Recipe—Crock-Pot French Dip Sandwiches

When I was a very young girl I wasn’t a picky eater, but I certainly had my favorites. Whenever we went to a deli I ALWAYS ordered a ham sandwich with mayo on white bread. Yeah I was pretty adventurous. One day my dad took me to an Italian deli and I was devastated when they told me they didn’t have ham or white bread. I know what you are thinking, a deli with no ham or white bread?!? I looked at my dad with big eyes and I was at a complete loss as to what I should order. My dad made a decision and ordered me a French dip. I ate the whole thing in record speed and it was delicious! From that day on I had a new favorite sandwich.

If you have never had a French dip then you are missing out! A French dip is a hot sandwich made up of tender thinly sliced roasted beef on a roll and served with a cup of flavorful juice called au jus. You dip each bite of the sandwich in the au jus and take a bite of the juicy flavor packed beefy sandwich. Oh my goodness, my mouth is watering as I write this! This recipe takes my favorite popular sandwich and makes it cheap, easy, and convenient by cooking it in the crock-pot. The meat is incredibly flavorful and tender. It was a huge hit with my family. My hubby actually went back for seconds and then tried to snag our toddlers leftovers too. And I will say, my son was not having it. I only wish I made more because I would have loved to have some leftovers the next day.

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2–3 lb chuck roast
garlic powder
Kosher salt and pepper
3 c beef broth
1 (10.5 oz) can condensed French onion soup
3/4 c red wine
French rolls
sliced provolone cheese (optional)

STEPS

• Trim any excess fat from the meat.
• Season the roast with garlic powder, kosher salt, and pepper.
• Spray crock-pot with non-stick cooking spray. (This makes clean up a breeze!)
• In the crock-pot stir together broth, French onion soup, and red wine.
• Add the seasoned roast to crock-pot.
• Cook on low heat for 7–8 hours.
• Remove roast from crock-pot and place on a cutting board.
• Allow roast to sit for 10 minutes.
• Using a ladle transfer half of the liquid (au jus) to a small saucepan.
• Slice the roast (mine was falling apart tender so I ended up shredding it with a large fork) and return meat to crock-pot.
• Continue to cook on low heat for an additional 30 minutes while the meat soaks up some of the flavor packed juices.
• Heat the au jus you removed from the crock-pot in the saucepan over low heat.
• Lightly toast your rolls in the oven while meat is soaking and au jus is heating.
• Using tongs squeeze excess juice from the meat and place on toasted rolls.
• Top with cheese if desired.
• Serve sandwich with a side of the au jus in a small bowl or ramekin for dipping.
• Enjoy while hot and juicy!