Last week I asked my Facebook and Twitter friends if they would like to see a clay pot recipe on the blog this week. There were so many exclamation points in the comments, which I interpreted as ‘hell, yes!’ that I immediately started brainstorming.
Everyone knows that clay pot recipes are a busy person’s best friend, but many of them can be heavy and unattractive at times. While brainstorming an interesting new clay pot combo, I decided that
the recipe would have to meet the following criteria:
- Beef-based, since I have exactly one meat clay pot recipe on the blog: Crock Pot spaghetti sauce
- easy. No one likes clay pot recipes with several cooking steps even before plugging in the dang thing.
- Very delicious, unique and not gloopy at all.
.
With the aforementioned criteria in mind, I decided on Crock Pot Italian Beef Sandwiches. A delicious 5-ingredient flavor combo that has just the right amount of zipper and spark
!
See how to do it!
The chuck roast is cooked slowly for 10 hours in a mixture of pepperoncini, Giardiniera, Italian dressing mixture and beef broth, It is then crumbled and served on a chewy hoagie bun with melted Provolone cheese. Crazy (CRAZY) well, and I mentioned it’s made with only 5 ingredients?
Ben was skeptical about eating the clay pot version of one of his favorite sandwiches, which is usually made with thinly sliced beef. “Oh… I’ve never heard of a shredded Italian beef sandwich before…” He said in a tone that he knew it meant, I’m definitely going to hate this.
But guess what? He didn’t! While standing eating the shredded meat straight from the clay pot like the refined woman I am, he inhaled a whole sandwich in less than 2 minutes. I mean, this dish was a total success!
How to make Italian meat sandwiches Crock Pot: Start
by trimming the large pieces of
fat from a baboon roast, then cut the roast into seven or eight large pieces and place them at the bottom of a 6-quart
clay pot. 
Next sprinkle on a package of gluten-free Italian dressing mix like Hy-Vee’s 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 that you can find in the olive/pickle aisle at the grocery store. I love the Mezzetta brands for both, which are gluten-free.
I had never tried Chicago-style Giardiniera, a type of seasoning made with pickled olives and vegetables that is packaged in herbs and vegetables. oils, but Ben insisted that I get into this dish. I’m so glad he did it because OH MY GOSH is so good! You’re supposed to go over Italian beef sandwiches, but you could have eaten fork after fork alone.
However, because it is packed in oil, which would add unnecessary grease to the dish, I took out the mixture with a fork and let it drain. You can get Giardiniera which is packaged in vinegar, but I found this style to be a real treat.
Finally, add the broth Then place a lid on top of the clay pot and let it simmer for 9 hours, or until the meat can be easily crushed with a fork.
Once the roast can be easily crushed with a fork, mash with two forks and then put the meat back in the slow cooker to cook in Juices for 1 hour more over low heat. Place the meat on hoagie buns and then place a slice of provolone on top so that it melts from the heat of the meat. Serve with extra pepperoncini peppers and Giardiniera, and you’re done!
More recipes from Crock Pot You’ll love
Crock Pot Chicken
- and wild rice soup
- Cuban-style black bean pork mojo
- Chicken Chili Crock Pot
- Chicken
Crock Pot
Crock Pot White
tortilla soup 
This is one of my favorite clay pot recipes to date. It couldn’t have been easier to make and the flavors of the pickled vegetables, pepper rings and Italian dressing mix really made the meat sing. SO GOOD. I hope you try it sometime!
