📍 California

French dip

Name: French dip
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 105 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 800 g beef chuck or roasting cut; 4 baguettes or French rolls; 1 onion and 2 cloves garlic; 3 cups beef broth; 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce; 1 bay leaf and a few sprigs of thyme; Salt, pepper, and oil

· Lunch

A roast beef sandwich on French bread served with a bowl of hot beef jus (au jus) for dipping.

Editorial content by WorldBites · 2026-10-04 · Contact

⏱ 105 min🍽 4 servings📊 Intermediate🏷 Disputed origin🌱 Dairy-free

Preparation: 15 min
Cooking: 90 min
Waiting and resting: 0 min

History

It was invented in Los Angeles around 1908-1918, though its exact origin is disputed between two historic restaurants: Philippe the Original and Cole's, both opened in 1908. Both claim the sandwich was born when a roll got dipped, by accident or at a customer's request, in the juice of the roast beef. It became popular as working-class food in the city's downtown.

Ingredients

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Preparation

1
Season the meat with salt and pepper and sear it on all sides in a pot with hot oil.
2
Add the onion and garlic, the beef broth, the Worcestershire sauce, the bay leaf, and the thyme.
3
Cover and cook over low heat for about 90 minutes until the meat is very tender.
4
Remove the meat, let it rest, and slice it very thin; strain the cooking juice (au jus) and keep it hot.
5
Fill the rolls with the meat and serve each sandwich with a bowl of au jus on the side for dipping.