Skip the boiling and bake your next corned beef brisket with a deliciously simple mustard and brown sugar topping for a versatile, filling meal that may become your new go-to.
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Oven baked corned beef brisket
Corned beef isn’t just for Saint Patrick’s Day or your favorite old-school deli. It’s easy to make incredible meals from this underrated cut and style of meat right at home with just two other ingredients.
What makes baked corned beef with brown sugar so good?
Contrast is the magic of this recipe. Corned beef is typically quite salty, seasoned with a pungent mix of spices. It pairs beautifully with the complex sweetness of brown sugar and the distinctive tangy sharpness of Dijon, which slowly marinate the meat while it bakes.
Meanwhile, the low and slow cooking process breaks down the meat’s connective tissue, turning the otherwise tough cut into mouthwatering, fork-tender beef.
Why you should try this recipe
Forget about complicated recipes with tons of ingredients — you don’t need them to create big flavors. With just a few ingredients and a few easy steps, you’ll be ready to chow down. It’s also wonderfully versatile.
Enjoy it hot and fresh from the oven, or slice it and stick it in the fridge for delicious sandwiches. You can even dice it up and toss it in a potato salad or an omelet/egg scramble.
Ingredients
Just three simple ingredients are necessary to create the best corned beef:
- Corned beef brisket
- Dijon Mustard
- Brown Sugar
If you don’t have brown sugar, you can substitute Turbinado sugar for a similar effect. With such a straightforward recipe, it’s vital to use the best quality ingredients possible.
How do you pick out the perfect corned beef?
Finding the perfect corned beef brisket for your needs depends on how many people you’re trying to feed and your desired composition of the meat.
Generally, corned beef is sold in three forms: the whole brisket, a thick cut, and a thin cut. The thick cut pieces include more fat (and, therefore, flavor) and make roughly four to six servings. The thinner part (the “flat cut”) is leaner and smaller overall, perfect for two to four people.
Whole briskets offer both cuts unseparated for a more substantial and varied piece of meat.
How to make corned beef brisket
Making this dijon-brown sugar corned beef could hardly be easier, and takes just ten minutes of active cooking:
- Preheat your oven to 375°F.
- Remove the corned beef from the package, rinse it, and pat it dry. Discard the spice packet if there is one. Place it in a large baking dish on a sheet of aluminum foil, fat side up.
- Spread the mustard over the top of the corned beef.
- Sprinkle brown sugar over it.
- Wrap it in foil.
- Add water to the pan until it’s about a third full.
- Wrap the pan in foil and bake until it reaches at least 145°F inside, about two and a half hours.
- Unwrap the foil and broil for 2-3 minutes to crisp the exterior.
- Place it on a cutting board and let it rest for at least 10 minutes.
- Slice it and serve.
Those looking for juicy yet fork-tender corned beef can leave it in the oven for up to four hours total, until the internal temperature has reached 195°F. An instant-read meat thermometer is a vital tool for making sure your corned beef is ready to go.
How to serve baked corned beef
After removing it from the oven, allow the corned beef to rest for a few minutes, which lets the juices distribute within the meat more evenly and the cooking process to complete. Then, slice it against the grain into pieces of your desired size and thickness.
If you’re enjoying corned beef as a main, you may want thicker pieces, while those preparing the meat for sandwiches will likely want thinner slices.
What goes well with corned beef with mustard and brown sugar
Corned beef goes well with a variety of tasty sides. One that’s most closely associated with corned beef is cabbage, typically sauteed or stewed. Roasted vegetables, carrots, mashed potatoes, or roasted red potatoes are also excellent companions. For a deli-style spin, add a pickle or some sauerkraut.
You can also use it to make corned beef hash and Reuben sandwiches including a tasty corned beef breakfast sandwich.
How to store leftovers
If you’ve got some leftover corned beef, you’ll be happy to know it stores pretty well. Allow it to cool to room temperature, then place it in an airtight container. Store the corned beef in the refrigerator and use it within three to four days.
If you want to preserve baked corned beef for longer, you can wrap it in foil or plastic wrap and store it in a freezer-safe bag or container. It’ll be at its best for two to three months.
How to reheat
While this corned beef is delicious cold or at room temperature, it’s also easy to reheat in the microwave or the oven. The former method is quicker, requiring just a few minutes to heat up. However, using a 350°F oven preserves the best texture, even if it can take ten minutes or more. Frozen corned beef should be fully thawed in the fridge before reheating.
Looking for more Irish recipes? Try these!
- Champ Potatoes Recipe
- Colcannon
- Guinness Dipping Sauce
- Instant Pot Irish Stew
- Irish Coddle
- Irish Coffee
- Shamrock Shake
- Shepherds Pie
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Be sure to check out these restaurant copycat recipes and copycat seafood recipes.
