Easy Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches

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Instant Pot French dip sandwiches are a delicious dinner you can make in the pressure cooker! Chuck roast is cooked in savory au jus sauce until it is tender, flavorful and falls apart. Serve this easy sandwich recipe with melted cheese on a crust roll for a dinner the entire family will enjoy.

Instant Pot French dip sandwich with au jus in background

The best thing about the Instant Pot is that it lets me make delicious dinners fast, without much effort or stress! Meals like Instant Pot gnocchi and Instant Pot pineapple chili are easy low stress dinners.

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And this recipe for Instant Pot French dip sandwiches is another super easy recipe that tastes amazing. Melt some cheese over the top of the beef and dip the sandwich into the flavorful au jus for a tasty and filling dinner. This is a great Instant Pot recipe for beginners!

This recipe does take a couple hours to make, but it is almost all low effort, hands off time. Just brown the meat, dump some ingredients in and forget about it while it cooks.

French dip sandwich in front of Instant Pot

And my entire family loved this meal. I had beef and a roll saved to take more pictures the day after I made this and my husband “forgot” I wanted it for pictures and “accidentally” ate the leftovers for lunch!

Why You Will Love Instant Pot French Dip

  • Making this meal from chuck roast makes it an inexpensive way to feed a family.
  • With tasty beef covered in melted cheese on a crusty roll this the ultimate in comfort food.
  • This is a very simple recipe that even a beginner can make. It is an excellent choice for a new Instant Pot owner, because it isn’t complicated at all.
ingredients for Instant Pot French dip

Key Ingredients

  • Beef – I like to use chuck roast for this meal. Chuck roast is inexpensive for beef and it is very tender after pressure cooking.
  • Seasoning – I use salt, pepper and garlic powder to season the roast for a nice classic French Dip taste.
  • Beef broth – The broth provides the liquid for the pressure cooker to reach pressure and flavors the au jus.
  • Packet of au jus mix – Using a packaged mix is a short cut because this is a meal I make when I want something super easy. Do check the ingredeints on your package of au jus for its salt content and add less salt if the au jus mix contains a lot.
  • Cheese – I prefer classic provolone cheese on my French Dip sandwiches. My husband sometimes uses something spicy like pepperjack cheese though. One of the nice things about this meal is everyone can pick their cheese to suit their tastes.
  • Rolls – French dip is best when served on a crusty roll. A French bread baguette works well or cibiatta rolls. Hoagie rolls also work fine, although they aren’t quite as crusty.
top view of French dip in front of Instant Pot

Step by Step Instructions

1. Brown the Beef in the Instant Pot

Set the Instant Pot on Saute and let it get hot for a couple of minutes. Then add the oil to the Instant Pot.

Season the chuck roast with the salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder. Sprinkle the seasoning on both sides of the roast.

chuck roast with seasoning

Then brown the beef in the Instant Pot, flipping it over as needed to brown both sides.

The Saute function of the Instant Pot is great, because it lets you brown things without dirtying another pan. Don’t be tempted to skip this step, it is important in developing the flavor of the meat and the au jus.

brown the chuck roast

2. Deglaze the Instant Pot

Take the browned chuck roast out of the Instant Pot and set it aside for a few minutes. Turn the Instant Pot off and pour the beef broth into it.

adding the broth

Stir the broth and scrape the bottom of the Instant Pot with a wooden spoon to loosen any bits of beef which have stuck to the bottom. This should just take 1-2 minutes.

This is another step you can’t skip! Bits of browned beef on the bottom might cause the Instant Pot to give you a BURN error.

3. Pressure Cook the Beef

Put the beef back into the Instant Pot and sprinkle the packet of au jus seasoning over the top of it. Then put the lid on, making sure the sealing ring is in place and valve is shut.

adding the seasoning packet

Set the Instant Pot to Manual (or meat/stew, depending on your model) for 1 hour and 40 minutes (100 minutes). It will take about 10 minutes for it to reach pressure.

Once it finishes cooking let the pressure release naturally for about 20 minutes. This means once you start the beef cooking you don’t need to do anything about the meal for about 130 minutes, so over 2 hours.

