Crock Pot Italian Beef Sandwiches are a 5-ingredient crock pot recipe version of the popular hot sandwich recipe. This easy dinner recipe is a crowd-pleaser!
“All I can say is WOW!!!! … My husband, who doesn’t get all that worked up about food and doesn’t care for roast, LOVED this recipe!! After we finished our dinner, he asked me if I could make it again soon for his men’s group!”
Recently I asked my Facebook and Instagram friends if they’d like to see a crock pot recipe on the site sooner vs later. There were so many exclamation marks in the comments, which I took to mean, ‘heck yes!’ that I immediately started brainstorming.
Everyone knows crock pot recipes are a busy person’s best friend but many of them can be heavy and unappealing at times. While brainstorming a new and interesting crock pot combo I decided the recipe would have to meet the following criteria:
- Beef-based, as I have many chicken-based crock pot recipes already.
- Easy. Nobody likes crock pot recipes with several cooking steps before you even plug the dang thing in.
- Very delicious, unique, and not gloopy whatsoever.
With the aforementioned criteria in mind, I settled on Crock Pot Italian Beef Sandwiches. A mouthwatering, 5-ingredient flavor combo that has just the right amount of zip and zing!
Watch How to Make It
Slow Cooked Italian Beef
Chuck roast is slow cooked for 10 hours in a mixture of pepperoncini peppers, Giardiniera, Italian dressing mix, and beef broth then shredded and served on a chewy hoagie bun with melted provolone cheese.
Crazy (CRAZY) good, and did I mention that it’s made with just 5 ingredients?!
My husband was skeptical about eating the crock pot version of one of his favorite sandwiches, which is typically made with thinly sliced beef.
“Oh…I’ve never heard of a shredded Italian beef sandwich before…” he said in a tone that I knew meant, I am definitely going to hate this.
But guess what? He didn’t! While I stood eating the shredded beef straight out of the crock pot like the refined woman that I am, he inhaled an entire sandwich in under 2 minutes. That is to say, this dish is a total hit!
How to Make Crock Pot Italian Beef Sandwiches:
Start by trimming any large pieces of fat off a chuck roast then cut the roast into seven or eight big hunks and place them in the bottom of a 6 quart crock pot.
Next sprinkle in a packet of gluten free Italian Dressing Mix like Good Graces brand, or Simply Organic. If you don’t need to eat gluten free, you can use Good Seasons Zesty Italian Salad Dressing Mix.
Add sliced pepperoncini peppers plus a splash of pepperoncini juice, and Chicago-Style Giardiniera which you can find in the olive/pickle aisle at the grocery store. I love Mezzetta brand for both, which is gluten free.
If you’ve never had Chicago-style Giardiniera, a type of relish made with pickled olives and vegetables that’s packed in herbs and oils, you are in for a treat! It’s typically served over Italian beef sandwiches, but I love infusing the beef with the mixture from the get-go.
Because this style of giardiniera is packed in oil, drain the mixture using a fork or fine mesh sieve before adding to the crock pot. You can get Giardiniera that’s packed in vinegar, but I find this style to be a real treat.
Finally, add beef broth then place a lid on top of the crock pot and let it cook on low for 9 hours, or until the beef can be easily shredded with a fork.
Once the roast is extremely tender, shred with two forks then slip the meat back into the slow cooker to cook in the juices for 1 more hour on low.
Lastly, scoop the meat onto hoagie buns then slap a slice of provolone on top to melt from the heat of the beef. Serve with extra pepperoncini peppers and Giardiniera, and you’re set!
This is one of my all-time favorite crock pot recipes. Could not be easier to make and the flavors from the pickled vegetables, pepper rings, and Italian dressing mix really made the beef sing. SO GOOD. Enjoy!
