These Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches are quick, easy, and absolutely mouth watering. Tender beef and melty cheese are piled onto crusty bread and dunked in a rich sauce!
I absolutely love sandwiches and these instant pot french dip sandwiches are no exception. You just can’t beat tender beef, ooey-gooey cheese, crusty bread, and of course, a rich sauce for dunking!
What is a french dip?
A French dip sandwich, also known as a beef dip, is a hot sandwich with thinly sliced beef, cheese, and onions. The meat, cheese, and onions are piled onto a French roll or baguette, then toasted and served with a beef broth dipping sauce.
This recipe uses the Instant Pot to cook the beef, onions, and broth dipping sauce.
Ingredients
This hearty sandwich has a few surprise ingredients that takes the flavor to the next level!
- Chuck Roast – most French dip sandwiches are made with chuck roast or rump roast. Both are great for braising (searing the exterior then simmering in liquid until cooked), but chuck roast will be more tender and will create a richer dipping sauce, because it has a higher fat content.
- Salt and Pepper – used to season the outside of the meat. This not only flavors the meat, but also helps create a crust on the outside. The seasoning is kept very simple, because additional flavorings are used later in the recipe.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil – used to sear the outside of the meat and also to cook the onions and garlic. Grapeseed oil and avocado oil may also be used.
- Yellow Onion – yellow onion is used in the recipe, but feel free to use white or red onion. Yellow and red onions will yield a sweeter flavor whereas white onion will have more of a “bite” to it.
- Garlic – provides a subtle, nutty flavor. 1 tablespoon of minced garlic is called for — about 4-6 cloves. Buy jarred minced garlic to save on prep time.
- Beer – used to deglaze the bottom of the Instant Pot after searing the meat and cooking the onions. The beer helps lift any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan and also adds a rich flavor to the sauce. We used an IPA. Feel free to use whatever you have on hand, however, a darker or more flavorful beer is preferred for the best flavor.
- Beef Broth – the base of our braising liquid, which becomes the dipping sauce. Chicken broth may be substituted in a pinch, but it won’t have as rich of a flavor.
- Soy Sauce, Fish Sauce, and Worcestershire Sauce – the seasoning trifecta for these sandwiches! The salty, tangy, umami flavor each of these brings in key to having super flavorful meat.
- Onion Soup Mix – our store-bought seasoning blend to provide additional flavor to the beef. Feel free to make your own — you’ll likely need 2-3 tablespoons to replace the packet.
- Bread: French Rolls or Sliced Baguette – either will work, but I prefer a baguette, because it’s thicker, chewier, and holds up better to dunking in the sauce. If you prefer a softer bread, use french rolls! They’re also more convenient, because they come pre-sliced and ready to go. If using a baguette, you’ll need to portion it out into individual sandwiches, then slice them down the middle, so they can be filled with meat and cheese.
- Cheese – swiss or provolone cheese is most commonly found on a french dip sandwich, but feel free to mix it up! Try havarti, pepper-jack, gouda, monterey-jack, etc. You can also omit the cheese entirely, but I love the ooey-gooey texture and creamy flavor paired with the tender, rich beef.
How to make
French dips are typically made by slowly braising the beef in liquid (usually in the oven or slow cooker) — the Instant Pot greatly reduces the time that takes!
- Season both sides of a chuck roast with salt and pepper, brown each side in a hot 6 quart Instant Pot, then remove and set aside.
- Add in onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, then add beer to deglaze – be sure to scrape all the brown bits off the bottom. This avoids a BURN notice on the IP.
- Add seared roast back in, then stir in broth, soy sauce, fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and onion soup mix.
- Cook on HIGH pressure for 50 minutes, then allow a natural release for 30 minutes.
- Remove beef and shred or slice, stir back into sauce, then simmer for 10 minutes or until thickened to your liking.
- Assemble the sandwiches: top sliced baguette with desired amount of meat, then cheese. Broil until cheese is melted and the top bun is toasted.
