Brisket Recipe Oven Method
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Apr 7, 2025 
Our Texas Style Oven Brisket Recipe is a simple smoky brisket recipe with a zesty dry rub, that can be made in the oven, instead of a smoker.
The Oven Beef Brisket Recipe For All
Brisket tends to be a tough cut of meat. It’s best when it is slow cooked and sliced thin so that the flavor and texture can both be enjoyed.
Texas is known for its classic brisket preparation, involving a dry rub spice blend and a long rest in an outdoor wood smoker. In my opinion, a slowly smoked brisket is the absolute best brisket available. It’s tender and rich, with pink smoke rings resting under thick chewy bark. However, as most of us don’t own an outdoor smoking cabinet, we’ll have to rely on other ways to achieve a similar result.
Sommer’s Recipe Notes
Today, I’m sharing my Texas Style Oven Brisket Recipe, a dry-rubbed brisket roasted in the oven over a water bath with liquid smoke. Is it as irresistible as a brisket smoked all night in a smoking cabinet? No. I won’t lie and tell you it turns out just the same.
However, this Oven Brisket is a close runner-up and much, much easier to prepare. Once you learn how to cook brisket in the oven, you will be so impressed! So break out the spices, preheat those ovens, and get ready for delicious, juicy brisket!
Our Texas Beef Brisket recipe is a marvelous main dish for holiday gatherings, or any time of the year!
Ingredients You Need
To make this Texas Oven Brisket Recipe, simply rub a large flat-cut brisket (or a whole packer brisket) with a “dry brine brisket” blend of salt and spices. The dry rub I used is comprised of:
- sea salt (or kosher salt or table salt)
- brown sugar
- chili powder
- paprika
- dried mustard
- garlic powder
- onion powder
- dried thyme (or rosemary)
Then lay it on a rack in a roasting pan, over water mixed with liquid smoke. You can use any variety of liquid smoke you prefer… Hickory, Cherry, Mesquite, Oak, etc.
How to Make Brisket in Oven
Learning to cook brisket in the oven is simple, but does take some time, so be patient! Find the full Oven Brisket Recipe with ingredient proportions, detailed instructions, and video tutorial in the recipe form at the bottom of the post.
Tips & Tricks
- If you have an oven with a build-in thermometer, run the wire out the side of the pan. If you are using a standard meat thermometer, insert it into the brisket, through the foil, so you can see the reading.
- Do not be tempted to raise the temperature for faster cooking time, or your brisket will be very tough. Slow oven roasting allows the fats to break down gradually, tenderizing the beef, so it has a stretchy, juicy quality in the end.
- To serve as a saucy BBQ brisket: Let the brisket rest for 30 minutes before slicing into it. Then place the sliced pieces into a baking dish with warm BBQ sauce in the bottom. You can warm up the sauce in the oven or on the stovetop. After placing the sliced pieces of brisket into the baking dish with sauce, allow people to serve from the baking dish to get some of the sauce with the brisket!
- The key to tender, juicy oven-baked brisket is cooking it at a low temperature for a long time! Don’t be tempted to increase the oven temperature over 250 degrees F here. You must be patient with the process!
- Some people cook their brisket without a dry rub, which is perfectly fine, but it won’t have as much flavor! If you are worried about your sodium intake, you can reduce the amount of salt in the dry rub and serve with a low-sodium BBQ sauce for extra flavor!
Serving Suggestions
This recipe is perfect for parties or for feeding a large family. It will also leave your house smelling like mouth-watering smokey brisket!
This brisket can be served in so many different ways! Serve it with your favorite barbecue sauce and corn on the cob! I definitely recommend making this into a leftover brisket sandwich on a fluffy brioche bun with bbq sauce. Try serving your Texas brisket recipe with some of my favorites:
- Mashed Potatoes
- Homemade Mac and Cheese
- Baked Beans
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Roasted Okra
- Collard Greens
- Potato Salad
This Texas Style Oven Brisket also pairs well with this Creamy Ranchero Sauce! Give it a try!
