French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (2024)

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

This post may contain affiliate sales links. Please read my disclosure policy.

I love French Dip Sandwiches, but don’t love the time it takes to make the classic version. Enter my super speedy method! Roast Beef lunch meat and store bought Au Jus are jazzed up with a few extra ingredients to make this whole sandwich taste amazing and come together in about 15 minutes. It’s a killer dinner and so so delicious with Macaroni Salad or Potato Salad.

French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (1)

French Dip Sandwiches in 15 Minutes

I know that title seems a little unbelievable, but it’s true! I’ve rigged the classic French Dip Sandwich and shaved down as much time as possible to create a fast but still delicious and flavorful sandwich you are going to love. With the help of your broiler and a few store bought ingredients, you will be enjoying these French Dips in no time. Makes amazing lunches or fast dinners.

French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (2)
French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (3)

Main Ingredients Needed

Here is the really short list of grocery items needed to make these French Dips at home!

  • Au Jus Gravy Mix– a powdered mix when whisked together with water creates a really tasty base for our Au Jus dip. This is the Au Jus Mix I used, but feel free to use the brand you prefer.
  • Roast Beef– thinly sliced lunch meat. I look for the roast beef that has the least amount of fat in the deli case. That’s just my preference, though. Use a brand you like.
  • Garlic + Bay Leaves– used to flavor the au jus so it tastes more homemade
  • Hoagie Rolls– I like toasting the exterior of these rolls just a touch before opening them up and toasting the insides. The toasting is completely optional, but I do find that it helps them hold up a little better.
  • Butter-used to butter the inside of the toasted rolls
French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (4)

How to Make French Dip Sandwiches

Again, this is a speedy recipe. No special equipment or tools needed. For increments and more specific directions, check the recipe card at the bottom of this post, right before the comments.

Step 1: Make the Au Jus + Warm the Beef

Whisk powdered Au Jus together with water in the bottom of a pot or deep skillet. Mine called for 3 cups of water, but double check yours to make sure that increment of water to powder is correct. You want to make it according to package directions.

Smash two cloves of garlic and add them to the au jus. Add the bay leaves. Transfer to stove and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer and add in the roast beef to warm. Keep meat warm over low heat.

French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (5)
French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (6)

Step 2: Toast and Butter Your Rolls

While au jus/meat is warming, toast your hoagie buns. I like to toast the bottoms of the rolls, and toast the insides. Watch your bread closely as you don’t want it to burn. The toasting is definitely optional but it helps keep your bread together when you add the juicy meat. Also optional, but feel free to spread butter on the exterior of the roll too. It miiiight be overkill, but man is it good.

Once the insides of the bread are toasted, spread 1/2 tablespoon of butter onto each half and rub with raw garlic clove. SO much flavor is added when you rub the bread with the garlic. Don’t skip this step! It makes such a difference.

Step 3: Assemble the French Dips

Divide the meat between each bottom half of the sandwich and add the provolone cheese, 1 slice per sandwich. (You can always add more if you like it cheesy.) Broil again briefly to melt the cheese; should take 30 seconds to 1 minute since the meat is already hot.

Add the top, cut in half and serve with hot au jus.

French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (7)
French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (8)

Favorite Sides for Hot Sandwiches

While the warm French Dip Sandwich is really filling and delicious on its own, here are a few tasty sides that would made this meal more complete:

  • Fruit Salad
  • Classic Coleslaw
  • Homemade Kettle Chips
  • Caesar Salad
  • Ambrosia
French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (9)

Love French Dip Sandwiches? Try these other Favorites:

  • Egg Salad Sandwiches
  • Low Carb Bagel Sandwiches
  • Easy Chicken Melts
  • Crockpot BBQ Chicken Sliders

Anyways, I hope you love love love this recipe as much as my family has come to love it! It’s a simple dinner that has made our dinner menu three weeks in a row. While I love spending the time on classic recipes from time to time, sometimes its nice to have a quick recipe in your back pocket for those busy nights. Enjoy, friends!

French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (10)

PrintPrint Pin ItPin It

5 from 3 votes

French Dip Sandwiches

Make this homemade French Dip Sandwich recipe at home in no time. Slow-cooked flavor with a few store-bought ingredients and little effort.

servings 4 sandwiches

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Ingredients

  • 1 Powdered Au Jus Mix
  • 3 cups water to make the au jus, check package directions
  • 3 cloves garlic divided
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 14 oz Roast Beef Lunch Meat
  • 4 Hoagie Buns/Rolls
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 4 slices provolone cheese

US CustomaryMetric

Instructions

  • Turn oven onto broil. Line a baking sheet with foil and set aside.

  • Whisk powdered Au Jus together with water in the bottom of a pot or deep skillet. (Mine called for 3 cups of water, but double check yours to make sure that increment of water to powder is correct. You want to make it according to package directions.) Smash two cloves of garlic and add them to the au jus. Add the bay leaves. Transfer to stove and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer and add in the roast beef to warm. Keep meat warm over low heat.

  • While au jus/meat is warming, toast your hoagie buns. I like to toast the bottoms of the rolls, and toast the insides. Watch your bread closely as you don't want it to burn. The toasting is definitely optional but it helps keep your bread together when you add the meat.

  • Once the insides of the bread are toasted, spread 1/2 tablespoon of butter onto each half and rub with raw garlic clove.

  • Divide the meat between each bottom half of the sandwich and add the provolone cheese, 1 slice per sandwich. (You can always add more if you like it cheesy.) Broil again to melt the cheese; should take 30 seconds to 1 minute since the meat is already hot.

