These vegan French dip sandwiches are made with sautéed portobellos, dressed in spicy horseradish mustard and served ready for dipping in savory vegan au jus.
Roast beef has never been my thing. I know, you’re shocked! So the idea of a French dip sandwich never appealed to me very much. In fact, I distinctly remember ordering a French dip at Denny’s when I was a little kid, and thinking I’d be getting something involving French onion dip, which definitely was my thing. I was hugely disappointed when a roast beef sandwich with a cup of meat juice showed up.
A big messy mushroom sandwich that gets dunked in mushroom juice on the other hand, is way my cup of tea.
I’m really glad I got over that rough childhood French dip experience, and decided to give it another go, in vegan form, because this sandwich was insane! Flavorful, succulent, sloppy as heck, but so worth the slop for being as tasty as it was.
I served my sandwiches with some horseradish mustard and nothing more. That was perfect for me, but I’ve seen recipes calling for spicy mustard, Dijon and mayo. Go with them all if you’d like, assuming you’re prepared for a full-on slop fest. If you’re into vegan cheese, feel free to top it all off with some mozzarella shreds too.
Check out how easy these are to make!
Vegan French Dip Sandwiches
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp. olive oil, divided
- 1 medium onion sliced into half rings
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 3 portobello mushroom caps, about 20 oz. total, cleaned and sliced into thin strips
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1 tbsp. soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/4 tsp. liquid smoke, optional, but highly recommended
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
For Serving
- 2-6 inch sandwich rolls or baguette sections sliced open
- horseradish mustard
Instructions
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Coat the bottom of a large skillet with 1 tablespoon of oil and place over medium-low heat. Add onion and toss a few times to coat with oil. Allow to cook until caramelized, about 20 minutes, flipping occasionally. Add garlic and cook about 2 minutes more. Transfer onions and garlic to a plate.
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Coat skillet with another tablespoon of oil and raise heat to medium. Add mushroom strips. Avoid overcrowding the skillet. A little overlapping is okay, but work in multiple batches if needed (I needed two), adding a bit of oil between batches if needed. Cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook 5 minutes more on opposite sides.
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Return onions to skillet and add broth, soy sauce, Worchestershire sauce, thyme, liquid smoke and pepper. Bring to a simmer and allow to cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid is reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
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Slather the insides of rolls with horseradish mustard. Use a slotted spoon to remove onions and mushrooms from skillet, pressing lightly to squeeze out any excess juice. Divide onions and mushrooms into rolls. Pour cooking liquid into a small bowl and serve with sandwiches, for dipping.
Oh My! I can hardly wait to make these! My husband will be so thrilled! Alissa, you are truly a genius, thank you! Keep ’em coming!
I have to agree that she’s a genius! These mushrooms were awesome! It’s the reduced broth that makes them so good – I used Edward & Sons Low Sodium Not-Chick’n bouillon cubes because I just had a large container of veg broth that was going to be used for another recipe. I like mushrooms, but I don’t *love* them. These I really really loved! I reduced the liquid a little more than you did in the recipe only because I walked away while they were cooking! I just made a grilled cheese with these and it was still a little messy, but I didn’t care! These might make a good onion/mushroom soup too.
Yay! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for popping back over to tell me. :) I totally agree that this could be transformed into a delicious soup too, and might be trying that myself in the coming weeks.
WOW these sandwiches look great. I never have tried anything “french dip” before and definitely think I have been missing out on something seriously delicious.
I’ve been looking for a vegetarian French Dip recipe— you must have been reading my mind!!! Can’t wait to try this :)
I am just starting to eat vegan; and these were amazing!! Even the rest of my family preferred the mushroom over the roast beef! Definitely a staple recipe. Thank you!
Awesome! So glad to hear it! Thanks Kendra!
Oh, my gosh! I made these last night for the fiance (a carnivore) and myself, and they were COMPLETELY AMAZING! I couldn’t even believe how much flavor they had, and he said it is absolutely the best meat replacement meal he has ever had — “This could make a guy give up meat. Seriously.” Thank you so much for the amazing addition to the recipe file!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed them! Thanks Kelly!!
Made these for dinner tonight. Pure heaven! Thank you so so much for sharing.
Glad you think so! :) Thanks so much Athena!
Finally got around to making this, and knew I’d regret having waited so so long.
I was right.
Sounds like you enjoyed it. :) Thanks Darryn!
I made this tonight. It was awesome!
Yay! So glad to hear it! Thanks Alison!!
has anyone tried doing this in a crockpot?
