Slow Cooker Brisket in BBQ Sauce is easy melt in your mouth beef brisket recipe! In the most amazing and flavorful Barbecue sauce, made completely from scratch. The brisket is tender, the sauce is out of this world, and this is one of the easiest meals you'll ever make! And minimal clean-up!
Are you a beef fan? Try Italian Style Beef Liver, Tri-Tip Santa Maria Style and Poor Man's Burnt Ends.
Use your old fashioned white porcelain slow cooker! No need for fancy new equipment, because this slow cooked beef brisket will be perfectly tender in the one with only two settings! It will smell great it taste great.
The perfect Sunday afternoon is making slow cooked Beef Brisket, when you want to enjoy a glass of wine waiting for its arrival at your dinner table.
We made this juicy brisket for our New Year's Eve celebration and it was an absolute hit! Slow cooking the brisket allows the connective tissues to slowly dissolve into the meat. As a result, the meat is amazingly tender. We served it with Garlic Parmesan Sweet Potatoes.
Why you'll love this recipe
- Low and slow equals fall-apart tender: You'll love slow cooker beef brisket because the low-and-slow cooking method creates a fall-apart tender, juicy, and incredibly flavorful cut of meat from an otherwise tough and inexpensive cut.
- Easy to make: The slow cooker does all the work while filling your kitchen with delicious aromas.
- Delicious end result: Use the brisket in sandwiches, add it to tacos, or serve it with various sides, such a perfect meal for busy weeknights or gatherings.
How to slow cook brisket
The cook time in slow cooker is 8 hours which yields a tender brisket that is sliceable but tender so the slices tear easily.
Because brisket is a cut of beef that holds together pretty well even when cooked to the point of being shreddable, you don't have to worry about overcooking it. If you pull the brisket out too early, add it back in to the slow cooker and continue cooking!
Slow cooker on LOW: Cook 4 lb. beef brisket for 8 hours.
Slow cooker on HIGH: 5 hours for 4 lb. brisket.
How to slice the brisket
Let's make sure that your knife is very sharp. Otherwise, it will not be able to produce the thinly sliced meat that we are aiming for here. You should use either a carving knife or a chef knife. The blade must be SHARP! If you don't have a sharpener at hand but have a cabinet full of coffee mugs like we do, run a sharp edge on your knife along the bottom of a ceramic mug. This should temporarily sharpen your knife.
Next, find the direction of the grain. It's basically the way the muscle fibers are aligned. Then slice across the grain rather than parallel with it. Now put the blade of your knife perpendicular to the grain and start slicing at an angle. Go with the short strokes. Make sure to slice your slow cooked beef brisket thinly.
Hint: When you slice with the grain as opposed to across the grain, you will get these long, shredded pieces. This is a good indication that you are cutting the wrong way.
What's in the rub
First, beef brisket is rubbed with the special rubbing mixture. that includes paprika, cumin, mustard powder, garlic & onion powders.
I recommend rubbing the brisket the night before. Then you will place the beef brisket with the rub in the resealable food-storage plastic bag. You will refrigerate it overnight.
How to make the BBQ sauce
First, add the ingredients of the homemade barbecue sauce and mix the barbecue sauce ingredients right in the slow cooker.
After slow cooking the beef brisket, you will transfer the barbecue sauce to the saucepan in order to thicken it.
You will simmer the BBQ sauce in the saucepan on the stove-top for 15 minutes until it's thickened.
Slow Cooker Barbecue Beef Brisket
Ingredients
- 4 lb. beef brisket (fresh or thawed, if previously frozen)
Rubbing mixture:
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Homemade Barbecue Sauce:
- ¾ cup beef broth
- 1 ½ cups ketchup
- 2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ⅓ cup vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoon mustard powder
- 1 teaspoon ancho chili pepper
Instructions
Rubbing mixture:
- In small bowl, stir together all ingredients from the rubbing mixture. Rub this mixture over beef brisket (can be done the day before). If done ahead of time, place beef brisket in the resealable food-storage plastic bag and refrigerate.
Barbecue sauce:
- Add all the ingredients from the Homemade Barbecue Sauce ingredient section into your slow cooker and mix them all together with a whisk.
Adding Beef Brisket:
- Place beef brisket on top of the barbecue sauce. Using a deep metal spoon, pour some of the barbecue sauce over top.
- Cover and cook for 4 pound beef brisket for 8 hours on low.Once the time is up, remove brisket onto a plate or a cutting board. Turn off the slow cooker.
To thicken the barbecue sauce:
- Remove the barbecue sauce liquid from your slow cooker and add it to the medium size saucepan. Bring to a boiling point and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
How to slice beef brisket:
- Cut a small corner of the brisket to determine the direction of the grain of the meat. The grain should be perpendicular to your knife. Start slicing across the grin.
To serve:
- Arrange sliced brisket on a plate or a bun and pour Barbecue sauce on top of the slices. Alternatively, you can also reheat sliced beef brisket in the sauce and serve it warm.
Once again, to make a perfect fall apart brisket - no reason to use a fancy slow cooker for this at all - you will have beautiful results with the old fashioned one!
What to serve with the brisket?
I usually enjoy my brisket with Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes. But you can also choose Spicy Maple Sweet Potatoes or Cheddar, Thyme and Beer Au Gratin. And don't forget about this sweet cornbread recipe.
Megan says
I used this recipe twice for Easter and the flavor is amazing! I used thick BBQ sauce and add a bit more broth.
Olya says
Thank you for letting me know - I love this as an Easter recipe as well!
Greg says
If I cut the brisket in half, would that cut some time off?
Olya says
Keep the same time for the same weight of brisket.
Linda says
I was able to cook tender brisket similar size in 6 hours.
Olya says
Oh nice! I see smaller briskets being sold out there - 3 pounds and 6 hours is great.
El says
What are you recommended timings for a larger piece of meat?
Olya says
If the brisket is 4-5 pounds - use same time 8 hours.
Gina says
I just got a slow cooker and am not a big cook. I want to make brisket for daughter's graduation party. Some folks can't do spicy. Is this a fairly mild seasoning recipe?
Olya says
Yes, it's very mild.
Leila says
What happens if I make it in medium speed? Will I be able to shred it?
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
Cooking brisket low and slow results in very tender meat. I recommend going with slow speed and longer time. You can go medium and adjust time slightly - check it after 6 hours.
Rosalie tovar says
I made the brisket yesterday and we are enjoying it all day today thank you!!!!
Cindy miller says
I made it in the old fashioned white porcelain slow cooker that has only two settings and it smelled great it tastes great no reason to use a fancy slow cooker for this at all
Dan V says
This looks good.
Do you think this would work with a pork-butt to make pork BBQ?
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
You're thinking about making BBQ pulled pork sandwiches... Yummy. Same thing - slow cook for 8 hours on low (same directions as in the recipe) and then of course shred it. And also do simmer the sauce after taking it out of the slow cooker - just enough to thicken it a bit.
Tara says
I used supermarket bbq sauce with this very easy