Pull-Apart Brisket Sliders

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When you need an easy party appetizer that’s perfect for game day, you’ll turn to these pull-apart brisket sliders every time! Buttery brioche buns are stuffed with chopped brisket, smoked cheddar and your favorite BBQ sauce and then baked until they’re warm with gooey melted cheese on the inside and perfectly toasted on the outside. Plus, these BBQ brisket sliders only require about 15 quick minutes of hands-on preparation time and five simple ingredients.

The brisket sliders on a brown wooden plate with a spoonful of BBQ sauce in front and two beers in the background.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Ingredients
Step-by-Step Instructions
Variations and Substitutions
Storage and Reheating
Favorite Serving Ideas
Recipe FAQs
Expert Tips
Perfect Pairing
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

An instant party favorite: When you set down a platter of brisket sliders, I can guarantee you everyone will gobble them up instantly. Don’t be surprised when you get repeated requests to make these sliders at every party.

Easy as can be: No professional chef skills required here. If you can layer fillings on a bun, you can make some seriously delicious sliders that will have everyone asking for more.

Make ahead of time: For easy entertaining, you can assemble the sliders a day in advance, refrigerate them and bake the sliders right before your guests arrive.

Related: Looking for more tasty party snacks? You’ll also love these crab cake sliders, smoked wings and green chile and artichoke dip.

Ingredients

Brisket: Without a doubt, a smoked brisket is the gold standard way to cook this delicious cut of beef. My pellet smoker brisket recipe is perfect here.

BBQ sauce: If you already have a favorite BBQ sauce, feel free to use that, but I highly recommend my coffee-bourbon BBQ sauce.

Smoked cheddar: To play up that BBQ flavor, I love using a smoked cheddar, but you can use an unsmoked cheddar if one isn’t available.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: To start, we slice the slider rolls in half while keeping the bread intact (photo 1). A serrated bread knife works well for this.

A serrated knife cutting the slider buns in half in a horizontal motion on a brown cutting board.

Step 2: Now we place the bottom buns in a baking dish and first layer the bread with chopped brisket and then sprinkle the smoked cheddar cheese on top (photos 2 and 3).

The slider buns in a white baking dish with chopped and shredded brisket on top.

The brisket sliders in a white baking dish with the smoked cheddar on top of the meat.

Step 3: From here, we spread BBQ sauce on the top slider buns and then place them on the brisket and cheddar (photos 4 and 5). Now we cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake. In the final five minutes, we remove the foil and bake uncovered to toast the buns.

A silver spoon spreading BBQ sauce on the top half of the buns on a brown wooden cutting board.

The brisket sliders in a white baking dish before they go in the oven to bake.

Step 4: Once the sliders are heated through and the cheese melts, we remove them from the oven and brush the bread with melted butter (photo 6).

A hand coating melted butter on the slider buns with a silicone brush after they baked in the oven.

All that’s left is to grab a warm, buttery brisket slider and chow down. Delicious, huh?

Bonus: For more recipes that are perfect for using leftover brisket, you’ll also love some brisket mac and cheese and brisket tacos.

Variations and Substitutions

Try other types of slider buns: Brioche buns are wonderfully soft and fluffy, but you can also try your favorite dinner rolls, Hawaiian rolls, potato slider rolls or sesame slider rolls.

Substitute brisket for another meat: You can use so many other smoked meats, such as carnitas, chuck roast, pulled chicken, duck, meatballs or tri tip. If you don’t have a smoker, my Instant Pot shredded beef is also a great option.

Give the sliders a kick of spice: Add some fresh jalapeño slices or green chiles to the brisket and cheese mixture.

Add bacon: Crumbled bacon is always a welcome addition. Just add it to the brisket filling.

Use another type of cheese: Any kind of melting cheese works beautifully. Think pepper jack, fontina, havarti, provolone, muenster — you name it.

Top with your favorite fillings: Besides the beef brisket and cheese, you’re welcome to add other fillings, such as pickle chips, fresh red onion, caramelized onions or a creamy coleslaw.

Storage and Reheating

If you have any leftover sliders, allow them to cool completely and then store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They should stay fresh for about two to three days.

You can reheat the sliders in the microwave for 20-30 seconds or bake them in the oven again. To reheat in the oven, let the sliders sit at room temperature for 30 minutes and then bake them covered in a 350-degree oven until they warm through, about 15-20 minutes.

Favorite Serving Ideas

When sliders are on the menu, we need some potluck-style salads to go on the side. Potato lovers will load up on this Hawaiian potato salad or crispy roasted potato salad. A good pasta salad is also a must — try this pesto tortellini salad or bacon macaroni salad.

If you smoked your own brisket, you might also enjoy some smoked side dishes. This smoked macaroni and cheese is out of this world, and you can’t go wrong with these smoked bourbon baked beans. A side of smoked chili isn’t a bad idea either.

For even more ideas, these are always favorites with sliders.

French fries or sweet potato fries
Onion rings
Tater tots
Fried cheese curds
Fruit salad
Grilled corn on the cob
Loaded baked potatoes
Vegetable kabobs

A close-up of the brisket sliders against a wooden background with two beers to the left and smears of BBQ sauce in front.

Recipe FAQs

How do you make these sliders ahead of time?

For make-ahead preparation, we assemble the sliders, cover the baking dish with foil and then place them in the refrigerator for up to one day. An hour before baking time, we remove the dish from the refrigerator to allow it to come down in temperature and then bake as directed.

Should you use the brisket's point cut or flat cut?

You can use either cut. With the pictured sliders, I used a combination of the flat cut and point cut for a combination of flavors and textures.

The point cut is fattier, so it gives us shredded brisket. However, the flat cut is sliced and then chopped. This really comes down to personal preference.

Do you have to use smoked brisket?

While I find smoked brisket has the best flavor, you’re more than welcome to use a slow cooker brisket or oven-baked brisket.

Looking down on the brisket sliders on a wooden plate on top of burlap with smoked cheddar cheese scattered around them.

Expert Tips

No brisket, no problem: If you don’t have any brisket on hand, pick up a to-go order from your favorite local BBQ joint.

Let cold brisket sit at room temperature before baking: If you’re using brisket straight from the refrigerator, you want to give it a chance to come down to room temperature before baking for more even warming.

Don't worry about cutting apart the sliders: This gives us maximum pull-apart action.

Serve right away: These sliders are best served warm, straight from the oven.

Perfect Pairing

Brisket always calls for a stout. With that smoked cheddar and rich brisket, we need a big beer that can stand up to these beefy sliders. Plus, you’ll love how the roasted malt complements the smoky notes and BBQ sauce.

If you prefer a wine pairing, a full-bodied syrah is a favorite with these brisket sliders. Like the stout, we need a bold beer to balance the brisket, and a syrah fits the bill nicely. We also get some tobacco and spice notes that are especially great with a smoky brisket, and it plays well with the sauce.

For a fun party appetizer at your next casual get-together, these brisket sliders are sure to be a hit with all your guests. It doesn’t get better than beefy, cheesy goodness on a soft baked bun.

Cheers!

A hand grabbing a brisket slider from a brown wooden plate lined with parchment paper and smeared with BBQ sauce.

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