Easy and delicious oven cooked, shredded BBQ beef, that’s perfect for sandwiches or try it over mashed potatoes or in tacos or quesadillas!
This easy shredded BBQ beef takes just a few minutes to assemble, then simply pop it in the oven and cook low and slow (and enjoy the wonderful aroma through the day!).
Shredded BBQ Beef is perfect for making ahead, it’s great for Summer BBQs and for feeding a crowd and freezes beautifully, too!
Ingredients and substitutions
A few notes about the key ingredients …
Beef Roast – start with a nicely fat marbled blade or chuck roast, for best results. Technically, any beef roast will work here, but the bit of fat in the roast provides great texture and flavour. That said, remove and discard large chunks of fat from the roast before cooking, to avoid an overly fatty finished dish.
How to make oven BBQ pulled beef
Just 4 easy steps!
- Add beef and onions to pan.
- Mix sauce and pour over meat, then add a bit of water to the pan.
- Pour the sauce over the beef and add the water to the dish. Cover and cook in the oven for 4 1/2 hours.
- Shred the beef and cook 20-30 minutes longer.
Making ahead, storing and freezing
Don’t hesitate to make the beef ahead, as it keeps really well in the fridge for 3-4 days, without any compromise to flavour or texture (it may be even better after reheating!).
BBQ beef will also freeze well up to 3 months, so tuck any left-overs away in the freezer to enjoy later.
How to use and serve your BBQ Beef
- Serve on homemade Hamburger Buns or Kaiser Rolls or a nice store-bought bun, topped with your favourite BBQ Sauce. Add some pickles or coleslaw too, if you like.
- Serve over mashed potatoes or polenta, for a hearty, delicious dinner.
- Use any leftover BBQ beef to fill tacos or quesadillas.
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Get the Recipe: Oven BBQ Pulled Beef
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 lb. blade or chuck beef roast
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 cup ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
- Splash liquid smoke, optional for a bit of smokey flavour
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300F, with rack in centre of the oven.
- Prepare beef by removing and discarding any string wrapping the beef. Remove and discard any large pieces of fat on the roast, as well.
- Place the roast into a Dutch oven, covered baking pan or any deep baking pan with a lid (or you can tightly cover with foil). Season the roast with a bit of salt and pepper. Scatter the onions over and around the beef.
- Mix the sauce in a small bowl or measuring cup, by combining the ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire, brown sugar, salt, paprika, mustard and liquid smoke, if using. Mix until smooth, then pour over the beef in the pan. Pour the water around the outside of the beef, making a thin layer of water on the bottom of the pan. *Note: If doubling or tripling the recipe, reduce the amount of added water by 25-30%.
- Cover the baking pan with a lid or tightly wrapped foil and bake 5 hours at 300F. *I like the flip the beef once or twice while it cooks, but that is optional. After 4 1/2 hours of cooking time, remove the pan from the oven and use two forks to shred the beef. Cover the pan again, return to the oven and continue cook an additional 30 minutes. The beef mixture should be quite thick at the end of cooking. If you pan seems to have a lot of liquid, you can cook a little longer with the lid off to thicken it up.
- You can enjoy the BBQ Beef immediately or let cool slightly, then refrigerate up to days. After refrigerating, you may notice some fat on the surface of the beef. You can spoon it off and discard, if you like, especially if there is a lot.
- To serve: Spoon onto buns and top with your favourite BBQ sauce. You can add some coleslaw, as well, if you like. BBQ beef is also nice spooned over mashed potatoes or polenta, or use it as a filling for tacos or quesadillas etc.
- Cooked BBQ Beef will also freeze well up to 3 months.
Notes
More low and slow beef recipes to love!
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
From a frozen state how do suggest reheating?
Hi Lynn, you could just put it frozen into a Dutch oven on the stovetop on low heat. Cover it and stir as it starts to loosen. Once thawed, take the lid off and let the bit of extra moisture cook off a bit.
I’ve made this recipe a few times a couple different ways. I would recommend a roasting pan covered with foil and to flip the roast after the first hour. Although this is a very simple dish to make, it is an extremely tasty dish, very nicely done Jennifer.
Thanks Gerald! So glad you are enjoying it :)
This recipe is great! About two days before your weekly email arrived, I had taken a 3-1/2 pound pork shoulder out of the freezer to thaw in the fridge. I didn’t see any reason why this recipe would not work just fine with pork and I was right. I followed the recipe persactly except for the meat and it came out moist and tender after a 6 hour session in the oven. I should have upped the BBQ sauce with the extra pound of meat but that’s easily fixed and not a flaw in the recipe. I look forward to using a beef roast as called for.
So glad to hear, Dick! I haven’t tried this one with pork, but I’m not surprised it turned out well. It’s always great to have options :) Thanks so much!
Can I use a crockpot for this recipe??
Thank you
Possibly. I haven’t tested this recipe in a crockpot.
I’m hungry already. Will try this, but was wondering would this also work if I was to use short rib roast? Which would you recommend?
Hi Pat and yes, a short rib roast should work just fine, too. I tend to pick up the blade roast, as it is usually more economical, but any nicely fat-marbled beef roast will be good :)