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Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches

A homemade Italian seasoning blend flavors the beef for these mouthwateringly tender Instant Pot French Dip sandwiches.

Served on top of toasted garlic bread with melted provolone cheese and plenty of au jus for dunking makes this a delicious homemade meal without a lot of work!

3/4 view of 3 assembled Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches with au jus, an Instant Pot, and shredded meat alongside.

Ah, French Dips.

There’s just something magical about a sandwich that requires dunking.

And when I make French dip sandwiches, I like to take the swoon-factor up a few notches by piling all that tender beef on top of garlic bread and melting provolone cheese all over ’em.

Overhead view of the prepared ingredients for Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches ready to assemble.

This garlic butter is the same as the one that I use in My Favorite Garlic Bread recipe.

It’s just softened, unsalted butter, garlic powder, and dried parsley. And spread over deliciously toasty sandwich rolls it.is.pure.heaven.

Whereas the Slow Cooker French Dips that I’ve been making for years use an Italian seasoning blend, I decided to make my own mix for this recipe.

You could certainly substitute the spices for a blend, but if you have all of these spices in your pantry, I highly recommend trying out my mix. It’s fantastic!

Overhead view of the prepared ingredients for Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches ready to assemble.

Once the meat is seared in your Instant Pot, you add in soy sauce, beef stock, and water, along with some dried herbs and spices, seal it up, and you’re ready to rock.

Whenever I’m cooking meat that I want to be really tender in my Instant Pot, I tend to use the natural pressure release method.

That means that once the cooking time is over, you just leave the pot alone until the float valve drops down. That’s your indicator that the pressure has fully released.

And the awesome part is that you can use it right then or just leave it since the Instant Pot switches over to “Keep Warm” mode once the cooking time has completed.

Close up view of a French Dip sandwich with melted cheese and a sesame seed bun.

The meat should be falling apart tender once it finishes cooking.

I like to splash a bit of the cooking liquid over the shredded meat to keep it juicy in the tray if I’m not using it all right away.

My husband likes to go in and snag a few extra pieces of meat after he finishes his sandwiches, so this way they’re still nice and moist.

3/4 view of 3 assembled Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches with au jus, an Instant Pot, and shredded meat alongside.

You can skim the fat off the top of the cooking liquid if you like, or you can wait until the leftovers have been in the fridge overnight and just scrape off the hardened fat.

When I make these, I tend to toast the number of rolls that we need for that meal, and then make fresh garlic bread for the leftovers.

There’s just something about fresh, toasty garlic bread that takes me to my happy place.

Overhead view of the prepared ingredients for Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches ready to assemble.

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3/4 view of 3 assembled Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches with au jus, an Instant Pot, and shredded meat alongside.

Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches

  • Author: Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen - Ashley Covelli (adapted from CLBB)
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
  • Yield: 8 Servings 1x
  • Category: Sandwiches
  • Method: Instant Pot
  • Cuisine: American

Description

A homemade Italian seasoning blend flavors the beef for these mouthwateringly tender Instant Pot French Dip sandwiches. Served on top of toasted garlic bread with melted provolone cheese and plenty of au jus for dunking makes this a delicious homemade meal without a lot of work!


Ingredients

Units Scale

For Beef:

For Sandwiches:

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), softened
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 4 teaspoons dried parsley
  • 8 slices provolone cheese
  • 8 sandwich rolls


Instructions

  1. Place oil in the Instant Pot insert and set to “Sauté” and “Normal”.
  2. Pat the roast dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. When the screen on the Instant Pot says “Hot”, add meat and sear on both sides, about 2-3 minutes per side, using tongs to carefully turn the meat.
  3. Once meat is seared, add soy sauce, beef stock, water, and seasonings (peppercorns through bay leaf). Close the lid and set it to high pressure for 60 minutes. Once finished, allow the pressure to naturally release before opening the lid.
  4. Remove the beef from the Instant Pot, reserving the liquid (you can skim any excess oil/fat off the top at this point if you’d like). Shred the beef with a fork or tongs (the meat should pull apart easily).
  5. Place the softened butter in a small bowl. Mix in garlic powder and dried parsley.
  6. Place the sandwich rolls, cut sides up, on a large baking sheet and broil until golden brown. Spread garlic butter onto each toasted roll and set the tops off to the side of the tray. Pile shredded beef onto the bottom half of each sandwich roll, then top with a slice of provolone. Return the tray to the oven and continue to broil until the cheese melts, about 2-3 minutes.
  7. Serve each sandwich with a bowl of au jus liquid from the Instant Pot alongside for dipping.

Notes

You can substitute an Italian seasoning blend for the spices & herbs (parsley through rosemary) in the beef recipe – use 1-2 tablespoons total.

Recipe adapted from the now-defunct CLBB.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size:
  • Calories: 539
  • Sugar: 4.3 g
  • Sodium: 1151.3 mg
  • Fat: 30.6 g
  • Saturated Fat: 14.6 g
  • Carbohydrates: 26.4 g
  • Fiber: 1.3 g
  • Protein: 38.4 g
  • Cholesterol: 125.2 mg

Keywords: french dip, beef au jus, Instant Pot french dip

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Ashley Covelli is a food photographer, recipe developer, and culinary instructor based in Ossining, New York. She loves helping people become enthusiastic and adventurous in the kitchen so that they can build skills and confidence to cook for themselves and their loved ones. She can almost always be found with at least 3 different beverages within arm's reach.

20 Comments

  • Anna

    Although I do not own an instant pot , looking at the delicious and tempting recipes like this one really makes me wanna buy one! I also like how you’ve used your own herb blend, so much better than a shop-bought version!






    • Ashley

      Thanks so much, Anna! If you have a slow cooker, you could totally cook the meat in that, or even low and slow in the oven for a few hours. But if you’re debating an Instant Pot, I highly recommend getting one! I LOVE mine and use it several times per week!

  • Dominique | Perchance to Cook

    Nom nom nom, there’s so much flavor in these sandwiches, I feel like my taste buds could explode with happiness!! These sandwiches are being added to my “To-make” list!

  • Kathryn @ FoodieGirlChicago

    I love french dip sandwiches so this recipe is motivation to get me to finally buy an instant pot so I can make these!! 🙂






    • Ashley

      I’m firmly #TeamInstantPot, but you can totally make this by cooking the meat in a slow cooker, or in the oven if you want. But I just know you’ll love your IP whenever you do take the plunge 🙂

  • Sharon

    I’m always looking for a new instant pot recipe, and this one looks great! French Dip sandwiches are great for dinner or even a party.

  • Michelle

    Mmmn, this dish sounds so amazing! So easy too! I’m adding it to my meal plan next week. I bet it’s great for left overs too.






  • Heather

    OOOOOO… I love french dip sandwiches!!! What a great recipe to make and add to the Instant Pot collection. I also love that you use a homemade garlic butter spread .. very good idea!






  • Matt Kearns

    Oh man am I a big fan of French dips! I can only imagine how tender the meat is after being cooked in the instant pot! Well done!






  • Nicole | Culinary Cool

    Wow, you’re really got me craving a French Dip sandwich now! For real! I haven’t had one in forever and I think I might need to bust out my Instant Pot, stat, and make some!

  • Rachel

    This recipes looks awesome! French Dip Sandwiches are my mom’s fav. Now I have the perfect thing to make her for Mother’s Day!






  • CC McD

    Made this on a friend’s recommendation for dinner at my sister’s. Everyone raved & my sister requested the recipe. 🙂 Thanks, Ashley!






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