Put your leftover smoked brisket or roast to use with these quick and easy Smoked BBQ Beef Sandwiches! Chopped beef with a light coating of a sweet and spicy BBQ sauce is piled onto soft hamburger buns and topped with tangy pickles and and white onion slices. Perfect way to feed the family with a small amount of leftovers!

All about these Smoked BBQ Beef Sandwiches…

Chopped beef sandwiches are a staple throughout Texas. While nothing compares to sitting down to a meal of freshly sliced Smoked Brisket, there's something comforting about these sandwiches that grace fairs, bbq joints, and and concession stands. Plus it's a great way to serve up leftoves that will please the entire family!

  • Quick and Easy: use leftover brisket/roast that you smoked or leftover from eating out.
  • Feed a crowd: this is a great way to make that meat stretch out to feed a large crowd, or a large family! This allows you to grab an affordable, smaller chuck roast and feed the family.

Ingredients Needed:

Ingredients needed to make a chopped beef sandwich laid out on the counter.

Notes on some ingredients:

  • Chopped Beef: use smoked brisket or smoked chuck roast.
  • BBQ Sauce: use your favorite, or make your own (Texas Style BBQ Sauce)
  • Pickles & Onion: these are classic toppings, you could also spice it up with some pickled jalapenos. But simple is better when it comes to these beef sandwiches.

How to Make (step-by-step):

Smoked brisket and chuck roast which can be used to make chopped bbq beef sandwiches.
  • Step 1 &2: Grab some leftover smoked beef, either brisket or chuck roast. Or grab a chuck roast to smoke just for these sandwiches, it's quick, easy and affordable.
  • Step 3: If needed reheat the meat, instructions included below in recipe card, and chop up to desired thickness.
  • Step 4: Toss the chopped beef with your favorite sweet and spicy BBQ sauce.
How to make Chopped beef sandwiches, chopping smoked beef and coating with bbq sauce.
Smoked beef chopped and coated with sauce for making sandwiches.

Expert Tips:

  • Easy Family Dinner: if you are wanting to make these sandwiches, I recommend grabbing a chuck roast! This cut is small, affordable and can be smoked in 6-7 hours which is perfect for tossing on in the morning and then enjoying these BBQ Beef Sandwiches for dinner.
  • Chopped or Sliced? You can make these sandwiches any which way! I have seen brisket sandwiches made with sliced meat or chopped. My preference is chopped which allows for you to get bits of bark, lean and wet meat all in one bite. Plus it's easier to take bites of.
  • Reheating meat: To retain the most moisture in your meat, wrap the meat in foil and bake in an oven that's preheated to 300 degrees F for about 20 minutes until heated through. Once you remove it from the oven, allow it to sit still wrapped for about 30 minutes before opening to serve.

FAQ's:

What cut of meat is used for BBQ Beef?

Either chuck roast or brisket, both are cuts that do extremely well when cooked low and slow to breakdown the collagen and leave you with juicy and tender bites.

What is the best bread for Beef Brisket Sandwiches?

You can use a bun or bread for these sandwiches. BBQ joints typically serve classic white bread with their brisket which is a good option since it's sturdy and can hold up to the weight of the meat. Potato buns or regular hamburger buns are a great options for at home sandwiches. If you want to dress it up try a ciabatta!

What cheese goes best with brisket?

Want to add some cheese on your sandwiches? Cheddar is a great option that melts well and has a mild flavoring that won't take away from the flavor of the meat.

Up close view of chopped brisket sandwich with pickles.

What to serve on the side:

  • Creamy Southern Coleslaw
  • Texas Style Potato Salad
  • German Potato Salad
  • Twice Baked Potatoes
  • Creamed Corn
  • Classic Wedge Salad
  • Homemade Mac and Cheese

If you tried this recipe please leave a comment and a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below! Thank you so much!

Smoked BBQ Brisket sandwich made with sauce, pickles and sliced onion. Served with chips

  • 4 hamburger buns
  • 1-1½ pounds smoked beef, brisket or chuck roast
  • ⅓ cup BBQ sauce

Toppings

  • sliced pickles
  • sliced white onion

  • f using leftover meat that needs to be reheated, place the sliced meat in a small baking dish with any leftover juices, cover with foil and bake in an oven preheated to 300 degrees F for 20 minutes or until the meat reaches 160 degrees F.

  • Transfer the sliced brisket or chuck roast to a large cutting board, using a large knife, chop the meat until it's only small bits and pieces, this should give you approximately 3-4 cups of chopped beef.

  • Toss the chopped beef with the bbq sauce.

  • Layer the chopped beef on the bottom hamburger bun, top with sliced pickles or onion and the top bun. Serve warm.

  • Chopped Beef: use smoked brisket or smoked chuck roast.
  • BBQ Sauce: use your favorite, or make your own (Texas Style BBQ Sauce)
  • Pickles & Onion: these are classic toppings, you could also spice it up with some pickled jalapenos. But simple is better when it comes to these beef sandwiches.

Serving: 1 , Calories: 425 kcal , Carbohydrates: 31 g , Protein: 40 g , Fat: 14 g , Saturated Fat: 5 g , Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g , Monounsaturated Fat: 6 g , Cholesterol: 105 mg , Sodium: 592 mg , Potassium: 669 mg , Fiber: 1 g , Sugar: 11 g , Vitamin A: 54 IU , Vitamin C: 1 mg , Calcium: 78 mg , Iron: 5 mg

Photography by the talented @KJandCompany.co