We all love our French Dip Sandwiches. Thinly sliced roast, onions, soft, warm toast bread, and that oh-so-good Au Jus for dipping. Honestly, it’s one of my husband’s favorites. In fact, it’s the first meal he cooked for me not long after we met 8 years ago. Of course, me being me, I loved it. I had to go in and make it better, and he hasn’t complained yet.
Really? Change the traditional French Dip? Why would you change perfection? Well, I’m going to tell you how. Keep reading to learn more.
Traditional French Dip Sandwich
The traditional French Dip consists of thin sliced roast beef, often made with rump or chuck roast, although boneless bottom round or sirloin can also be used. It’s usually sliced after it’s roasted, a great way to use leftovers, seasoned with salt, pepper, onion, and beef broth, and heated through. It’s then enclosed in a toasted hoagie roll or another kind of roll and served with an Au Jus dipping sauce made with beef broth thickened with a little flour and seasoned with salt and pepper.
So, the question was, how can you improve on perfection? Well, I’m going to tell you, and we’ll start with my recipe.
Philly Cheese Steak French Dip
My own recipe that my husband and I love and a great way to use up leftover roast. Serves 2
What you need:
Filling
- 1 lb sliced beef (any kind of pot roast works great)
- 2 TBS olive oil
- ½ large onion sliced into thin strips about 1” long
- 1 bell pepper sliced into thin strips about 1” long
- ½ poblano pepper sliced into thin strips about 1” long
- 4-5 mushrooms (we like baby bellas), stemmed and sliced
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- Salt and pepper
- ½ – ¾ cup beef broth
- 2 French Rolls Buttered and toasted
- 4 slices Pepper Jack Cheese n(other cheese work as well)
Au Jus
- 2 TBS butter
- 1 tsp flour for thicking
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 cup beef broth
- Salt and pepper
What you do:
- Heat your oil over medium-high heat.
- Add all of your veggies except the mushrooms and the garlic
- Stir, heating for about 4 minutes until they start to get soft.
- Add the mushroom and stir for 1-2 more minutes.
- Add the roast and the beef broth.
- Salt and pepper to taste. Cover and simmer while you make the Au Jus
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter.
- When melted, stir in the flour and the garlic to make a roux as if you’re making gravy. Keep stirring until it’s all combined.
- Add the broth and continue stirring until combined and it starts to thicken. This will not take long. Add water and simmer on low if it gets too thick to use as Au Jus.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Open your rolls, and place two slices of cheese on each roll, covering the bread. This helps keep the bread from getting soggy and will melt when you add the warm meat mixture.
- Place the desired amount of the meat mixture onto each roll using tongs and close.
- Add Au Jus to dipping or condiment bowls and serve.
Crockpot French Dip
Love the idea of doing this in a crock pot. Serves 6
What you need:
- 3-4 lb Chuck Roast
- Salt and pepper
- garlic powder
- 2 TBSP butter
- 1 onion thinly sliced
- 2 TBSP minced garlic
- 2 TBSP of Worcestershire sauce
- 12 oz beer
- 1 package of Au Jus
- 1 1/2 cups beef broth
- Sub rolls
- Provolone cheese
What you do:
- Season the chuck roast with salt, pepper, and garlic on all sides.
- Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat
- Sear the chuck roast on all sides.
- Put the seared roast in a crock pot.
- Pour 1 1/2 cups of beef broth over the chuck roast.
- Sliced onions, minced garlic, Worcestershire sauce, beer, and the Au Jus packet should be added to the hot skillet, stirring and letting it simmer.
- Pour the onion and gravy mixture over roast
- Let cook on low for 6-8 hours.
- Shred the meat and discard any extra fat.
- Build sandwiches with meat and provolone cheese.
- Add drippings from the crock pot to dip bowls and serve sandwiches with the Au Jus from the pot.
Best French Dips
More of a traditional recipe, one of the highest rated online. Serves 6
What you need:
Filling
- 3 boneless ribeye steaks (about 3 pounds)
- 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Tbsp. kosher salt
- 2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1 tsp. dried ground sage
- 6 hoagie rolls
- 12 slices provolone
Au Jus
- ¼ onion, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tsp. minced fresh thyme
- 1 1/2 c. low-sodium beef broth
- 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
What you do:
- Preheat oven to 450°.
- Rub beef all over with olive oil and place in roasting pan.
- In a small bowl, stir together salt, pepper, oregano, and sage, and rub the spice mix all over the beef.
- Roast for 20 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers 125° in the thickest part of the ribeye.
- Set aside on a cutting board to rest and turn the oven down to 350°.
- For Au Jus, place the roasting pan (with beef drippings) on a burn at medium heat.
- Add onion and cook until soft, about 3 minutes.
- Add garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, 1 minute longer.
- Add beef broth and Worcestershire sauce and bring up to a simmer. Cook until thickened slightly, about 8 – 10 minutes.
- Thinly slice beef.
- Fill each roll with beef and top with provolone. Bake until cheese is melty, about 10 minutes.
- Serve with jus on the side for dipping.
Wrapping it Up
See, there are so many ways that you can make an amazing French Dip Sandwich. I think these masterpiece sandwiches are just about your taste and what you and your family like. Come up with your own variations, including Chicken, Turkey, or even just veggies with veggie broth Au Jus! Yummy!
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