Best cut of beef for french dip

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With a colorful history dating back almost 100 years, the French dip sandwich has long been a staple of U.S. restaurants. Today, at-home cooks can make this sandwich by filling a French bread roll with sliced beef and possibly cheese, and serving it with beef drippings. Roast beef takes a prominent role in the sandwich, so you will want to use a quality roast that is tender, flavorful and juicy. Ideal roasts for making French dip would be either rib roast or strip loin roast; for less expensive options, consider a rump roast or top round roast.

Cook the Roast

Step 1

Remove the roast from the refrigerator and season the exterior of the roast liberally with salt, pepper and either cooking oil or melted butter. Allow the roast to come to room temperature for at least 1 hour.

Step 2

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 3

Place the roast in a roasting pan and place the pan in the oven. Cook the roast until it slightly browns on the exterior -- about 15 to 20 minutes. Then, reduce the oven heat to 325 F and continue roasting until the center interior reaches 5 to 10 degrees below your desired level of doneness -- the roast will continue to rise in temperature after it is removed from the oven and tented. You will want to remove the roast from the oven when it reaches 125 F for medium rare, 130 F for medium or 150 F for medium well. To test for doneness, use an instant-read meat thermometer. Cook times will vary based on the thickness of your roast. Generally, however, after lowering the temperature you'll want to begin checking for doneness 15 minutes per pound. For example, you'll check a 4-pound roast for doneness after 60 minutes.

Prepare the Meat and Au Jus for Sandwiches

Step 1

Remove the roast from the oven and place on a cutting board -- preferably one that has an outer well to catch meat juices. Tent the board and roast with aluminum foil. Allow roast beef to rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing.

Step 2

Strain the pan juices from the roasting pan into a sauce pan and skim off any visible fat.

Step 3

Prepare the jus. If your roasting pan is stovetop safe, place the pan on the stovetop and turn the heat to high. Once the pan is heated, deglaze it with red wine, beef stock and strained pan juices. Reduce the heat to medium low and reduce the sauce, whisking occasionally, for about 15 to 20 minutes until slightly thickened -- the finished au jus should still, however, be thinner than a typical sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

If you do not have a stovetop safe roasting pan, add a small amount of beef stock to the still warm pan from the oven. Using a spatula to scrape up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan that you can, then pour the stock and loosened bits into the sauce pan with your pan juices. Add the red wine and remaining stock to the sauce pan and simmer, whisking frequently, for 15 to 20 minutes until slightly thickened.

Step 4

Thinly slice the roast beef and serve with au jus on French sandwich rolls.

In a small bowl, mix together some salt, pepper, ground oregano, and ground thyme. A winning combo for any piece of beef.

Sprinkle the seasoning mix liberally over the beef and use your hands to rub it all over the surface and in the cracks and crevices. Keep in mind that this will be roasted and then sliced, so each slice of meat will only get the small rim of flavor around the edge. You can’t over season!

Place the meat on a roasting rack in a roasting pan and roast it to medium-rare, about 20 to 25 minutes, until it registers about 125 to 130 degrees on a meat thermometer. This will be rare to medium-rare, so if you like things a little less red in the middle, you can take it to 135 degrees. Don’t overcook the meat, though! An overcooked ribeye is a tragic occurrence!

Sorry to be dramatic.

Take the meat out of the pan, set it aside on a cutting board, and cover it with foil. Place the roasting pan on the stovetop burner over medium-high heat, then throw in some sliced onions and minced garlic. (Obviously, don’t clean the pan first. That would be a tragic occurrence, too!)

(Sorry to be dramatic. Again.)

Stir and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes, until the onions are soft and golden…

Then sprinkle in…are you ready?…a packet of French onion soup mix!

Please continue to love me. It’s delicious, man!

Stir it all together, then pour in a can of beef consomme, which will forever make me think of my mom, some beef broth, dry sherry (or white wine), Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce (just a little!), and a cup of water. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn the heat to low and simmer it for 45 minutes, until the flavors are deep, rich, and magical.

Remove it from the heat after the cooking time and pour it through a fine mesh strainer. Reserve both the liquid and the onions for the sandwiches!

Oh my word. LOOK at this beef!

Slice it as thin as you possibly can. If you have a mechanical slicer, even better!

And remember: You can cook it a little longer if you like it a little less red. (But as you can imagine…we like it red out here in the sticks.)

Pile some beef on a toasted deli roll (the crustier the better so it holds up)…

Top the beef with some of the cooked onions…

Then serve it immediately with a little dish of the warm liquid/jus.

There’s pretty much nothing in the world that’s as good as a good French dip. If you have some special guests coming to your house for dinner—a boss, a dignitary, a future in-law—this is a sure way to wow ’em.

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