Recipe: Homemade French Dip Sandwiches

We really don’t eat a lot of sandwiches (except for the occasional quick lunch sandwich here and there), but we both really like French Dip sandwiches at restaurants. I had been wracking my brain for a way to get the tender texture and roasted flavor without buying pre-cooked roast or using the oven. Enter the Crock-Pot hidden in the far corner of our cabinet: an incredible kitchen appliance, but one I had almost forgotten about since moving from the Midwest a year ago.

I know it depends on the size of the roast you choose, but I banked on mine cooking 7-8 hours on low. Thank goodness I was working from home that day, because it was completely cooked in about 5 hours! This recipe may be best for days when you can come home for lunch and put it together or cook up on a weekend.

We left off the peppers and onions that typically accompany a French Dip sandwich, and overall this homemade version – complete with au jus – turned out quite tasty!

Tasty and easy meal!

Homemade French Dip Sandwiches

Ingredients:

For The Beef:

• 4 lb lean beef round roast, trimmed
• 1 tbsp minced garlic, minced
• 1 tsp dry rosemary
• 
1 tsp dry thyme
• 
1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 to 3 (14.5 oz) cans low-sodium beef broth
 (I used 2 cans + 1/2 can of water – you want the liquid to cover the roast)
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 large onion, cut into chunks

For the Sandwich:

• Reduced-fat provolone cheese slices
• Whole wheat baguette rolls

Directions

Mix garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper together in a bowl and rub the spice mixture onto all sides of the roast. Place roast in the Crock-Pot.

Pour the broth around the sides until it just covers the roast. Add water, if needed, top with onions and add the Worcestershire sauce. Cover and cook on low until the meat flakes apart easily with a fork, between 4 and 8 hours on low, depending on the size of your roast.

Once cooked, remove the meat from the Crock-Pot to a cutting board and shred with a fork or slice with a knife. Strain the broth to remove any fat, then pour broth into small bowls for serving.

You can certainly carmelize onions and peppers and add to this sandwich, but we’re pretty plain eaters in this arena.

Preheat the oven to broil. Slice the bread open and top with beef. Top cheese (and onions and peppers, if you’d like) and broil until the cheese melts. Place on a plate and serve with broth for dipping.

Here’s the nutritional breakdown for one sandwich:

Calories: 308

Fat: 9g

Carbs: 31g

Protein: 29g

We’ve got a big things going on in our running world this week: C is checking out her first speedwork session with a local running group tomorrow night, and G is prepping to run the Oriflamme 50K on Saturday!

Have a great week!

GnC

How about you: Are you racing this weekend? Or trying something new this week? Let us know!