Made in either the Instant Pot or the Crock Pot, these French Dip Sandwiches are the ultimate in hands-off meals that taste incredible! Tender, flavorful beef, peppers, and onions, stacked onto buttery, and cheesy bread. Then dipped into the savory Au Jus for French Dip Sandwich perfection!
I think I’ve discussed before the “Taste to Effort Ratio” with which I judge all recipes. Some recipes are very labor intensive, but have very delicious results. Some recipes require no work, and are still scoring decently in the delicious department. Recipes that are no work, but no good, or especially lots of work, and not amazing, have no place in my recipe collection.
This recipe is right in my sweet spot. Minimal work. Maximum deliciousness. Let your crock pot or your instant pot do the work for you, and make these incredible French Dip Sandwiches.
I can remember so clearly the first time I had a French Dip Sandwich. My sister’s roommate made dinner when I was visiting. She served sandwiches, with these bowls of some sort of brown liquid. I looked around for a spoon, and could not find one. Confused, I watched our chef dunk her sandwich in the brown liquid. I was horrified. Soggy bread is an absolute abomination. Not wanting to be a rude houseguest, I gingerly dipped the tiniest corner of my sandwich into the broth.
And my life was never the same. Look, I am still staunchly opposed to soggy bread. (Another notable exception: This Raspberry Bread Pudding) But when you dunk the bread and then immediately eat it, it’s a different situation. You don’t have to understand it, you just have to do it. Trust me. When have I ever led you wrong?
If you want to skip a step, feel free to add the peppers and all of the onions in to cook with the meat. I prefer the texture of sautéd onions and peppers, but sometimes laziness prevails over this preference. But don’t you dare skip broiling the provolone cheese on the rolls. Not only is it insanely delicious, but the cheese side and crisped up butter side protect the inside of the bread from becoming soggy.
Ingredients
Method
- Turn instant pot on to sauté and heat 2 tbsp oil. Add beef chunks and brown on all sides. Remove to a plate.
- Add onion to pan, and cook until translucent. Add water and stir to remove all browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Stir in soup mix, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. You can also skip this step, and just combine everything into the pot and set pressure. Browning the meat deepens the flavor, but is optional.
- Return beef to pan. Close lid and make sure vent is set to closed. Set for 45 minutes on manual. Allow pressure to naturally release for 15 minutes. Release remaining pressure. Remove beef and shred or slice.
- Add water, soup mix, seasonings and onion to the bottom of the crock pot. Stir to combine. Add roast. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-Optional: Can add onions and peppers and cook with the beef instead of sautéing separately.
- Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add peppers and onions and cook until soft.
- Turn oven on to broil. Slice rolls in half, lengthwise. Spread butter on one half of the roll, and top the other half with cheese. Broil until cheese is melted and bread is lightly browned.
- Layer meat and peppers/onions on rolls. Ladle au jus sauce/cooking liquid into bowls to dip sandwiches.
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