I haven’t, but it’s on my list.
A well known NOT vegan cook posted a photo of a French Dip sandwich today and I almost died. French dips were one of my favorite sandwiches in my old life and I miss them very much. This recipe looks wonderful! It would be nice to have a recipe for gluten free bread with the texture of your sandwich rolls 8-). This may turn out to be soup or a topping for gf noodles for me.
Yeah, there’s a lot you could do with the mushroom filling. I hope you love it as much as I did, however you decide to try it! :)
Holy. WOW. These were fantastic. Thank you for the great recipe, it will probably become a regular in my home :)
Awesome! Thanks Rachel!
I have been finding it hard to make a vegan dinner that my whole family will enjoy. I am the vegan and my family are meat eaters. My mom loved it and so did my sister! Even my two year old nephew gnawed on a sandwich! Thank you so much for the recipe, I will be making this again! :)
So glad to hear everyone enjoyed them! Thanks so much Hillary!
This was a fantastic recipe! My husband is a mushroom-weary vegetarian and we both LOVED this dish. The filling comfortably filled 4 – 6″ rolls with a little leftover. For anyone else who is looking, I used the “Vegan Worcestershire Sauce” recipe from the Forks Over Knives page.
Glad to hear you enjoyed them! And thanks for the Worchestershire sauce suggestion! I’m lucky in that my local store brand is vegan, but that’s a great option for anyone who can’t get their hands on some. :)
I just made these last night for my husband who is reluctantly going vegan with me. These were AMAZING! we both loved them. I just ate them for lunch left overs and they were still just as good. I can’t wait to make these for my mother.
Glad to hear it! Thanks Christina – hope you mom enjoys them too!!
Absolutely delicious! Broth turns out so nice! Made it tonight and will make it in the future!
Thanks Salina! Glad you liked them!
I normally don’t leave reviews, but honestly this was amazing!!!! My husband has been hating all my cooking since I started cooking vegan meals. Tonight when I told him what we were having he said he’d just go out and buy his own food. He stayed long enough to try this and actually liked it!!!! This is a new weekly meal for us!
Yay! I’m so glad you both enjoyed it! Thanks Kelsey!
I made these for dinner last night and, thankfully, I had a portobello left over so I could make myself a sandwich today for lunch, too! This is an amazing sandwich that will be in our family for years to come. Thank you!
So happy to hear that! Thanks so much Juliet!
Thank you so much for the wonderful recipe. Hubby and I just had it for a night before Christmas late dinner and Let’s just say that the festivities were 12 hours early. It was awesome! I can’t wait to try the mushrooms on some fluffy basmati rice or on a pizza! Thank you again and again and again. Happy holidays!
Glad you both liked it! Thanks so much, and happy holidays to you too!!
I made this a number of times and it is delicious. My omnivore husband even likes it.
Glad to hear it! Thanks Geanine!
I just made a batch. So much flavor! Love it. Turned out perfect.
Glad to hear it! Thanks Dana!
This recipe is now a staple on my meal plan. I’m currently making it for the third time. I put them on Hawaiian Roll sandwiches–they are SO wonderful! Thank you!
I’m so glad to hear it! Thanks Caitlyn!
This was awesome! Definitely something I would make again. I thought the au jus was a little salty and I used no salt broth. Maybe I would cut back on the soy sauce next time. Super excited to have found this. Thank you for the recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it! You might want to try low sodium soy sauce – that way you get all the savory flavor but it’s less salty. :)
These were very delicious! Do you happen to have the breakdown of protein, calories, fat, etc for this recipe? Thanks.
I don’t, but here’s a link to a nutrition calculator if you’d like to give it a try: https://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
I just made this for lunch and it is AMAZING. I used to lovvvvveee French dip sandwiches and with mushrooms it tastes even better!! Thank you!
Happy to hear it! Thanks Katie!
Will baguette work? I can’t find any GF sandwich rolls in my area.
Absolutely!
I pinned this recipe a while ago and finally got around to making it today… how I wish I hadn’t waited so long!! These were amazing. Period.
Thank you so much! I’m glad you think so!
I made this tonight, and it turned out really good. I will have to double next time so my husband has leftovers for work. This was a winner at our house.
Happy to hear you liked it! Thanks Tanya!
OMG I’m stuffed with deliciousness! Super fantastic. So cheap and easy to make. So greatful for people like you that share amazing recipes. I won’t lie….I went back and licked the pan after mmmmmm good.
Glad this was a hit! Thanks Tim!
I make this recipe once a week, its so amazing.