More Crock Pot Recipes You’ll Love
- Slow Cooker Pulled Pork
- Crock Pot Salsa Chicken
- Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
- Crock Pot Mojo Pork with Cuban-Style Black Beans
- Crock Pot White Chicken Chili
- Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 lb chuck roast, trimmed of large pieces of fat then cut into large pieces
- 1 envelope Italian salad dressing mix, see notes
- 8 oz pepperoncini pepper slices + splash of juice, plus extra peppers for serving
- 8 oz Chicago-Style Giardiniera, drained, plus extra for serving
- 14.5 oz can beef broth
- provolone cheese slices
- buns
Directions
- Place chuck roast into the bottom of a 6 quart crock pot then sprinkle with salad dressing mix. Add pepperoncini peppers plus a splash of juice, drained Giardiniera, and beef broth then lift up chuck roast pieces to get broth underneath. Place a lid on top then cook on low for 9 hours, or until meat shreds easily with a fork. Shred then place meat back into juices inside crock pot and cook on low for 1 more hour.
- Split buns in half then scoop the shredded meat mixture on top and add provolone cheese slices (if using gluten free buns, toast/broil first). Top with additional pepperoncini peppers and Giardiniera, if desired, then serve.
Notes
- I like Simply Organic or Good Grace’s gluten free Italian Dressing Mix. Good Season’s Zesty Italian Salad Dressing Mix is a good option if you do not need to eat gluten free.
- Adapted from Pioneer Woman
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
My Daughter and I LOoooOooVE This recipe!!!! We make it all the time, and I keep coming back time after time to find it again.
Thank you so much… it’s the closest thing to “real” Italian beefs that I’ve found… and it’s simply amazing. Getting ready to put it all together in the crock pot again tonight… so we can put it on early for lunch tomorrow!!!! Yum yummers!
YAY! So glad to hear this recipe is a such a hit at your house, Belle! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating!
I’ve made this recipe many times. It’s really, really delicious. The pickled vegetables really make this dish so tangy and mouth watering! I usually don’t use the oil packed giardinera because i can never find it but it still comes out great.
I’m so glad you love it, Karen! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating!
Maybe I missed it but is there an Instapot user out there that adapted the recipe. This is one of my favs but my crockpot is dead.
This is my go to italian beef recipe, I’ve made it twice before with excellent results but I am wondering if I were to double this recipe if the cooking time would change. Thanks in advance!
So much to unpack with this recipe (although, I am sure you won’t respond). Two things;
1. The “pepperoncini” that you list in the recipe is not that. Those are banana pepper rings. It says so on the label.
2 Where do you get giardenera that is packed in oil? I have bought a lot of Mezzetta before and it has always been packed in the brining solution.
p.s. Why not make your own giardenera, it’s an easy lacto-fermentation. I guess, like they say, if you can’t make your own, store bought will do.
Here is the product if you’d like to verify yourself, and you can certainly make your own if you want, Frank! https://www.mezzetta.com/our-products/detail/chicago-style-giardiniera
This has become one of my go to recipes! I typically make it and then immediately put it into the fridge. When I want to have it, I cook the meat on the griddle, letting the liquid “cook out” and concentrating the flavor onto the beef. It’s so good when the beef gets a little crispy with the concentrated liquid! I will never eat it any other way!
That sounds amazing, Stephanie!! So thrilled you love the recipe – I’m going to try this little tip next time we make it. :)
This isn’t close to an Italian beef. It is… at best… a good beef and cheese sandwich. What a true waste of a day.
could not get the dry italian seasoning. How much italian dressing should I use and do I cut down on the beef beoth?
This was a sure fire hit at my house!!!! Thanks for the recipe!
Excellent recipe! I slow cooked the beef in the oven for about 12 hours. Came out perfect. Really hard not to have at least two sandwiches, its that good.
it’s so yummy.
I’ll wanna go buy the ingredients dan cook right away.
Thanks for sharing this yummy recipe :)
Can this be frozen??? Looks amazing!
Definitely!
This was a hit with husband I used a no salt beef broth