Baked Corned Beef with Mustard and Brown Sugar
Ingredients
- 5 pounds corned beef brisket
- 1/2 cup Dijon mustard use more if needed
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Thoroughly rinse the corned beef and discard the seasoning packet. Pat the meat dry.
- Place the corned beef fat-side up on a large piece of aluminum foil. Spread the mustard over the corned beef and sprinkle with brown sugar. Wrap the aluminum foil tightly around the meat.
- Pour water into a roasting pan until it reaches a depth of 1/2 inch. Place the wrapped corn beef into the pan and roast in the preheated oven for about 2 1/2 hours, until the internal temperature reaches 145°F. For super tender corned beef, cook for an additional 1 or 2 hours, until the internal temperature reaches 195°F.
- Carefully open the top of the aluminum foil to expose the brisket and turn the oven to broil. Broil just long enough for the mustard crust to brown.
Jenn
I want to make this but could I make this recipe in a crockpot? With St. Patrick’s Day being on a Tuesday and having to work…makes it’s difficult to come home and cook this in an oven for 2 1/2 hours.
Stephanie
I think you could do it. I would do it on low for about six hours depending on the size of brisket. During the last hour I would slide in some chopped cabbage.
Linda C
Hubby and I just had our 40th this last St. Patty’s day. We took a quick trip down to the Oregon Coast and had the best Corned Beef ever. The owner of the restaurant told me his brother rinsed it and then coated it in brown sugar and mustard, then baced it in a turkey bag. It was tender and definitely not as salty as usual. When I did a search on Pinterest, I found this recipe, which I think has to be pretty similar, except for the foil (they had 250 lbs they cooked this last weekend). I am so excited to find this!
Stephanie
Awesome 😉 I hope you enjoy this recipe!
Lisa
This was very tasty. Looking for advice – I had a 4.5 pound corned beef. I cooked it for 2 hours instead of 2 1/2 – it still came out dry. I saw some cooked it at 300 vs 375. Would it be better at a lower temperature and how long would I cook it for? Not sure of safety issues when cooking this type of meat. When I broiled it, I left the juice in foil, was I supposed to take it out before hand because it splattered a lot.
Baltisraul
The taste was very, very close to corned beef and real tender. It was done after 2 hrs @ 300 degrees. You were so right about the amount of interior fat. Wow. It almost spilled over the lip of the broiler pan I was using to cook it in. I even trimmed a lot of fat before it went in the oven. My wife said lets do it again next month.
If I can, I would like to improve one thing. Rinsing well after coming out of a 7 day brine did not remove enough of the salt. Any suggestions on how to draw more salt out of the beef before cooking?
Paul
Maybe soaking in water with a couple changes on the water to remove the salt?
Chef Garfie
If a home brined beef brisket is too salty there is nothing to do do after the fact.
Reduce the amount of salt in the brine to a more pleasant level for your tastes.
Janine
Soaking it in a milk bath can help draw out more salt
Mad Maz
Blanch the beef in 180 degree water for around an hour to remove excess salt. This works especially well with ham. Refer to Jacques Pepin for the blanching process!
Baltisraul
I’m trying something different for this coming weekend. I’m going to make a corned beef from scratch. The beef briskets were expensive @ Sam’s Club (over$ 5.00 per lbs.), so I’m trying a 6 lbs chuck roast instead. By Sat. it will have been brining for 7 days. My questions are this for you; At what temp should I roast this chuck roast? At what internal temp should I pull the roast from the oven?
I have always done my chuck roast covered at 300 degrees for 3 hours. This is all virgin territory for me. I need some advice. Thanks.
Stephanie
I would trim your chuck roast if you can before placing it into the brine, or before cooking. The fat may take up too much flavor. I would honestly cook it similar to the way you always do. I wouldn’t do it any different than you normally do. I would cook this for about 2.5 hours or so on 300.
Baltisraul
Thanks! Trimming the fat was a good suggestion. I feel comfortable with my standard cooking temp. Just needed a pro to reinforce my thoughts. Will let you know how it turns out. My wife is skeptical of my choice of meat for the corned beef. I disagree. The game is afoot! ha ha
Stephanie
My guess is that the flavor will be good. I am concerned about the marbling of the meat. With brisket the fat is mostly on the outside. Let me know how it goes, corned beef is so expensive. This may be a great option!
Chef Garfie
Chuck roast does very nicely corned. Other cuts that can be used include the skirt steak, round or rump roast, and of course the famous brisket.
In hot food preparation the skies the limit. Recipes are actually guidelines so tweak them to suit. Don’t try it when baking though. That’s one time the cook has to know the science of the products and ingredients.