I love how simplistic it is. It provokes my nostalgia, my mother used to make this sandwich for me when I was a kid. Glad to see there is a vegan alternative which tastes amazing. I’m positive even my mother would enjoy this reinvention. I use a kale vegetable stock I make at home, which gives it an added earthier flavor and makes the au jus thicker. I also fry the onion and garlic in water instead of oil, it works well for me. I swear this is food of the gods. I want to cry each time I eat it, it’s that good.
Thank you so much for this recipe.
Thank you so much, Wendi! I’m glad you’re enjoying them!
Did you use a sweet onion or a red onion?
I used a yellow onion. Usually if I don’t specify it’s just a plain old yellow onion. :)
This vegan sandwich is amazing, thank you for this amazing recipe.
Thank you!
I just made this recipe for my husband and I and they were AMAZING!!! I used a no salt added broth and added green peppers to the onions, other than that followed the recipe exactly! My husband said this is his new favorite meal! Thanks for the fabulous recipe 😋
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that you both enjoyed them! Thanks so much Amanda!
Thank you for this recipe, I made it tonight for myself and my husband. We love it, such delicious flavours. I will definitely be making this regularly.
I’m glad they were a hit! Thank you so much for letting me know! :)
Absolutely delicious! Recently adopted the vegan lifestyle. Stumbled across this recipe on Pinterest. So glad I did! My husband and 12 year old daughter can’t wait until we have them again. This is definitely a weekly staple. Thanks so much for the sharing this recipe!
Yay! I’m so glad they were a hit!!
Oh my goodness. This dish was amazing. So much better than the beef version! Thank you for the wonderful dishes you have been posting. It is my new go to for vegan meals.
So glad you enjoyed this!! Thanks Will!
I’ve made these – twice now! – for me and my wife and these are absolutely delicious! The liquid smoke makes all the difference…keep up the great work with these recipes. We’ll be watching…:-)
Thanks so much! I’m glad you both enjoyed them!
Could you skip a step and sauté the onions first and then add the mushrooms to the same pan and then the garlic after those are cooked? Or do they need to be removed?
You can, but I find the texture is much better when you cook them separately – you get some browning that you can’t really get if the skillet is too crowded.
Made a nice version of this.. only had liquid aminos, so used that with black pepper, paprika, 1 cup water and 1 veggie boullion. Then added some Feild Roast seitan slices with some Swiss Daiya cheese. Was excellent!!! Waiting for my stomach to be less full to go for round 2!!
I’m glad you enjoyed it! That sounds like a delicious version!!
Can I use Liquid Amigos instead of soy sauce
Aminos*
Yes, you can. :)
I used Aminos!!!
I like Liquid Amigos better! :)
I used a little cornstarch to thicken it up and poured it over rice. Delicious! I cannot wait to make this again.
Awesome!! Glad you enjoyed it!
Made this tonight since my SO was making a meat dish..
This was easy, quick and tasted delicious. Thank you very much for this recipe
BTW I added 1 tbsp ketchup!
Yay!! I’m so glad you liked it! Thanks Craig!
I can’t wait to try this!! Thank you.
Very welcome! I hope you enjoy!!
Could I substitute with baby bellas?
Yup!
Awesome…love this…only thing i would add is…toast the bun or bread…
I’m so glad you like it!!
Do you think I could double the recipe for the sauce or do you think it won’t come out right? I love the sauce!
I think that would work just fine! :)
By far one of the best sandwiches I’ve ever had! Any non-vegan would devour this as fast as we did. This goes into one of our top picks now!
Yesss!! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!! Thanks Kirsten!
I’ve made this at least three times and there are no words to describe how good this is! I use baby bellas because I like the texture better. I make sure that the onions are caramelized, spend a good 45 minutes cooking them. I also cut very thin slices of zucchini since one of my kids don’t like mushrooms and keep everything separated so everyone can put in their sandwich whatever they want. My kids beg me to cook this all the time! It’s soooooooo gooooood!
Awesome!! I’m so glad it’s a hit! And I love the idea of subbing zucchini – sounds delicious!
These were absolutely amazing! Just made them last weekend and now we’re headed to the store tonight so we can make them again. Thank you for this beautiful creation!!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!! Thanks so much Ali!
Genuinely the best sandwich i’ve ever had and my husband agreed. Wasn’t at all expecting it to be this amazing-worked so well. Thank you-I think anyone could be converted to vegan just over this incredible sandwich! Ps I used liquid aminos rather than Worcestershire sauce-the broth was mind blowingly good.
Yay!! Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Lou!