Oven-Braised Corned Beef Brisket

17 Reviews
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Photo: Lee Harrelson; Styling: Jan Gautro
Yield
Makes 6 to 8 servings
March 1999
RECIPE BY Sunset

Cooking corned beef in the oven is much easier—and so much tastier—than boiling it. This 5-star Oven-Roasted Corned Beef Brisket Recipe guarantees a tender and delicious St. Patrick's Day feast. Make it, and you'll see why one reader calls it "the best corned beef I have ever had in my life!"

Ingredients

  • 1 piece (about 4 lb.) center-cut corned beef brisket
  • 1 lemon, ends trimmed
  • 1 onion (about 1/2 lb.), peeled
  • 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
  • 1/2 teaspoon whole allspice
  • 6 to 8 whole cloves
  • 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar

Nutritional Information

  • Calories 330
  • Caloriesfromfat 60%
  • Protein 21g
  • Fat 22g
  • Satfat 7.2g
  • Carbohydrate 9.8g
  • Fiber 0.5g
  • Sodium 1471mg
  • Cholesterol 111mg

How to Make It

Step 1

Trim and discard most of the surface fat from corned beef brisket. Rinse meat well under cool running water, rubbing gently to release its corning salt.

Step 2

Lay meat, fattiest side up, in a 2-inch-deep, 11- by 15- or 16-inch roasting pan. Thinly slice lemon (discard seeds) and onion and lay slices over meat. Sprinkle with peppercorns, allspice, and cloves.

Step 3

Set pan on middle rack in a 325° oven. Pour about 8 cups boiling water around brisket, seal the pan with foil, and bake until meat is very tender when pierced, about 4 hours. Uncover and drain off all but about 1 cup of the liquid. If desired, reserve the lemon and onion slices and rearrange them on top of the meat.

Step 4

In a small bowl, mix the mustard and brown sugar; spread evenly over meat, on top of the onion-lemon mixture. Broil about 8 inches from heat until the mustard mixture begins to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the corned beef to a platter. Serve hot, warm, or cold; slice meat across the grain.

Chef's Notes

The weight of the corned beef shrinks by about half as it cooks.

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Ratings & Reviews

pharm522
March 17, 2016
You want the brisket to break down and become soft, so the low and slow method is necessary to break down the tough meat.  At a higher temp and less time, the meat will be "done" but not juicy and tender.  If you use a smaller piece, it may take less time.  Go ahead and use the beer but I'd omit the lemon.  It will be delish.

bdempsey47
March 17, 2016

A Couple Question!

bnejedlo14
March 15, 2016
This recipe looks delish!!! I cannot wait to make this for my family. I've done a little research and found that a lot of people will bake their brisket at 350 for about 2 hours. Only 25 degree difference, but it's significantly shorter than instructed here. Is 4 hours about accurate? Also, does brisket need to be uncured? LAST QUESTION, can you or have you used beer instead of water to pour around the brisket to bake in? I appreciate the response!

pharm522's Review

dontcallmerosie
March 16, 2013
Best corned beef recipe ever! For cabbage, I take 1/3 pound bacon and cook just until the juices flow into the pan. The bacon will be undercooked but will cook with the cabbage later. Then chop up the head of cabbage. Take a large non-stick saucepan and place half the cabbage in the bottom, then season with seasoned salt and pepper, then on top, place a couple slices of bacon. Repeat with the remainderof cabbage, more seasonings and remainder of bacon. Pour the grease over the top of the cabbage and add about 1/4 cup of water to the pot. Turn on to medium low for about 45 minutes or cook to desired tenderness. Make sure not to hot so cabbage doesn't stick and scorch. To add carrots or potatoes, boil them separately and add to the cabbage about 20 minutes from end to take on the flavor.

JaniceVM's Review

EICrabb
April 03, 2010
Never made corned beef - and OMG was this awesome. So easy. Tender and delicious. I used a Trader Joes corned beef (uncured). I followed the recipe exactly. All who tasted wanted the recipes - and it has been recreated by them just as successfully. I'll never try another corned beef recipe!

dontcallmerosie's Review

hmc12989
March 09, 2011
This is easily THE best corned beef and the easiest to make. Oven roasting allows you to control the temp without constant monitoring. You will never go back to stovetop corned beef!

Helloktty's Review

Kelly
March 19, 2012
Incredible! I made this recipe for my parents tonight, for St Patricks Day dinner. I've never made corned beef and cabbage, you know, the whole shebang, but THIS really impressed them and completely put me at ease! I used the Trader Joes uncured corned beef, (i tried one of the samples at the store...yum,). then tossed three bags of the Trader Joes tiny Yukon gold potatoes in olive oil, rosemary, and sea salt in my electric skillet, and then sautéed cabbage in butter, salt and pepper. A perfect St Patty's meal, and my parents are hard to impress! As a side note, the other reviews were what made me choose this recipe, and I am only echoing their sentiments. Thanks for a great recipe!

Foolproof and delicious

mary327
February 14, 2018
I've used this recipe for the past few Saint Patrick's day parties to bulk-cook about 18lbs of the stuff and there's never any leftovers. I follow the directions to the "t" and I place two cuts of beefs per pan and they all come out so tender you'll shed a tear. Don't skip the step of coating in mustard/sugar and broiling, it adds a nice zing to it.

Will Never Boil Again

alice809
April 06, 2015
Great flavor and very tender.

UNBELIEVABLE

tiffany25
February 16, 2016
I have cooked corned beef brisket many times in the past and never never ever have I had it come out moist and delicious as this. I followed the recipe to the T except my piece of brisket was only 3.27 lbs. I cooked it for exactly 3 hrs. and then did the broiler thing. It sliced like a piece of filet mignon. My husband and son both loved it. I set the dinner table with knives and forks, but no knives needed. Fork tender. I will definitely only use this method in the future. Kudos 😋😋😋