Braised Beef Brisket

5 from 13 votes

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Deliciously tender Braised Beef brisket is a great way to enjoy fruity, flavorful beef without breaking the bank! With aromatic garlic and onions, wholesome celery and carrots, and a mouthwatering wine sauce made from the braising liquid, it’s a restaurant-quality meal you can enjoy right at home.

close up: slices of braised beef with gravy


To get a taste of high-quality, high-flavor meat, slow and steady wins the race. Braising is the “low and slow” method for preparing beef brisket, and your patience truly pays off when you take that first bite! 

So what exactly is braised beef? It’s a dish prepared by slowly cooking meat and vegetables at a low heat until melt-in-your-mouth tender. The meat is seared beforehand, trapping in the seasoning and juices. The same process can be used to prepare other meats and even vegetables, like in my braised chicken and cabbage

You may find an entire brisket that includes both the flat (which we use for making braised beef brisket) and the point, or deckle. If you wind up with more than the roughly 6 lbs of meat needed for this recipe, you could use the excess to make corned beef.

photo collage: seasoned brisket uncooked, and fully cooked in white casserole dish

INGREDIENT NOTES AND SUBSTITUTIONS

  • Flat Brisket – Trim all fat from the meat before proceeding – for me, this reduced the weight of my flat brisket from 8 lbs to 6.5 lbs. 
  • Dry Rub – A combination of kosher salt, black pepper, and celery salt. Other common spices to use include cumin and paprika.
  • Bacon Fat – Regular vegetable or olive oil are appropriate substitutes.
  • White Onions, Carrots, & Celery – These are the most common slow-cooking vegetables to add flavor. You could also add mushrooms and potatoes.
  • Burgundy Red Wine – Pinot Noir, Domaine Leroy, and Merlo are a handful of good options. Pomegranate or concord grape juice are both non-alcoholic substitutes that can be used. 
  • Dried Thyme – Dried herbs add concentrated flavor that will enhance the braised beef and sauce. Fresh can be used as well, but you will need much more – 6 teaspoons of fresh. 
  • Beef Broth – This broth will, of course, match the flavor of the meat best. However, mushroom, vegetable, or even chicken broth can be substituted if necessary.
overhead photo of braised beef brisket on cutting board

HOW TO MAKE BRAISED BEEF

  1. Season and Marinate. Rub the meat with the salt, pepper, and celery salt, pressing the seasonings into the surface. Wrap in plastic wrap, place on a baking sheet, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to overnight. 
  2. Prepare to Bake. When ready to proceed, bring the beef brisket to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 275°F with a rack in the lower third of the oven.
  3. Sear the Meat. Heat the bacon fat in a skillet on high. Sear the meat on all sides until browned, then rest the meat on a platter.
  4. Deglaze and Add Vegetables. Lower the heat to medium and brown all vegetables until just soft. Pour the wine in and boil until almost all the liquid has evaporated. Add the garlic, thyme, and bay leaves to the pan. Add enough broth until it comes about halfway up the pan and boil. Push the vegetables around the edges of the skillet and lay the meat in the center. Transfer to the oven and braise uncovered for 3 to 3.5 hours until fork tender. 
  5. Reduce Braising Liquid. Remove the meat from the skillet and cover it with foil to keep it warm. Remove the fat if desired. Strain the braising liquid, moving the cooked vegetables to a serving bowl and covering to keep warm. Return the skillet to the stove and heat on high until reduced by half – about 15 minutes. If not thick enough, add a cornstarch slurry (2 tablespoons cornstarch, ¼ cup water).
  6. Slice and Serve. Place the meat on a cutting board and slice again the grain. Plate with the vegetables, spoon the sauce overtop and serve.
juicy slices of braised beef brisket with sauce

What kind of meat is braised beef?

Because the process does such a great job at tenderizing, some prefer opting for tougher cuts like a chuck roast – it’s inexpensive, and it will end up tender and delicious no matter what.
I personally like to use brisket. This is a cut that requires proper technique to make it tender. It’s also rather lean, which I always appreciate in a cut of meat. Another favorite of mine is braised short ribs.

How do you braise beef so it’s tender?

It’s important to have the right amount of liquid and to cook for the proper amount of time. And while you can use any liquid – even water – to braise, I find that using something with acidity (like red wine) helps to make it extra tender. 
The most important thing to remember is to cook at a low temperature for a long time.

How long can you refrigerate braised beef brisket?

Store any leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. You could also freeze the meat for up to 3 months. 

Place it in the skillet along with the sauce and reheat at around 350°F until warmed through. You really only want to give it enough time to warm up, not to cook any further.

How to freeze braised beef

Lay the slices of meat in a large freezer bag and pour the sauce over the top. Squeeze out as much air as you can before freezing for up to 3 months.

Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating. Keep in mind that it may take a day or two for the meat to fully defrost.