4. Shred the Beef

After the Instant Pot has naturally released for 20 minutes release any remaining pressure and take the lid off. You can also let the meal sit on warm for a while, until you are ready to eat.

taking the meat out of the Instant Pot

The beef will be very tender and should basically fall apart on its own. Use tongs or a slotted spoon to take the beef out of the au jus and put it in a bowl.

shredded beef for French Dip

The beef is tender and just falls apart as it comes out of the pressure cooker. Shred the beef with 2 forks. It should fall apart without much effort.

How to Serve Instant Pot French Dip

You don’t have to toast the bun for French Dip, but it will make the bun crustier, which makes it hold up better to dipping. You can toast rolls by putting them under a broiler or in an air fryer for a couple minutes.

Add some cheese to the roll and pile it high with beef. The heat of the beef will melt the cheese and make for a delicious taste.

Use a ladle to spoon out the au jus into individual bowls or ramkins for dipping. If you are looking for other sandwich ideas try these Instant Pot Buffalo chicken sandwiches.

dipping the sandwich in the au jus

How to Store

Store any leftovers in the refrigerator in a tightly sealed container. You can either pour the au jus over the leftovers or keep it separate.

I think it works best to add at least some of the au jus to the beef to keep it from drying out in the refrigerator.

This beef tastes excellent the next day. Just heat the beef up in the microwave for 2 minutes along with a bowl of au jus for dipping.

close up of Instant Pot French dip on a plate

Variations and Tips

  • Replace 1/2 cup – 1 cup of the beef broth with red wine if you prefer.
  • Serve this on slider rolls for a delicious party food or a game day dinner!
  • A packet of French onion soup mix can be substituted for the packed of au jus mix.

Find More Easy Dinner Ideas

close up of Instant Pot French dip on a plate
4.45 from 38 votes

Instant Pot French Dip

Published By Anne
Instant Pot French dip sandwiches are a delicious dinner you can make in the pressure cooker.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 40 minutes
Reach/Release Pressure30 minutes
Total Time2 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 5 -6
Print Save Rate Pin

Ingredients
 

  • 1 Tablespoon oil
  • 3-4 pound chuck roast
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 cups beef broth
  • 1 ounce packet au jus mix
  • 6 slices provolone cheese
  • 6 crust rolls or hoagie buns

Instructions

  • Turn the Instant Pot on and set it to Saute. Once it has heated for 2-3 minutes add the oil to the Instant Pot.
  • Season the chuck roast with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Sear the roast in the hot oil of the Instant Pot. Cook it for about 2 minutes per side until it is nicely browned.
  • Take the chuck roast out of the pressure cooker and set it aside. Turn the Instant Pot off and add the broth to the pot, stirring to deglaze. Scrape the bottom of the pot to release any bits of browned beef that are stuck. This helps prevent a BURN error.
  • Put the roast back in the Instant Pot and sprinkle the au jus packet over the top of the meat.
  • Close the lid, making sure the sealing ring in place and pressure valve is closed. Set the Instant Pot on Manual, high pressure for 1 hour and 40 minutes.
  • It will take about 10 minutes for the Instant Pot to reach pressure. Once the cooking time is done let the pressure release manually for about 20 minutes. Then release any remaining pressure using the valve.
  • Open the Instant Pot and take the meat out with tongs or a slotted spoon. Use two forks to shred the meat.
  • Put the meat on a crusty roll and top it with provolone cheese.
  • Ladle out the cooking broth into ramekins for dipping.

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Nutrition Information

Serving: 1g | Calories: 969kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 87g | Fat: 59g | Saturated Fat: 25g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 30g | Trans Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 271mg | Sodium: 1405mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g

Nutrition facts are estimates.

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French dip sandwich with melted cheese
pinterest collage for Instant Pot French dip

anne

Hi, I’m Anne!

I love to cook and I want to share my recipes with you. I believe cooking should be approachable and fun, not a chore. I want to make simple recipes using everyday ingredients that you can make again and again, whether it is for a busy weeknight, a summer cookout or a special dessert. Read more...

5 thoughts on “Easy Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches”

  1. This recipe is so good and easy. Have made it several times and follow the recipe as written except I use 2 cans of beef broth (which is more than 2 cups) but still turns out great. Meat so tender is shreds nicely for the sandwiches.

    Reply

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