- Serve with sauce for dunking and enjoy!
What’s the best cut of meat for instant pot french dip?
Most French dips are made with chuck roast (shoulder) or rump roast (hindquarters). Both are relatively affordable and great for braising — a combination-cooking method of pan searing followed by slow cooking in a liquid.
Chuck roast will be more tender and will create a richer dipping sauce, because it has a higher fat content.
Do you have to sear the meat first?
No, but it’s only 1 extra step and additional 10 minutes. Seared meat has more flavor and may be slightly more tender, but it’s not absolutely necessary to create great sandwiches!
How to serve instant pot french dip
Cooked beef is piled onto a french roll or baguette, topped with cheese, broiled, then served with a sauce for dunking.
- Once the beef has been cooked, remove it from the Instant Pot and shred or slice it. To shred: use two forks to break the meat into large chunks. To slice: use a sharp knife to slice the meat against the grain into thin strips.
- Stir the meat back in, then simmer it with the sauce until the sauce has thickened, then assemble the sandwiches.
- To serve the sandwiches: cut the baguettes slices or rolls in half, place both halves onto a baking sheet, top the bottom half with desired amount of meat, then 1-2 slices of cheese. Broil until cheese is melted and the top bun is toasted.
- Serve with sauce for dunking and enjoy!
What to serve with french dip
A French Dip goes great with fries, salads, fruit, and veggies! Here are some of my favorite sides:
- Potato Wedges
- Macaroni Salad
- Pear, Blue Cheese, Candied Pecan Salad
- Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
- Easy Roasted Vegetables
- Fruit Salad
How to store
Leftover meat and sauce will last in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for 2-3 months. Store the cheese and bread separately.
To reheat: thaw in the fridge, if frozen, then simmer the meat/sauce on the stove or in the Instant Pot until warm. Assemble the sandwiches as directed and enjoy!
– Jennifer
Instant Pot French Dip
Equipment for this recipe
Ingredients
Instant Pot French Dip
- 3 pounds boneless chuck roast
- ½ teaspoon salt plus more to taste
- ½ teaspoon pepper plus more to taste
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 large yellow onions sliced
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 (12 oz) bottle beer
- 1 cup beef broth
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 (1 oz) packet onion soup mix
For Serving
- 2 (12 oz) baguettes sliced to make 8 sandwiches or use 8 French Rolls instead
- 8 slices provolone cheese
Instructions
- Season both sides of the chuck roast with salt and pepper, then set aside.
- Hit SAUTE on 6 quart Instant Pot.
- Once it reads HOT, add in olive oil, then chuck roast.
- Brown each side for 5 minutes, or until golden brown, then remove and set aside.
- Add in onion and sauté for 5 minutes stirring regularly; add garlic in the last 30 seconds.
- Hit CANCEL on the Instant Pot.
- Add beer to deglaze - be sure to scrape all the brown bits off the bottom. This avoids a BURN notice on the IP.
- Add seared roast back in.
- Stir in broth, soy sauce, fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and onion soup mix.
- Cook on HIGH pressure for 50 minutes.
- Allow a natural release for 30 minutes, then flip the pressure valve to release any remaining pressure.
- Remove beef and shred or slice, then stir back into sauce.
- Hit SAUTE on the Instant Pot to bring the mixture to a simmer, then simmer sauce for 10 minutes or until thickened to your liking. Taste and re-season with salt and pepper, if necessary.
- Assemble the sandwiches: cut the baguettes slices or rolls in half, place both halves onto a baking sheet, top the bottom half with desired amount of meat, then cheese. Broil until cheese is melted and the top bun is toasted.
- Serve with sauce for dunking and enjoy!
- Take 5 seconds to either rate this recipe below and/or PIN it. We greatly appreciate it!
Nutrition Information
*Note: Nutrition information is estimated and varies based on products used.