French Dip Sandwiches

I like recipe posts where they cut right to the chase and post the bare necessities, aka the recipe, right off the bat rather than stringing you along through a host of unnecessary pictures that are only there for the cooking challenged and make you wade through a mountain of information when all you want is the list of ingredients so you can make a darn shopping list.  That being said, here is the recipe first and foremost, and a host of cheesy posed pictures that should be unnecessary if you have ever set foot in the kitchen before in your life will follow.   

FRENCH DIP SANDWICHES

(Crock Pot Italian Beef Au Jus)

3-5 lb boneless beef roast (chuck)

1 pkg au jus mix

1 pkg Italian salad dressing mix

14 oz can beef broth

1/2 soup can water

Place beef in crock pot.  Combine remaining ingredients.  Pour over roast.  Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.  Slice or shred meat with forks.  Use juice for dipping.  Can thicken broth if desired.  Serve on toasted hoagie buns.  Add swiss or monterey jack cheese for an extra treat.

A friend gave me this recipe and I love it both because it is the easiest recipe in the world but also because of all of the french dip sandwiches that I have ever tried at restaurants over the years, this recipe makes the best sandwich I have ever had.  

So here are the photographed instructions:

Take your roast (I suppose those penny-pinchers out there could find a cheaper roast than this):

 

Be sure to remove that blood soaker thing before putting the roast in the crock pot (just hypothetical, of course, this has never happened to me...)

Take the above ingredients and mix together...

Don't forget to add the 1/2 can of water.  Don't worry if it's a bit lumpy.  That will cook away.  Then pour over roast...

Cook on low for 8 hours.  I started mine a little late and did it on high for the first 4 hours.  After that I chopped it into about 4 smaller pieces and turned the heat down to low for the last bit.  Then about an hour before I was ready to serve it up, I pulled out a piece at a time and just put it on a plate and started shredding it with forks as shown below.  

Once it was shredded, I added the shreds back into the crock pot to soak in the yummy juices for the last hour.  You can also just slice it up if you prefer.

I like to serve mine on toasted hoagie buns so I butter them first...

 then toast them on the griddle (or on a skillet, depending on how many you are trying to do at once)

 I then like to ladle out the au jus into small bowls for dipping for each person and then just use a slotted spoon to dish out the meat onto the toasted bun, slap on a piece of swiss or monterey jack cheese (or any cheese of your choosing or availability) and serve it up.  Enjoy!

To dip or not to dip... That is the question!

**Remember that TODAY is the last day to enter our giveaway here!!

We linked up with:

Whipperberry

30Days

Naptime Crafters

Creation Corner

Tater Tots & Jello

The Creative Crate