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French Dip Roast Beef Sandwiches

Source of Recipe

From "In the Kitchen with David" by David Venable


Recipe Introduction

"Whenever I go out to lunch, I scan the menu, and once I see that the restaurant offers a French dip, I read no further. It is my go-to sandwich. Some slowly cooked, thinly sliced roast beef is piled on a roll and accompanied with a small bowl of the meat's natural juices ('jus' in French) for dipping. The meat is topped with cheese, and the sandwich is served with some crunchy potato chips and coleslaw. When I finish my sandwich, I dip any leftover chips in any remaining juices. I make these with leftover roast beef or beef I buy at the deli counter."

List of Ingredients

Sauce:
â—¦ 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
â—¦ 1 shallot, minced
â—¦ 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
â—¦ ¼ cup dry sherry
â—¦ 1 teaspoon McCormick's Montreal Steak Seasoning
â—¦ 1 tablespoon Better Than Bouillon Beef Base

Sandwiches:
â—¦ 8 ounces thinly sliced Swiss or provolone cheese
â—¦ 6 French bread rolls, halved
â—¦ 1 pound sliced rare roast beef


Recipe

Preheat the broiler.

To make the sauce:
Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallot and sauté until translucent. Whisk in the flour and stir for 1 minute. Whisk in the sherry and steak seasoning and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Dissolve the beef base in 2 cups boiling water, then slowly whisk the mixture into the saucepan. Bring the sauce to a simmer and cook for 2 to 4 minutes. Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain the sauce into a bowl.

Discard the solids in the strainer. Return the sauce to the saucepan and keep warm over low heat while preparing the sandwiches.

To make the sandwiches:
Divide the cheese among six roll halves. Place the halves with the cheese on a baking sheet and put under the broiler, just until the cheese melts, about 1 minute.

Place the roast beef on top of the cheese. Return the halves to the broiler to heat the roast beef, about 1 minute. Put the tops on the sandwiches and pass a pitcher of the warm sauce when serving.

Makes 6 servings