We may be in the midst of an indian summer, but my hankering for hearty fall meals has not subsided. And when fall meals enter my brain, I think of two special words: slow cooker. The slow cooker is one of my favorite inventions. It is career-friendly, mom-friendly, leftover-friendly and most important, tummy-friendly. So with the best rated slow cooker, I created a beef brisket cooked in one of my other favorite inventions, beer!
Beef Brisket Ingredients:
2 TBSP vegetable oil
1 3-4 lb. beef brisket
2 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
1 12 oz bottle red lager (I used Leinie’s Red)
4 stalks celery, cut into large pieces
2/3 C. brown sugar
1 can tomato paste
1/2 C. apple cider vinegar
1/4 C. brown mustard
1/3 C. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. paprika
dash of coarse ground black pepper
Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet. Brown brisket on all sides, about 8-10 minutes. Add garlic half way through. Transfer meat to slow cooker. Pour beer in skillet, scraping up brown bits. Simmer for one minute. Add to slow cooker. Nestle celery around beef.
In a medium bowl, add remaining ingredients and whisk. Pour over beef. Cook on low for 8 hours. Remove from cooker and allow to sit about 10 minutes before cutting.
Garlic Parmesan Mash ingredients:
5-6 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 C. milk
2 TBSP butter or margarine
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 C. shredded parmesan cheese
In a large pot, cover potatoes with water and bring to a boil. Boil approximately 20 minutes. Drain water. Add remaining ingredients and whip with hand mixer.
I plated the brisket over the potatoes, drizzled a little extra sauce from the slow cooker and topped with French’s crispy onions. Little fuss for a fabulous meal! And with the leftovers, we reheated the brisket and put it on a sandwich with a little Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce. Delish!
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I’m so happy that slow cooker season is back! I will definitely try this!
Cannot wait for a cool Fall night to have this on my table. The photo is luscious.
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YUM. I am so making this once the weather cools off here. I don’t use my slow cooker enough, and this would be the PERFECT thing to make in it…it sounds super delicious! 🙂
do you have any suggestions on using something other than the lager? I have 2 young boys and I really don’t want to put alcohol in it if possible. Thanks!
@Viki – you could try using a can of Coke. I’ve used Coke with ribs and it is delicious!
Just use beef broth. I do not use alcolol either so I use it as a substitute and it will work fine.
I used apple juice 🙂
Don’t worry about the alcohol, Viki, All of the alcohol is gone via the cooking. The same goes if using wine or bourbon, etc;. All that is retained is the splendid flavors, as in Burbon St. Chicken!
The alcohol is removed when you cook it….
I just made this last night and it was a big hit! The brisket came out very tender and the gravy was a great compliment to the garlic parmesan mashed potatoes. Thanks for the delicious recipe!
It’s in the crockpot as we speak….cannot wait for dinner!
@Viki, the alcohol evaporates. It’s more for flavor. My father makes the best spaghetti sauce with beer, I’ve been eating it since I could chew and I am fine. 🙂
I’m so excited to try this recipe but i am having trouble locating a red lager. I’ve been to the grocery store and wine/beer specialty stores to no avail. I guess there are no red lager drinkers in the south!! Any suggestions for another beer substitute?
@Kathy – I’d look for something like Killian’s Irish Red? I would be surprised if you couldn’t find that. If not, you could definitely use a darker brew Guinness or if you are in the south, Shiner Bock would be delicious!
I used a pale ale and it worked fine. You can use anything really, beef broth, vegetable broth, any kind of dark beer if you like dark beer. We don’t so we used a pale ale.
I just used a dark beer instead of the red lager and it was perfect.
Hi there! Just wanted to let you know that I made this brisket yesterday and it was SO good! I’m not a fan of celery, so I used fennel bulb and carrots instead, and they worked out really well. The brisket was SO delicious…turned out perfectly tender and the sauce had great flavor! Thanks for sharing a really wonderful recipe. 🙂
@sara- so glad you tried it and liked it! It is great for fall days like these 🙂
Instead of browning the meat first in a pan, can I just add all the ingredients in the crock pot and let it go like 10 hours or would that mess it up?
@Stella – you could do it without browning the meat, it just won’t have that extra bit of crisp on the outside. I would say still do it 8-9 hours. Any more may dry it out. It should still be delicious!
I have this in the slow cooker right now! Am hoping it turns out well bc I’ve invited my mom and brothers over for dinner tonight and they are brisket fiends!
Question: you didn’t specify the size of the tomato paste, so I bought a regular can rather than the small ones. I hope that’s correct.