There seens to be a lot of interest in time and temperature. To me, the less tender meats meld best slow and low. My preference is to use slow ovens and longer crawled ooking times. A chuck roast brined and cooked at 300F for 2 to 3 hours ( depending on weight) might have a tendency to dry too much. I would go at 275F for those 3 hours and aim for 165F internal temp. I use a remote thermometer always when slow roasting or smoking. The continuous temp reading and eyeballing tge roast avoids overcookibg and dry meat. It also helps in timing other dishes.
Stephanie
So I kinda feel like you can approach this brisket like a smoked brisket. Sure it is tender at 165, but if you let it go closer to 203, then it just breaks up like a great Texas smoked brisket.
kevin1
I adore corned beef and cabbage, it’s what I have for my birthday meal, but the boiling always left me wondering if maybe a bunch of the meat’s juices were getting wasted in the cooking water. I also hate the specks of seasoning spice suspended in the broth, I usually bundle them in a coffee filter to avoid this, but it invariably floats to the top. This recipe sounds delicious, so I intend to try it with one change. I’ll be simmering the seasoning spices beforehand, then straining them out and injecting the broth before the corned beef goes into the oven. The post cooking juices from the meat will then be used to flavor the vegetable while the beef rests.
Lauren Kelly Nutrition
I think my husband would think I was the best wife EVER if I made him this! Such a great recipe!
Anna | ANNAdventure
Yum! This sounds so simple and delicious! I can’t wait to try it!
gratefulmama
This is crazy that your website has this recipe! This is how my grandmother always made corned beef for st paddy’s day!
Stephanie Manley
Well I hope you enjoyed your corned beef today.
Vickie
I made this last year, was good, and a nice change. I’m going to make it again today.
Stephanie Manley
I am happy to hear you liked the recipe so well you decided to come back 😉
Marlene Taylor
I have always baked mine having only tried boiling it a couple of years ago. I started by parboiling for half an hour, then finished, covered, baking. Which gave me a wonderful stock to cook the veggies in. Another year I did the whole boil way, and while it was strange to me, it’s what most people are used to. I like to bake it the whole way since you can string it apart once cooled, like pulled pork. Amazing rubens, sliders, and hash. I think I’m going to go back to baking it again this year. I’ll just use the runoff of fat to saute the veggies.
Stephanie
Marlene, you have a brilliant idea about using the runoff fat to saute the veggies. Next time I am doing this.
Stephanie Manley
I love what you do wit the run off liquid! I want to try that next time I cook one of these.
Janet
Really good if you also take whole cloves and push it into the meat before basting with brown sugar.
Stephanie
Thank you for that great suggestion! I look forward to giving that a try the next time I make corned beef.
bisset
I’m gonna try it, but do i put the mustard an brown s on 2 the begining?
Stephanie
You put the mustard and brown sugar on at the beginning.
C-line
Goodness gracious…… wrap in foil add flavors you want , cook @300 1 hour per pound. let stand for 1/2 hour before slicing
Great Suggestion! ~Stephanie
Amy
I’ve made this dish many times and it’s delicious and tender every time.
I do 375-400 degrees for 3-3.5 hours. Make sure the fat side is up, and I don’t just sprinkle with brown sugar, but really coat it. Plus I do 2 layers of foil, to keep the juices in.
Elsie
I have never boiled a piece of corned beef. I’ve always had the firm belief that anything boiled in a huge pot of water destroys the nutrients in the food. So, my corned beef always gets baked in foil very similar to Dianne’s method, Yes, I’ve ended up with some tough meat, but that is because it started out that way when I bought it, not in the way it was cooked. In fact, I have one in the fridge already wrapped to be baked tomorrow.
DanO
No Elsie…low and slow, LOW & SLOOOOW
Pat Davis
I am so much a fan of this site, every thing I have tried has come out so perfect.
This baked corned beef came out so tender and so tasty even before I added the mustard and brown sugar which I did at the end of the cooking time. I was concerned about it being tough and dry but the liquids that came off of it I put in a sauce pan and cooked my cabbage and new potatoes in. I will never go back to the boiling again, it tasted just like in the restaurant. I always squeeze my corn beef first to see how firm it is if it is mushy I put it back. I then take it and wash it and I also use a veggie brush to give it a good scrub to get all the gelled blood off.
Dianne
This is basically how I cook my corn beef. I wrap securely in tin foil and put in a roaster or onto a pan and cook at 325 for 3 hours. After that if desired you can cut the tin foil back and use brown sugar and mustard to glaze it. I have never had any trouble with those directions and roast always comes out juicy and tender.
sheri
oops
I didn’t scroll down far enough to see Tom’s reply
sheeeesh
I have thirty more minutes left …
and hmmm
this is our dinner.. tonight..
will let you know if it worked or ot…
dang dang,,
Tom
We enjoyed this recipe after St. Patrick’s Day.
admin
You there are a couple of things that could have happened here, the corned beef was simply tough, or it may not have been cooked long enough. Here were some guidelines that I got from the USDA.gov for the cooking times on a corned beef.