Brisket is one of the most flavorful cuts of beef to barbecue. This cut of meat is loaded with fat, so it’s perfect for cooking either in a smoker via consistent low heat or in the oven on low for 10 hours. But where does the brisket come from?
Brisket comes from the lower chest (breast) of a cow, and it’s one of the nine main cuts of beef. On its own, a brisket is a fairly tough meat, and that’s why it’s important to cook a brisket with low heat over a longer period of time. Slow cooking and smoking are ideal.
The best brisket is loaded with flavor, has retained all of its juice, and is so delicious it will melt in your mouth.
A brisket gives you tons of meat, but unless you served your brisket at a huge gathering, you’re probably going to have some to put away for another day.
Brisket is a delicious and tender cut of meat that many people enjoy. However, reheating brisket can be a daunting task, as it may become dry and lose its flavor if not done correctly. It is essential to know the proper reheating techniques to ensure that the leftover brisket is just as succulent and tasty as when it was first cooked.
One of the most effective methods to reheat brisket involves using an oven, which maintains the meat’s juiciness while providing the perfect temperature to maintain its tenderness. Another commonly preferred method of heating brisket is the sous vide technique. This method involves sealing the brisket in a plastic bag and immersing it in a hot water bath – a process that delivers a moist and evenly heated result.
The fact is, having leftover brisket is a good problem to have. There are so many things you can do with leftover brisket, but reheating brisket properly can be a challenge.
Fortunately, there are some techniques for correctly storing and reheating brisket so that it retains its full flavor. Knowing how to reheat brisket will help you make the most of this gorgeous hunk of meat.
There are three primary ways to reheat brisket: heat brisket using the oven, reheating with your smoker, or reheating with the sous vide method.
All three brisket reheating methods have their pros and cons, so let’s dive in and learn all about reheating brisket correctly. How to reheat brisket depends largely on how you plan to use your leftover brisket. Also, how to reheat brisket depends on how you have cut your cooked meat.
Best Way to Reheat Brisket in the Oven
The easiest thing to do is to reheat brisket in oven. However, it’s important to know precisely how to reheat brisket in the oven.
The most important rule for reheating brisket in the oven is to not blast your brisket with heat. When you reheat your smoked brisket, keep the oven temperature at about 325 degrees Fahrenheit and no hotter.
Higher temperatures will cause all of the brisket’s juice to evaporate, leaving you with chewy and tough meat.
Also, be sure to preheat your oven. Turn your oven on and then start preparing your brisket. Get your leftover meat out of the refrigerator and put the meat in a roasting pan or baking pan and cover loosely with aluminum foil.
Allow your beef brisket to sit out at room temperature for between 20-30 minutes so that it won’t have a cold center when you reheat it.
Before you stick your brisket in the oven, add extra liquid to the pan. Hopefully, you saved your cooking juices when you roasted your meat. If not, you can use a cup of beef stock or beef broth. In a pinch, you can even use chicken broth.
Once you have added your extra drippings, wrap the brisket up tightly with the aluminum foil before putting it into the oven. You’re going to double-wrap your leftover brisket with foil and seal it tightly by crimping the aluminum foil down completely around the pan’s edges before you put the pan in the oven.
Now you’re ready to put the smoked meat in the oven. If it’s a whole brisket, it will take about an hour to reheat in the oven. If your brisket is sliced up or shredded, it will be fully reheated in approximately 20 minutes.
Once your meat is heated through, it’s ready to eat.
How to Reheat Smoked Brisket Using a Grill or Smoker
If you want to reheat your smoked brisket in your smoker or on the grill, the process will be very similar to what you do to reheat the brisket in the oven. However, how to reheat brisket on your smoker or grill is significantly different.
Allow your meat to sit outside of the fridge for 20-30 minutes so that it comes to room temperature. Once the brisket is at room temperature, wrap it in heavy
If you use your grill, heat your grill to 225 degrees Fahrenheit. The key to reheating brisket on the grill is using the two-zone cooking set up so that you don’t put too much heat onto your brisket. To do this, place your meat over indirect heat in the cool zone. You don’t want your brisket reheating directly over the charcoal or heat.
