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Slow Cooker Holiday Brisket + VIDEO

This easy brisket recipe is the perfect addition to any holiday menu. A homemade simple, tomato-based sauce cooks over the beef producing melt-in-your-mouth meat. Make this low-carb, paleo, whole30 brisket in your slow cooker or Instant Pot.

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Even though I’m making this brisket with Rosh Hashanah in mind, I’m leaving the name of generic and just calling it holiday brisket because it can be served for any holiday. Over the years I’ve made this for Christmas, Hanukkah, Easter, Passover, multiple Sunday dinners or whenever I want to impress my meat-eating friends.

Brisket, A Tough Cut Of Beef

Brisket is a popular cut of beef for braising or slow cooking for a reason. Beef brisket is a cut of meat from the breast of a cow. It’s a tough cut of meat to cook with but the great thing about the slow cooker or pressure cooker (Instant Pot) is that even the toughest cuts will be cooked to melt-in-your-mouth tender. I purchase my brisket with the fat already trimmed. Please note that depending on the size & shape of brisket, you may have to cut it into pieces to get it to fit into the appliance.

tomato-based sauce

Tomato Based Sauce

The star of this recipe is actually the tomato based sauce. It’s a simple sauce consisting of crushed tomatoes, beef broth, onion flakes, and simple seasonings like parsley, salt & pepper.

before (slow cooker)

To Sear Or Not To Sear

To sear or not to sear? That is the question. For the Instant Pot, it’s an included instruction. For the slow cooker, searing your meat before adding it to the slow cooker is listed as optional, don’t ever let anyone tell you different. I will always leave this as a recommended but optional step. I have made plenty of briskets and roasts in the slow cooker without searing them beforehand and they came out just fine. As you can see in the pics, I did not sear my brisket before adding it to the slow cooker for this recipe.

after (slow cooker)

Other brisket  recipes you might enjoy:

Horseradish Brisket (Passover Brisket)

Brisket

BBQ Brisket

Brisket Chili

this version uses onions in place of dried onion flakes

Make This Ahead of Time

Slow cooker or Instant Pot brisket can not only be made the day ahead of time and reheated, some might argue that it’s actually better that way. After it cools, I put the entire slow cooker or Instant Pot base right in the refrigerator. The next day, you will be able to easily remove the fat that has hardened. This is also a good time to slice against the grain if you’re going to do so because the meat is easier to cut cold. To reheat, add the brisket back into the slow cooker or Instant Pot and reheat on the warm setting. If you’re using a Crock-Pot brand of slow cooker, did you know that the base is oven safe? Yup, you can pop the entire base in the oven for temperatures up to 400 degrees.

Serving The Brisket

Brisket is a cut of beef that is traditionally served by slicing against the grain. It can also be shredded too. If I’m eating the brisket the day I cook it, the meat is usually so tender that it falls apart I take it out the slow cooker. When that happens, I just shred it down. When I make the brisket a day ahead & cool it overnight in the frig, I usually slice the brisket against the grain. The meat is cold & firm which makes it’s easy to cut. Same taste regardless of how you serve it.

I use a 6-quart slow cooker or Instant Pot to make this recipe.

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Holiday Brisket

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  • Total Time: 5 hours 10 mins
  • Yield: 8-12 servings 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 34 pounds beef brisket
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • 2 tablespoons oil

Sauce:

  • 28 ounces crushed or diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup low-sodium beef broth
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1/4 cup dried onion flakes
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

Slow Cooker

Optional step: add oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season brisket with salt & pepper.  Add seasoned brisket to heated skillet and pan-sear a few minutes on each side. 

  1. Lay brisket in the slow cooker. If you didn’t sear the meat, then season it with the salt & pepper now.
  2. In a medium size, bowl mix together sauce ingredients. Pour sauce on top of the brisket.
  3. Cook HIGH 4-5 hours or LOW 8-10.
  4. Remove brisket from the slow cooker. Either cut against the grain or shred the meat.

Instant Pot

  1. Season brisket generously with salt & pepper. Turn the on the pressure cooker to saute. Once hot, add oil and the brisket and sear a few minutes on both sides until browned. Remove brisket and set aside.
  2. In a medium size bowl, mix together sauce ingredients. Pour mixture into the pressure cooker and deglaze by scraping off any browned bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Add brisket back into the Instant Pot, fat side up.
  3. Select manual setting. Adjust to high pressure & and set time for 25 minutes per pound of meat. Naturally for about 10 minutes, then quick release for remaining pressure.
  4. Remove brisket from the Instant Pot. Either cut against the grain or shred the meat.
  • Author: Shannon Epstein
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 5 hours

Nutrition

  • Serving Size:
  • Calories: 417
  • Sugar: 4.5 g
  • Sodium: 430.2 mg
  • Fat: 20.4 g
  • Saturated Fat: 6.4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 8.1 g
  • Fiber: 1.2 g
  • Protein: 48.3 g
  • Cholesterol: 140.6 mg

This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on one of the product links, I’ll might receive compensation. For more about my disclosure policy see here: https://fitslowcookerqueen.com/about/disclosure-policy/.

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Slow Cooker Brisket in Tomato Sauce (Paleo, Whole30) - Fit SlowCooker Queen

Saturday 30th of December 2017

[…] this recipe looks similar it’s because I pretty much took my slow cooker holiday brisket recipe and converted the sauce to be healthier, sans the bouillon granules. Removing this and using […]

Julie

Wednesday 13th of September 2017

I love slow cooker recipes. I work long shifts and these are always so convenient plus they make your house smell good. Thanks for sharing this recipe!

Healthwealthbridge by Dr.Amrita Basu

Wednesday 13th of September 2017

This looks delicious .I will try making this slow cooker recipe too ,Thats the best way to lock in the taste

Karina

Tuesday 12th of September 2017

This looks soooooo delicious! My mouth was watering just looking at the pictures... It may not be "pretty," but it sure does look tasty! Yum! I'll save this recipe for whenever I finally decide to use my slowcooker.

Lorenzo

Monday 11th of September 2017

My Mother might be jealous if I use another brisket recipe than hers, but this looks like it may be worth it!