Also, try our Crock Pot Brisket Sandwiches recipe and our Smoked Brisket Recipe for more great sharing options for brisket!
Frequently Asked Questions
You need to allow the brisket to rest for at least 30 minutes after taking it out of the oven to let the juices fully redistribute. If you cut into it sooner, the juices will pour out of the beef, and the meat will be drier because of it!
Cooked brisket could last in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
Yes and no. If you rub the brisket with the spice rub and immediately place it in the oven, it’s just a brisket rub. It will flavor the exterior of the meat and the spices will penetrate a little way into the beef.
However, if you take the time to dry rub the brisket the night before baking (or even several hours before baking) and then place it in the refrigerator, this is considered a brisket dry brine. The salt and other seasonings have time to truly work their way down into the center of the beef.
Pro Tip: If time allows, always dry rub the brisket several hours before placing it in the oven.
Yes! You should wrap the brisket in foil and cook it in the oven until it reaches an internal temperature of 175 degrees. Then remove the foil and allow it to continue cooking slowly until it reaches 195 to 200 degrees F.
Yes, you will want to add water to the bottom of the roasting pan along with a little bit of liquid smoke for a classic smoky flavor! The water will help to keep the oven moist so that the brisket doesn’t dry out being in the oven for so long. Since the brisket isn’t touching the water, it can still create a bark around the edges!
Because brisket is a tougher cut of meat, it must come to a higher temperature internally before the fats start to break down and tenderize. You could technically take the brisket out of the oven at 175 degrees F and it will be cooked, but if you want to get the traditional brisket stretch in each slice, you need to allow enough time for the brisket to reach 195 to 200 degrees F.
A good rule of thumb is to cook your brisket 60 minutes per pound at 250 degrees F. So if you had a 3-pound brisket, you’d cook it for about 3 hours.
However, many different factors can throw this estimate off. So, make sure the internal temperature of the brisket is 195 degrees F before removing it from the oven.
Looking for More Beef Recipes? Be Sure to Try:
- Crockpot Bacon Wrapped Beef Tenderloin
- Oven Roasted Standing Rib Roast
- Baked Corned Beef and Cabbage in the Oven
- Chopped Steak with Mushroom Gravy
- Beef Bacon Recipe
- Slow Cooker Italian Beef Recipe
- Best Beef Stew
- Philly Cheesesteak Sliders
- Honey Garlic Beef Tenderloin
- Best Smoked Brisket Recipe
- Instant Pot Italian Beef
- Best Beef Pot Roast
Let me know how your brisket turned out in the comments below and don’t forget to print, pin, or download this recipe! It’s a keeper for sure!
Oven Brisket Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 5-6 pound boneless flat-cut beef brisket (not corned beef brisket)
- 2 tablespoons sea salt
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon dried mustard
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1/4 cup liquid smoke, any variety
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Pour 3 cups water into the bottom of a large roasting pan with a rack and add the liquid smoke.
- In a small bowl, mix the salt, brown sugar, and all remaining spices until well combined. Rub the spice blend over the entire surface of the brisket and lay the brisket on the wire roasting rack. Insert an oven-safe meat thermometer into the thickest part of the brisket and cover the roasting pan tightly with foil. *If you have an oven with a built-in meat thermometer, run the wire out the side of the pan. If you are using a standard meat thermometer, insert it into the brisket, through the foil, so you can see the reading.
- Slow roast in the oven until the internal temperature reaches 175 degrees F. Then remove the foil and continue roasting until the internal temperature reaches 195 degrees F. Depending on your oven, and where you inserted the meat thermometer, this process may take 5-6 hours.
- Take the brisket out of the oven and allow it to rest for 30 minutes before serving. Cover it loosely with foil to help retain the heat. Cut the brisket across the grain into thin slices, and serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
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I don’t know how much it weighed, but it took about 11 hours to cook! And it was worth the wait. I was surprised that despite being cooked in a moist environment, the exterior is covered in bark, just like if it were smoked. I’m very happy with my first ever brisket, thank you for sharing this recipe.