From the cool zone, allow the brisket to heat until it reaches an internal temperature of about 155 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, unwrap the foil and move the brisket to the direct heat zone for no more than five or 10 minutes. When the internal temperature is 160 degrees Fahrenheit, it is ready to serve.
For reheating brisket on a gas grill, use medium heat.
How to Reheat Brisket with the Sous Vide Method
The way sous vide works is that it gives your brisket or other foods a water bath in a pot of boiling water, thereby reheating food without adding any time to the cooking time.
The sous vide pot method takes longer, but if you are used to waiting for a long time for brisket to cook, this may not matter to you.
To reheat brisket with the sous vide pot method, let the brisket sit outside of the refrigerator for between 20 and 30 minutes so that it comes to room temperature. After that time, put your leftover brisket into a vacuum-sealed bag. You will need a vacuum sealer to do this.
Once your brisket is sealed, fill your sous vide bath with sufficient water to fully cover the brisket. Set your sous vide tool to 150 degrees Fahrenheit for reheating. Then you wait.
For an entire brisket, reheating can take about five hours for reheating using the sous vide method. To have your cooking brisket ready more quickly, slice it up first. The good thing about the sous vide method is that you don’t have to worry about your sliced brisket drying out and losing flavor.
How to reheat brisket slices? Slices of briskets that are 1/2-inch thick will be ready to eat in about 10 minutes, but thicker slices can take as long as two hours to reheat.
How to Store Brisket Properly
If you know that you want to store your leftover brisket, it’s a good idea to consider leaving it whole instead of sliced up. When you keep a brisket whole, it retains all the juice.
Although a whole brisket will take up a lot of space in the freezer and will require a longer reheating time, it’s totally worth it.
If you have a vacuum sealer, it’s best to store your brisket in the freezer in a bag that is vacuum-sealed. Vacuum sealed brisket lasts longer without getting freezer burn. However, if you need to store your frozen brisket in plastic wrap, that’s fine, too.
When you’re storing sliced brisket, store them in a freezer bag. If possible, toss in some of the leftover cooking juices so that your brisket will retain more moisture.
Why Microwaving Leftover Brisket Isn’t the Best Method for Reheating Smoked Brisket
How to reheat brisket? Not in the microwave if you want to enjoy your meat. If you microwave your leftover brisket, it will dry out more quickly. A microwave works by converting molecules of water into steam. Your brisket will release all of its moisture and you will end up with dry cooked brisket.
Even though the microwave may seem like the quickest method for reheating brisket, it’s not the best idea.
Ideas for Using Leftover Brisket
Do you need ideas for using leftover reheated brisket? Besides having that yummy brisket for making sandwiches, there are lots of other things you can do with leftover brisket.
For one thing, you could make a beef brisket grilled cheese. Another idea is to have some beef brisket with eggs for breakfast. You can even use eggs and potatoes with your brisket to make a delicious hash.
Do you have a shepherd’s pie recipe you love? Consider replacing the ground meat in the recipe with brisket with BBQ sauce.
Another idea is to use beef brisket leftovers to make quesadillas, Mexican street tacos, and even enchiladas.
You can even use leftover brisket with barbecue sauce to make a delicious beef stew.
Does your family love chili? Make a big old pot of chili using your brisket.
Use your leftover brisket to send baked beans to the next level. If you know you’re going to a get-together or having guests over, use brisket to make some empanadas or bruschetta.
And finally, freeze up some of your leftover brisket slices or shredded brisket in single-serving freezer bags.
Watch the video below for more great tips for reheating brisket.
How to Reheat Brisket to Keep It Juicy
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Cassie brings decades of experience to the Kitchen Community. She is a noted chef and avid gardener. Her new book "Healthy Eating Through the Garden" will be released shortly. When not writing or speaking about food and gardens Cassie can be found puttering around farmer's markets and greenhouses looking for the next great idea.
