Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches are toasted hoagie buns piled with flavorful, tender beef and melty cheese. Then you dunk the sandwich into a cup of hot au jus dip. This crock pot French Dip Sandwiches recipe is pure comfort food perfect for the whole family. I show you step-by-step how to make French Dip Sandwiches in the crock pot.
When you are looking for an easy dinner idea, this French Dip recipe is a delicious meal that is sure to get rave reviews.
What is a French Dip Sandwich?
• A French dip sandwich, also called a beef dip, is a hot sandwich with thinly sliced roast beef on a hoagie roll or a French roll that you dip in jus as you eat it.
• They are usually served plain but are often topped with melted provolone or Swiss cheese and/or cooked onions.
• A cup of beef broth (jus) produced from the cooking process is served with each sandwich for dipping.
The classic french dip sandwich is an easy recipe that uses a rump roast or a beef chuck roast that slow cooks all day. The flavorful beef cooks into tender meat and makes homemade au jus dipping sauce.
What is the Best Slow Cooker to Use?
- I prefer a 6-quart size or similar sized programmable crock pot.
- To me, the most useful feature on a programmable crock pot is the the Keep Warm function. The pot automatically switches to warm after the cook time has ended. This is especially handy for when you can't get home in time to turn the slow cooker off.
Ingredients for the Best French Dip Recipe
• Yellow Onion
• Garlic or Garlic Powder
• Beef Chuck Roast, Beef Rib Loin or Rump Roast
• Kosher Salt, Black Pepper, Dried Thyme Leaves, Oregano
• Onion Soup Mix
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Soy Sauce
• Beef Consommé
• Beef Broth
• Sherry
To Serve
• French Roll or Hoagie Rolls
• Provolone Cheese or Swiss Cheese
How to Make Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches
1) Add the sliced onion and the garlic to the bottom of the slow cooker.
2) Sprinkle the salt, pepper, thyme, and oregano on all sides of the roast and place beef on top of the onions.
3) Sprinkle the onion soup mix, Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce over the roast.
4) Pour the beef broth, beef consommé, and sherry over the roast.
5) Place the cover on the crock pot and cook on Low for 8-10 hours, or High for 4-5 hours, or until the meat is fall-apart tender.
6) Remove the meat to a plate and shred. Set aside.
7) Strain out the onions and set aside. Reserve the drippings (jus), and use a fat separator if you want to remove some of the excess fat.
8) Then pour the au jus sauce into individual serving cups for dipping.
9) Butter and toast the buns if you want, then pile some of the shredded beef and reserved onion onto each roll.
10) Top each sandwich with a couple slices of cheese.
11) You can then put them in the oven and broil them for a couple of minutes if you want melted cheese.
12) Place the tops on the sandwiches. Serve each with a cup of the hot jus for dipping the sandwiches into.
Tips For the Best Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches
- BEEF ROAST: Brown the roast in a hot, large skillet on both sides before adding it to the crockpot.
- ONIONS: Brown the onion in some butter and olive oil and caramelize it a bit before adding to the slow cooker. Adds great flavor!
- BROTH/CONSOMMÉ: Use all beef broth or water with beef bouillon if you want.
- ONION SOUP MIX: If you don't have any, use a can of French Onion Soup (reducing the beef broth by 1 cup).
- CHEESE: Almost any kind of cheese can be used, but Provolone and Swiss are typical.
- BUNS: Hoagie rolls and French Rolls are the most popular for a hot sandwich like this, but you could also use sourdough or whatever you like. I recommend toasting the rolls with a little butter spread on them.
Slow Cooker Beef and Dumplings
Slow Cooker Beef Ribs
Slow Cooker Whole Chicken
Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken
How to Store the Leftover French Dip
Place the leftover shredded meat in an airtight container and keep in the fridge up to 5 days.
Store the jus in a separate airtight container if you want to have flavorful sauce for dipping leftover sandwiches in.
If you make this crockpot french dip sandwich recipe, please let me know. Just leave a comment below with a star rating. I'd love to know how you liked it!
Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches
Equipment
- 6 quart Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 large Yellow Onion, thinly sliced
- 4 large cloves Garlic, minced or pressed
- 4-5 pounds Beef Chuck Roast* (boneless)
- 1 Tablespoon Kosher Salt
- 1 Tablespoon Black Pepper
- ½ teaspoon Dried Thyme Leaves (not ground)
- ½ teaspoon Oregano
- 1 2-ounce packet Onion Soup Mix
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
- 1 10.5-ounce can Beef Consommé
- 1 cup Beef Broth
- ¼ cup Dry Sherry
To Serve
- 7-10 French Rolls
- 14 slices Provolone Cheese (or to taste)
Instructions
- Add the sliced onion and the garlic to the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Sprinkle the salt, pepper, thyme, and oregano on all sides of the roast and place the roast on top of the onions.
- Sprinkle the onion soup mix, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, consommé, beef broth, and sherry over the roast.
- Place the cover on the crock pot and cook on Low for 8-9 hours, or High for 4-5 hours, or until the meat is fall-apart tender. Remove the meat to a plate and shred. Set aside.
- Strain out the onions and set aside. Reserve the drippings (jus), and use a fat separator if you want to remove some of the fat. Then pour the jus into individual serving bowl for dipping.
- Butter and toast the buns if you want, then pile some of the shredded beef and reserved onion onto each roll and top with a couple slices of the provolone cheese (you can then broil them if you want to melt the cheese).
- Serve each sandwich with a cup of the hot jus for dipping the sandwiches into.
Kari says
Super delicious and easy! I made it exactly as written. I did toast the rolls in a skillet. So good!