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Garlic and Red Pepper Baked Brie

This is the best savory Baked Brie recipe, hands down. There’s a secret trick to infuse the whole wheel of cheese with tremendous flavor. It’s pretty cool, and very tasty.

Baked brie very often has sweet toppings on it. I’ve had it with maple syrup and nuts and with cranberries, for instance. It’s definitely good. Brie goes very very well with fruity flavors. However, my own taste buds tell me that Brie goes even better with savory flavors.

Video: Grilled Brie Variations

Savory Baked Brie

Thus, the best baked Brie goes light on the sweet. Instead… bring on the garlic and red bell peppers!

The flavor is really incredible. Garlicky cheese, slightly sweet bell pepper. Scoop it onto slices of bread and you’re in heaven.

What other toppings could you use for a savory baked Brie? Pesto, or maybe caramelized onions. Tell me your ideas in the comments!

Making The Best Baked Brie

This baked Brie recipe is actually made slightly differently from others. What you do is to put the wheel of Brie on a rimmed pan. Use a rimmed pan in case your Brie gets a crack in it while cooking and starts to ooze out of the rind. The rim of the pan will make sure that you don’t end up with a big mess in your oven. I use a pizza pan like this or a cast iron skillet like this.

Then you poke holes in the cheese with a fork. You’re making holes in the top flat surface and poking down about halfway into the Brie. Why? Because we’re going to top it with that garlic and red pepper mixture that also contains olive oil and Dijon mustard. The liquid from the mixture is going to soak down into those holes so that you flavor the inside of the Brie as well as the outside. All that garlic seeping right down into the cheese. Mmmm.

Once you’ve got the holes in your Brie and you’ve topped it with your garlic and bell pepper mixture, then you cover it and put it in the fridge for a little while, minimum 1 hour but you can do it a day ahead too.

You’ve already got the Brie on a rimmed baking pan so you’re good to go. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Transfer the baking sheet with the Brie on it into the oven. Bake until the cheese is bulging at the sides and soft in the middle, about 20 minutes. Serve it right on that baking pan because it’s too hard to move off of there without it bursting. Please warn everyone that the pan is hot though!

How To Grill Brie

Alternatively, did you know that you can grill it? I’ve got instructions for how to grill Brie in my Grilled Raspberry Brie recipe. Basically, you prep the grill for direct grilling over medium heat. Then you put the wheel of Brie with its toppings onto a large double layer of foil. Crimp the edges up around the sides a bit to act as that rim we discussed above in case your Brie cracks. Then transfer the whole thing, Brie and foil, to the grill. Put down the cover.

Cook until it’s bulging at the sides and soft in the middle, about 15 minutes. Transfer the Brie with foil to a serving plate and dig into the tastiest summer appetizer ever.

I’m so excited about this recipe. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Podcast Episode: Making Savory Baked Brie

Listen to me explain briefly about how to make this Garlicky Baked Brie, with some great tips along the way, by clicking the play button below:

Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.

Print

Garlic and Red Pepper Baked Brie Recipe

  • Author: Christine Pittman
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings 1x
  • Category: Appetizer
  • Method: Baked
  • Cuisine: American

DESCRIPTION

This is the best Baked Brie recipe, hands down. There’s a secret trick to infuse the whole wheel of cheese with tremendous flavor. It’s pretty cool, and very tasty.
Serve with sliced French bread or water crackers.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 (8 oz.) wheel of brie
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 2 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 tsp. black pepper
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 2 Tbsp. chopped chives for garnish (optional)

Instructions

  1. Place brie on a small rimmed baking sheet. Using a fork, poke holes all over the top surface of the brie. Allow the fork to go all the way to the bottom of the cheese but do not pierce the bottom rind.
  2. In a medium bowl combine the bell pepper, garlic, olive oil, Dijon mustard, black pepper, and salt. Pile it on the top surface of the brie.
  3. Cover brie with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
  4. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  5. Bake for 15 minutes. If the brie is bulging at the sides and soft to the touch on top, it’s ready. If it’s not soft and bulging, bake for another 5-7 minutes but check on it every minute or so (you want to catch it at the bulging stage not at the oozing-all-over-the-pan stage).
  6. Sprinkle with chives, if using.
  7. It’s nearly impossible to move the brie onto a serving plate once it’s soft and gooey. I simply put a pot holder on the table and place the pan of cheese on top (be prepared for the conversation to stop and for everyone to sigh deeply in anticipation). Warn everyone that the pan is hot (mine seems to cool off pretty quickly though). Ensure that everyone has a knife for spreading. Slash the bulging rind and watch the garlicky cheesiness melt out.

Love this recipe? I’d appreciate it if you could scroll down and add a *5 star rating* to help others know they’ll love it as well!

This post contains Amazon affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

This post originally appeared in February 2011 and was revised and republished in July 2022.