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This recipe post, originally published on Kevin Is Cooking December 2020, has been updated with new content, photos and/or video in April, 2023.

close up of sliced braised brisket

Braised Beef Brisket

5 from 13 votes
Braised Beef is incredibly tender, moist, and served with a red wine sauce. Don’t skip our recipe for delicious beef brisket and vegetables!
Servings: 8 servings
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 3 hours 20 minutes
Brine (Dry Rubbed): 3 hours
Total: 6 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients 

  • 8 lb beef flat brisket (See Note 1)

Dry Rub

Assembly

Instructions 

  • Season trimmed brisket with kosher salt, ground pepper and celery salt, pressing to adhere on all sides. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate on a baking tray (to catch any drips) 3 hours, or best overnight.
  • Bring brisket to room temperature. Place a rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 275°F.
  • On the stove top heat bacon fat on High in a large roasting pan set over 2 burners. Sear brisket on all sides until browned, 7–10 minutes. Transfer to a platter to rest.
  • Reduce heat to medium and add the vegetables to pan. Cook until browned and just soft, about 15 minutes. Add the wine or juice, bring to a boil, and cook until almost evaporated, 10 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme and bay leaves. Pour broth to come halfway up side of pan, and bring to a boil. Using a spoon or spatula, move vegetables to the sides of the pan and place the seared brisket in center. Braise uncovered in oven until meat is tender, 3 to 3.5 hours. You're looking for fork tender brisket.
  • Transfer brisket to a tray, cover with foil and keep warm. Remove and discard the fat from surface of braising liquid (optional). Strain braising liquid into large measuring cup and transfer cooked vegetables to serving bowl. Cover to keep warm. Cook braising liquid over high heat until reduced by half, about 15 minutes (or thicken with 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 1/4 cup water mixed).
  • Transfer brisket to a cutting board and slice against the grain. Arrange on platter and pour reduced braising liquid over and serve immediately with vegetables.

Notes

  1. Often times you can purchase an entire brisket that includes the flat and point (deckle). Sometimes the butcher just has one or the other. For this recipe I used a flat brisket, which is great for braising or making corned beef. I trimmed the 8 lb flat brisket of all excess fat and the weight was a total of 6.5 lbs.
  2. If you do not drink red wine (alcohol), feel free to substitute Pomegranate juice or Concord grape juice (non-alcoholic). A friend told me it worked well.
  3. Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit’s Red-Wine-Braised Brisket by Michael McLaughlin.

Nutrition

Calories: 881kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 98g | Fat: 41g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 288mg | Sodium: 4797mg | Potassium: 1993mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 7785IU | Vitamin C: 7.2mg | Calcium: 93mg | Iron: 10.2mg

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Course: Dinners
Cuisine: American
Have You Made This Recipe? Let Me Know on InstagramTag @keviniscooking or tag me #keviniscooking!
titled photo shows juicy sliced braised beef brisket

Kevin

Whether in the kitchen or on the grill, you’ll find me cooking American favorites with a love for BBQ, Mexican and Tex Mex. I’m passionate about making tasty food because life’s too short to be bland!

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47 Comments

  1. I’m from Texas, where cooking brisket is an art. This was like a poor quality, sad pot roast recipe. The amount of liquid called for is ridiculous. Eight cups of broth PLUS two cups of wine! I had the sense to cut the liquid in half but it was still floating. The carrots were brown mush after floating in that for 3 hours. Very unappetizing appearance and flavor.

    1. For an 8 lb brisket braising for 3+ plus hours uncovered it needs that much liquid. By chance did you cover it while braising? You only cover to keep warm AFTER cooking when making the reduced sauce.

  2. Hi, what is a good substitute for bacon fat? I can’t find it in Australia. Unless I cut the fat off the bacon and just cook the fat?
    Thank you

    1. I keep bacon fat in a jar in my refrigerator after rendering bacon for breakfast. You can find it in some markets and online like Amazon, too. It adds so much flavor! I hope you find and give this a try Brooke.

  3. 5 stars
    Hi, I will pot roast or braise just about any cut. Instead of brisket, which is sometimes tough to get, I like to pot roast a 3tip roast. The muscle fiber runs long in the cut much like brisket. I buy untrimmed 3tip and trim off only the ugly fat which usually is very little off the cap. I either just salt or use a simple dry rub after I sear. Often I don’t sear at all, just use a rub. I heat my oven to 250º. I use a very large amount of sofrito and garlic, sometimes only a half dozen sweet onions and a full head of garlic. The sofrito goes in my dutch oven and I sauté it until the veg softens, weeps, and starts to color. Then in goes the wine and it simmers until the alcohol evaporates out, then the roast goes in fat cap up on top of the veg, the cover goes on, and into the oven it goes until it is fully fork tender. The meat comes out when it is and I make sauce or gravy out of the pot jus, if sofrito, or add in some broth after I finish cooking the onions down, if onions and just garlic. A huge handful of golden raisins goes in and maybe a little curry powder if I’m feeling it. You can shred the meat and add it to buttered egg noodles, sauce it, and chuck in a cup of fresh chopped parsley. That my friend, is good eats! The possibilities with pot roasting and brazing are endless and are definitely my favorite method of cooking.

    1. Excellent! Thanks for coming back to let me know Roger. Love your tips here! I love the golden raisin and curry adds, will have to try that. 🙂