The Best Damn French Dip Sandwich on Earth!

The french dip, in my opinion, is the crowning jewel of sandwiches. The savory roast beef, the mild cheese,  with the perfect bakery fresh bun conquers the tastebuds. And don’t forget the au jus for dipping! There is just something about a french dip
that puts all other sandwiches to shame. Often, when I go to restaurants and am not sure what to get, this is my go to. You can actually tell a lot about a restaurant by the quality of their french dip… and vice versa! If the french dip is delicious,
then the rest of the menu is probably delicious. On the other side of the spectrum, if you go to a dive bar, don’t order a french dip. You will be disappointed.

When I make sandwiches at home, I probably take it a little more seriously than most people do. Sure there are days when I just throw a bunch of stuff on bread and call it food. Ah but to perfect the art of sandwich is a very fulfilling endeavor indeed.

It begins with the ingredients. Quality quality quality people! When it comes to roast beef, you want red, rare, and tender. I would much rather spend $20 on a pound of freshly cut deli meat than $3 on some pre packaged nonsense in vacuum sealed plastic. Trust me, top shelf is best. I know what you’re thinking, why don’t I just make my own? Well, I’m a busy girl! Ain’t nobody got time for that! In truth, I love roast beef dinner but for french dip, I just prefer the super thin, rare, stuff I can pick up at the deli.

Bread is equally important. Oh and bread can be a doozy, let me tell ya. Decisions decisions! Bakery for sure, but what kind? Kaiser? French? Panini? I firmly believe that there is a specific type of sandwich that goes with each. In the case of
the french dip…. it’s a baguette. The crunch of the outside and soft on the inside is ideal for texture as well as soaking up that delicious au jus.

When it comes to cheese, I’m a little less picky. Swiss or provolone are ideal matches for roast beef. Any sliced variety works well.

The rest…. well, read on 🙂

Ingredients

• 1 lb fresh cut roast beef deli cuts
• 1 bakery fresh baguette
• Johnny’s Au jus liquid
• Sliced swiss or provolone cheese
• Horseradish mayo
• Garlic olive oil (dice 3 garlic cloves and add to 1/3 cup of olive oil)
• Garlic salt

Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 3

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350.

Prepare au jus according to package directions.

Slice the baguette into thirds and then cut each piece sandwich style.

Brush the bread with the garlic olive oil.

Cook the bread open faced in the oven for 5 minutes. This will lightly brown the bread and give that great crunch.

Spread horseradish mayo over bread on both sides.

Layer lots of roast beef on the bottom piece of bread. Thick bread needs a thick layer of meat!

Lightly brush the meat with garlic olive oil.

Layer cheese on the top side of bread and sprinkle a little garlic salt over the cheese.

Bake at 350 for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Enjoy with au jus and fries! Yum!