!) and nestle it into the broth. Cover the whole tray tightly with foil and place in the oven for a total of about 3 hours.

Step 5. You have to check the brisket after every hour. Remove the tray carefully and lift the foil off. Use a spoon to stir the broth around and baste the brisket with a few tablespoons of the liquid. After the second hour, you will see that the meat is starting to brown and the broth is reducing into a thicker sauce. Scoop some of the onions and garlic pieces on top of the meat as well when basting with the sauce. 

In the last hour of cooking, I like to check it twice (every 30 minutes) because this is when the sauce can sometimes reduce too much on one side of the pan (say the hotter part of your oven). If it looks like the sauce is thickening and starting to look too sticky, add a little more stock or water and stir through. You want to avoid burning the reduction! 

After 3 hours, turn the oven off and leave the brisket to rest for 10-15 minutes. You can also remove the tray and let it rest under foil for a bit. After that, transfer the brisket to a cutting board and slice it into whatever thickness slices you like. Scoop all of that gorgeous, caramelised reduction and onions on top.

More Tasty Beef Recipes To Try

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Other Beef Brisket FAQs

Where To Buy Brisket?

Your local butcher is probably your best bet for getting a piece of brisket, however, it is now a popular cut of beef and is frequently found in the supermarket. Look for it in the beef section, usually next to roasting cuts. 

How To Slice Brisket?

Properly, slow-cooked brisket should be juicy and tender and is easily sliced with a knife. I like to do 1-cm slices but you can also dice it. Cut from the fat cap layer down.

What To Serve With Brisket? Best Sides For Brisket? 

Traditionally, smoked or BBQ-ed brisket is served with all the expected trimmings of coleslaw, fries, pickles, corn on the cob, potato salad or baked potatoes, collard greens, mac’n’cheese and so on.

If you eat bread, soft bread rolls, wraps or tacos can be used as vessels for the brisket. For a lower-carb meal, opt for a nice coleslaw and sweet potato baked fries or a nice cauliflower mash on the side. 

What To Do With Leftover Brisket?

IF you have any leftover brisket, there are many tasty ways to enjoy it. Store it in the fridge for up to 3 days (well-covered) and use it to make things like:

• Brisket nachos or tacos 
• Brisket wraps, rolls or sandwiches
• Diced it finely and trow in a brisket fried rice (with regular or cauliflower rice)
• Top your favourite bowl of salad for extra protein
• Brisket and eggs for hearty breakfast
• More ideas for leftover brisket here.

How To Reheat Brisket?

I usually do it in a small frying pan with a little oil or a splash of water. You can also reheat in the oven at 200 C/395 F for 5-10 minutes or in a microwave on HIGH for 1 minute or so. Cold brisket is also quite nice.