8 lb. brisket. 300 degrees sounded too hot. Cooked at 275 for 10 hours. Burned to a crisp. Threw it away.
Recipe calls for oven temperature of 225f
Just made this with a small 3 pound brisket. Very good.
How long did it take? I have a 3lb!
I have an 8 pound flat that I started at 930 this morning. It got to 175 degrees in about an hour and a half so I unwrapped and sat back in the oven. It’s been almost three hours now and the temp has dropped to 169. I couldn’t find anything about briskets hitting the plateau in the oven but I’m keeping positive and hoping I see an increase soon. First time trying a brisket in any fashion.
I made a 12 lb brisket. Rubbed hours ahead.
Baked at 250/ 800pm to 5:am. Based on 1 hour per lb, I figured it would not be done. The thermometer shot way up. I took it out, letbit sit, refrigerated and then sliced cold. Looks ok. Don’t feel seasoning got through it well. Gonna eat this afternoon and hoping reheating doesn’t make it fall apart. Only thing I really did different was use apple cider in pan and wrap bacon on top of the fatty side of the brisket hoping to add more smoke.
I don’t have any liquid smoke. Will this mess up the flavor?? Thanks in advance!
Hi Amber,
It will still taste great, just not smokey. :)
I made this brisket last night and it was delicious!! I had a 5 lb brisket and I baked it at 300 for 5 hrs. Then I sliced the meat and put it back in the juices and baked it for another 2 hrs. I used a quarter cup of the liquid smoke and appx 5-6 cups of water. The liquid was all the way up to the fat of the meat. Be sure to cook the brisket with the fat side up. My only regret was that I wish I made more.
I bought a whole brisket and separated the point and flat (poorly). I put what I think was mostly point cut in the freezer, and my mangled two pieces of his flat cut with point remnants went in the oven.
Adding the spice rub many hours ahead of time is not necessary, just the salt. So I salted it almost 24hrs in advance, and added the rub 1.5 hours before cooking and let it sit on the counter. That is the only thing I didn’t follow the recipe exactly on.
I don’t know how much it weighed, but it took about 11 hours to cook! And it was worth the wait. I was surprised that despite being cooked in a moist environment, the exterior is covered in bark, just like if it were smoked. I’m very happy with my first ever brisket, thank you for sharing this recipe.
Stars.
Omg. Really? While you may know how to properly use a comma your “ability to express an opinion using any intellect or RESPECT…” is definitely not your forte. Just be nice. Remember what Thumper recited: If you can’t say anything nice don’t say anything at all
Tough and dry. I Bought a precise meat thermometer and followed this recipe to a T. The brisket cooked for about 6 hours until reaching 155F and then I uncovered and cooked for another 2 hours to get the brisket to reach 168F. The results of 8 hours was barely eatable. I think this is a result of the brisket not simmering in the liquid, but being essentially steamed.
The instructions say cook to 175, uncover, cook to 195. Not 155 and 168. That’s an undercooked brisket.
Thanks for sharing this secret. I’m gonna try it .
Love your recipe.
I never cook a brisket in the oven..But today it’s F🤬’n cold out in Post Falls Idaho…Texas style BBQ is my favorite…so I’m being lazy..Drink’n..And making this oven roasted Brisket…I tweaked it just a little…I used yellow mustard as my rub…left the rest the same…Smells absolutely amazing…I’m gonna grab another beer..chill…while my basset hounds camp on the kitchen floor…in anticipation…Cheers!
I cooked a 12 pound brisket and it was done in less than 8 hours. As others have said shape plays a big part in cook time. It was, however, so moist and flavourful. I actually let it rest covered for 2 hours. It was more of pulled beef day one but sliced beautifully the next day (after being tightly wrapped and refrigerated.)The only thing I will do different next time is to remove some of the juices earlier…..there was a lot!