  • Add the top, cut in half and serve with hot au jus.

Notes

To make this more Macro Friendly, simply reduce the butter by half OR omit it completely.

Nutrition

Calories: 487kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 100mg | Sodium: 2124mg | Potassium: 407mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 521IU | Vitamin C: 46mg | Calcium: 557mg | Iron: 5mg

Course: Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine: American

Keyword: French Dip Sandwiches

French Dip Sandwich Recipe - Lauren's Latest (2024)

FAQs

What's a good side for French dip sandwiches? ›

Ideas to Serve with French Dip Sandwiches:

Coleslaw. Fries. Potato Salad. Veggies and dip.

What is a standard French dip? ›

French dip, a sandwich traditionally consisting of sliced roast beef (though pork, ham, turkey, and lamb are sometimes used), served on French bread, and eaten au jus (“with juice,” referring to the flavourful drippings of the meat left over from roasting).

Which LA Eatery lays claim to the invention of the French dip sandwich? ›

Inventors of The French Dip

In 1918, the French Dip Sandwich was created at Philippe's by accident and the rest is history.

What's the difference between a French dip in a roast beef sandwich? ›

French dip is made with cold roast beef that's heated either in the jus or on a grill, then put on a bun to serve with more jus on the side as the 'dip'. Cheeseseak starts with raw beef that's cooked on a grill -often with onions and peppers - then piled on a bun a topped with cheese - often 'American' or cheez whiz.

What is a wet French dip sandwich? ›

The basic concept is the same at both places – Philippe's serves their French Dip “wet” which means that the roll is dipped in the meat juices and then filled with roast beef, Cole's serves theirs with a side of au jus which diners dip their sandwich into.

Does a French dip come with cheese? ›

What is a French Dip Sandwich? The classic French Dip Sandwich is a hot sandwich boasting tender thin slices of beef layered on a long French roll, often with melted cheese, then dipped in a flavorful sauce made from the pan juices called “au jus,” French for “with broth” or “with juice.”

What is French Dip sauce made of? ›

The secret to this best-ever French dip? It's all in the jus. To make it, you're going to place your roasting pan with the beef drippings on the stove top before adding your onions, garlic, thyme, beef broth and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a simmer, then cook until slightly thickened.

What is the difference between beef dip and French Dip? ›

A French dip sandwich, also known as a beef dip, is a hot sandwich consisting of thinly sliced roast beef (or, sometimes, other meats) on a "French roll" or baguette.

What is on classic French Dip & Swiss? ›

Roast beef. Swiss. Sub roll. French au jus sauce.

Why do they call it a French dip? ›

And so was born the “French Dipped Sandwich,” so called either because of Mathieu's French heritage, the French roll the sandwich is made on or because the officer's name was French.

What is an interesting fact about the French dip? ›

It comes with a special sauce called jus which is usually made with the juice and fat that came off the roast beef when they were cooking it. It was not originally from France; two restaurants in Los Angeles, California, Cole's and Philippe's, both claim to have invented it.

Where did French dip get its name? ›

French Dip sandwich is an American sandwich, supposedly started in California, or so it is claimed (by Philippe's). The “French” comes from the use of a French bread roll. Well, Philippe's may have coined the name.

Can I use beef broth instead of au jus? ›

Can I use beef broth instead of au jus? You will not get near the same taste of roast beef using beef broth rather than a complete au jus sauce like this one. However, when reheating it in the oven, you can use beef broth or au jus to moisten your roast.

Is beef broth the same as beef au jus? ›

Beef broth is made by simmering beef bones, mirepoix (typically onion, carrots, and celery), hearty herbs, and spices in water, to extract flavor into the liquid. Au jus is basically beefed up beef broth. Amplify the savory flavor of beef broth by simmering it with drippings from roast beef (double beef flavor).

Is au jus gravy the same as beef gravy? ›

Like gravy, jus (pronounced zhoo) starts with the drippings from cooked meat. Unlike gravy, however, it is not thickened with flour; instead, the liquid is reduced until it reaches the desired consistency, which is usually thinner than gravy.

What do you serve with French onion dip? ›

What do you serve with French onion dip? The obvious answer is good, salty potato chips! But any sort of cracker or sliced veggie would be tasty too. Sliced peppers, cucumbers, or carrots would pair well for a healthy snack!

What is good to serve with dips? ›

With thick, chunky dips you'll need sturdy chips or veggies, while smooth, light spreads work perfectly with more delicate bites like lettuce leaves. To blanch vegetables, briefly plunge them into a large pot of boiling salted water, then refresh in a bowl of ice water and drain.

What side dishes go with beef dips? ›

The best side dishes to serve with French dip sandwiches are crispy green beans, chicken wings, fries, nachos, tomato sauce, cheese dip, coleslaw, roasted or steamed vegetables, pickles, fruit salads, spicy onion rings, been soup and jicama Fries.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Greg Kuvalis

Last Updated:

Views: 6451

Rating: 4.4 / 5 (75 voted)

Reviews: 82% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Greg Kuvalis

Birthday: 1996-12-20

Address: 53157 Trantow Inlet, Townemouth, FL 92564-0267

Phone: +68218650356656

Job: IT Representative

Hobby: Knitting, Amateur radio, Skiing, Running, Mountain biking, Slacklining, Electronics

Introduction: My name is Greg Kuvalis, I am a witty, spotless, beautiful, charming, delightful, thankful, beautiful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.