February 4, 2019

Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches

These Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches are filled with tender beef, topped with provolone cheese, and dipped in a delicious au jus. Easy to make and great for lunch or dinner!

French Dip Sandwiches

There are some foods that bring back sweet memories for me, and french dip sandwiches are one of them. When I was in high school, I worked at a music store on the main street of my town. On Saturdays I would walk to a nearby bakery to get a sugar cookie that had two times as much frosting as a normal cookie (perfection), and then to a deli where I would get a french dip sandwich. To this day, the smell and taste of french dip sandwiches remind me of those happy high school days.

In Pursuit of the Perfect French Dip

I have made many, many french dip recipes in my day, trying to recreate the taste that I have loved and remember. All of the recipes have been fine, but none were as juicy as I wanted. Dry beef is not my thing. And on that note, I’m pretty sure dry beef isn’t anyone’s thing.

A few years ago I came across the Pioneer Woman’s French Dip Sandwiches. It was much closer to what I had in mind! However, I wanted the option to cook the beef in an Instant Pot, and I wanted to use chuck roast as it’s easiest for me to find in my area.

Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches

It has taken many tries, but I finally made the Instant Pot French Dip Sandwich that I wanted! The meat is juicy, full of flavor, and the whole thing takes minimal effort!

Here are a couple notes on making these Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches:

I find that 40 minutes gets the meat to a nice medium-well temperature that keeps the beef tender. This may vary depending on the thickness of your cut of meat. I recommend using a meat thermometer (this is the one I use) to make sure that the meat has reached a temperature that you are comfortable with once it’s finished. There is a good chart of meat temperatures here.
I can’t imagine that you will have your meat underdone, but if it is, you can cut it into pieces and put them in a baking dish with some of the juice from the Instant Pot, and place them in the oven at 350 degrees until they reach your desired temperature/color.

Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches

These Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches are filled with tender beef, topped with provolone cheese, and dipped in a delicious au jus. Easy to make and great for lunch or dinner!

5 from 1 vote

Course: Dinner

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 50

Servings: sandwiches

Calories: 711

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Ingredients

2.5 pound chuck roast
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
2 tbsp olive oil divided
2 onions cut into long thin slices
4 cloves garlic
1/4 cup red wine
1 packet onion soup mix
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
10.5 ounce can beef consomme
1 cup beef stock
1/2 cup water
6 Hoagie Rolls
6 slices provolone cheese

Instructions

In a small bowl, mix together salt, pepper, oregano, and thyme. Rub on all sides of roast and let roast sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes.
Turn Instant Pot to saute mode and heat 1 tbsp of olive oil. Sear roast on all sides, for about 1 minute each. Remove roast and set to side.
Add remaining tbsp of olive oil. Then add onions and saute until softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic cloves and saute for about 30 more seconds, or until garlic is fragrant. Pour wine into pot and stir, getting up any burned pieces of food off the bottom of the pot, until the smell of wine is gone and most of the liquid is absorbed. Turn off pot.
Add soup mix, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, beef consomme, beef stock, and water. Stir well. Then return beef to pot and ensure the beef is covered with liquid.
Cook on high pressure for 40 minutes, and let natural release for 15 minutes (use a wooden spoon to open pressure valve in case any liquid spits out).
Remove beef from liquid and let rest for about 5 minutes before cutting. Drain broth from onions and garlic (you will keep both, the onions/garlic are for topping and the broth is for dipping).
Cut meat and place on french bread (it cuts very easily and almost falls apart). Top with onions and garlic, and if desired, provolone cheese. To melt the cheese and toast the bread, you can place it under the broiler in the oven for a couple of minutes, watching closely, or in a toaster oven (I use toast setting 2 of 5 for my toaster oven). Serve with broth for dipping.