Also, I wasn’t clear on the way to brown the brisket, so I did each side for 6 min on medium heat and it got some really nice color.
This recipe looks promising! Will let you know how it turns out!
oops! Forgot to ask my other question. Is this going to turn out like a BBQ sauce or like a gravy?
I made this for dinner last night and it was really good. I found that the flavor combination of the garlic parmesan mashed potatoes along with the meat and sauce was so yummy. We also added some French Fried onions on the top too. It is definitely worth spending the extra money to get the brisket cut of meat- so super tender. Thanks for the recipe! Will be making it again!
Could you use a chuck roast with this recipe?
@Kami – You could use a chuck roast for this recipe. They have similar tastes and textures. I’ve never tried it but I would assume it would produce a similar outcome! If you try it, let us know!
how big of a can of tomato paste does this recipe call for? Im assuming you mean the little 6 oz. can? Thanks! Cant wait to try!
Hi Rachel! Just the small 6 oz. can. Thanks! I’ll fix it in the post!
Hi! I am new to the slow cooker world, and have a very busy schedule so I am excited to try it out! It would be amazing to come home to warm food and good smells!!! I do have a question about this recipe, because it sounds DELICIOUS! I am looking to prep meals on a weekend day and freeze them until day of… Do you think it would work if I browned the brisket and then froze it? I wont have time most mornings or the inclination to cook and then place things in the slow cooker. I am more of a dump and go kind of girl. Any suggestions would be AMAZING! Thanks!
I have this cooking right now! I made it for my husbands birthday dinner. I’m so excited to try it!! This is my first time using a crock pot!!
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I don’t have a slow cooker, any suggestions?
Hi Patricia –
I’ve never tried it, but you should be able to do this in the oven. If you use a dutch oven, you can add the oil and brown the meat on the stovetop and then transfer the entire dish, covered, to the oven at a low setting – around 250-275. You should be able to have it in the oven for 3 or more hours and it should cook up similarly. I’ve never tried it, but if you do, please let us know if it works!
I made this for dinner last night..it was wonderful!!!
That looks delicious and the mash sounds divine!
Sounds delicious! 🙂
Found via slow cooker Sunday x
I made this for dinner tonight. My house smelled great all day. All in all, it was very good, but I would tweak it a little next time. The meat was a little over cooked, so I would decrease the cooking time by an hour or so. The liquid it cooked in (and used as gravy) was a little bland and required some doctoring up (mostly salt), and a little on the thin side. Next time I think I would use some corn starch and water and simmer for a couple minutes on the stove to thicken it up a bit. The potatoes were great. I have a very well fed and happy family right now. I’m looking forward to brisket sandwiches! Thanks for the recipe!!
Came across this in pinterest and can’t wait to make it for dinner tomorrow night! Thanks for a easy gourmet looking meal!
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I really appreciate the recipe, but this turned out to be a total waste of a nice brisket.
How many people would this receipe feed?
About 4-6, depending on the size brisket you make and how hungry you are!
Could I cook it on high for less time?
Hi Kassie!
Yes, I would try it for about 4-5 hours on high. It might not get quite as tender, but it should still work!
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Found it to acidity.Was hoping by the 8 hrs it would of grabbed more beef flavour but I’m going to put it in beef broth to see if I can cut the acid down
I have been making a beer beef brisket for many years in the oven. Cooking for eight hours on 250 degrees. I am using 6 lbs of brisket since I make it for a large group. I can’t wait to try this recipe. It sounds. So much easier. Thank you.j
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Just wanted to say this was really good. I used a pint of red lager which is half of what the recipe called for, and i forgot tomato paste so I used a 8 oz. roasted garlic tomato sauce.turned out great 🙂 Leftover tonight. BTW I also forgot to add the parm to the potatoes and it tasted great still.
Thanks Jessica! So glad you liked it! I love hearing about the different variations!
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I made this today. Followed the recipe to a T. Very disappointing….
Brisket wasn’t really tender. Sauce lacked depth and flavor.
Mashed potatoes were bland.
My boyfriend wasn’t pleased. I won’t make this again.
I’m wondering if I can put this in the crock pot in the morning while it’s semi-frozen? I forgot to take it out of the freezer early enough so I’m hoping to skip the step where I brown the meat and just put it in frozen. Thoughts? Thanks!!
As long as it’s not frozen through you should be fine. It just won’t have the crispier outside without the browning but should cook up nice and tender.
Looking forward to making this. I will let you know how it turns out.
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