Chicago Italian Beef

This was the first successful crock pot Italian beef I've ever made...I'm happy! I didn't need to go the full 18 hours but my roast was a little smaller than called for. I did it for 6 hours on low, 2 hours on high, and 2 more hours on low using a 3.5 lb roast. If I was just making this for me, I think I'd up the giardiniera and pepperocini, but I love spicy!

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I give it 5 stars, my husband says 4. I used an entire jar of pepperoncini and giardiniera. Wasn't too spicy for us. Make sure to use the sauce for the sandwiches. Thanks!

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First let me say, xoxlxoslvvosnsala., oops, my mouth was full, sorry! This is fantastic! It took some doing, but I finally found giardiniera. In some parts of the U.S. this is known as California hot mix--it has cauliflower and carrots in a spicy mix. You can find it on the pickle aisle usually. I kept seeing California hot mix in stores and didn't know if it was the same. Finally, I found a store that had it labled as giardiniera. It was worth the effort. If your family can stand 18 hours of smelling the delicious aroma wafting from the crock pot, and if you can keep them from tasting this before it's done, you are in for a real treat. Loved the messiness and flavor. You don't need any more stars, but I'll give you a million stars for this recipe!

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OMG!!! This is the "Chicago Italian Beef" that I've been searching for. I used hot giardiniera and it was fantastic.For those of you who are not from Chicago or haven't been there, this is your opportunity to experience a real treat that you can't get anywhere else. Moonbugz,thank you, very much!!! Alan

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I left out the green peppers, and used 1 full jar of pepperoncini peppers and giardiniera peppers. There is definately a WOW factor in there for this recipe! My DS and his GF came over for lunch and we sat down to eat these and my DS took his first bite and declared these as one of the best sandwiches he ever put in his mouth. His GF loved them too, almost as much as I did! Great stuff right here. I guess I missed out on a few things growning up, being on the east coast, but until now I didn't even know it :) From now on I will be going Chicago style when making these awesome sandwiches! Thanks for sharing Moonbugz!

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Moonbugz, this recipe is GOLDEN!!! I have tried about 5 different Italian Beef recipes from this site and AllRecipes trying desperately to make a beef like those I grew up on in Chicago. While many of them were decent, they weren't excellent and they certainly weren't authentic. I grew up near Carm's and while it wasn't my favorite place to get beef's, it was a definite contender. I followed your recipe pretty closely. I used two 2.5 pound roasts, used 2 packages of Italian Seasoning, used 1/2 of a large jar of spicy pepperoncini and used half of a large jar of HOT giardiniera. I omitted the green peppers because I didn't have them and also because my favorite beef's never included green peppers (unless you added them to the side) and HOLY COW were these off the charts EXCELLENT! My husband is from New York and doesn't know what an Italian Beef is and he's never thought much of all my previous attempts at making it. He couldn't stay out of my crockpot before dinner was even done! That is a HUGE compliment! Also, using two smaller cuts of beef caused the cooking time to decrease quite a bit. Mine was falling apart by the 13 hour mark. I'm salivating just thinking about the leftovers today and the gravy bread the day after that! TO DIE FOR! This is my official favorite Zaar recipe of all time - brings me home! Thank you Moonbugz! OUTSTANDING!

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I can now make my favorite sandwich at home. Never been to chicago, so I made the sandwich just the way i liked it. I added more peppers to the sandwich, spread the bottom piece of bread with basil pesto, and added purple onion and provelone, the put it in my Foreman grill and made my bread crispy. I ate 3 different ways this weekend and this was my fav. I am supposed to be on a low carb diet. OOPS

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Having been a life long Chicagoan until moving down to Dallas a few years back, I definitely miss being able to get to a good Beef sandwich. This may not be the best beef you ever had, but it is definitely better than most of what you would get back in Chicago. I followed the recipe to the T except for using 2 2-1/2 lb. roasts as opposed to one 5 pounder. The difference is that it cooks faster and started falling apart by hour #14. The only problem is trying to find a good roll (french rolls do not stand up). Great for parties and the prep is rediculously easy. Highly recommended.

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This is the best Chicago Italian beef ever!! It is 5+ stars and a keeper in my kitchen. I followed the recipe which is very easy to follow. This is a very easy recipe to make. Thanks so much for sharing!

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The only thing I changed was to substitute some of the beef broth for some red wine and added an extra packet of italian seasoning. Everyone asked for the recipe. Luckily there was a little left over and it was just as good the next day for lunch.

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I made half recipe for just the two of us..I have tried many Italian beef sandwich recipes,but this one is by far the BEST!!!I cooked a 2 1/2lb rump roast with instant beef bouillion,3/4 pkg italian dressing mix and cooked on high for 9 hours..Meat just fell apart,and was so flavorful..Served on homemade crusty italian rolls with a slice of raw sweet red pepper..This recipe is laminated in my cookbook..Thank U for this great recipe...Cant wait to serve it to my sister and brother in law the next time they come over......By the way this was the first time my DH didnt add salt...Ingredients alone was more than enough salt...

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Oh, yum! I cooked 2 roasts, which together weighed a little over 5 lbs. Since we like highly-seasoned food, I added the full jar of both the pepperoncinis and the giardiniera. (The recipe doesn't specify, but the ones I used were 16 oz. each.) I also took another reviewer's advice and used 2 packets of the seasoning mix. I went to turn them at the 6-hour mark and discovered I'd accidentally set the dial on 'high'. The meat was totally done and falling-apart tender. The au jus is fiery hot and wonderfully flavorful. Can't wait for supper!

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Never had the original but if its anything like this one its excellent.

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If you like some spice, this will do! My 6 year old absolutely LOVES this! Yum! Update: I use the whole jar of pepperoncini and whole jar of giardiniera. I also get the supermarket to cut the french bread thickly for me...

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OUTSTANDING! My house smells so awesome right now and my stomach is growling terribly! I tried a bit of the meat already talk about TENDER!! I've tried many Italian beef recipes in the past this one for sure is a keeper!! Thanks so much for a great recipe. We will enjoy this on a monthly basis since I've found Italian Beef that's this good. Again many thanks!! :-)

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I had a house full of company coming in and wanted to have something readily available for any drop-ins. I have made Italian Beef most of my adult life (I'm originally fromI Illinois and always have it as my first meal when I hit Chicago.) I was happy with my recipe, but wanted to try to make it better and different from all the other crock pot recipes out there. I looked at many recipes on the web and came across this one and because of all the high ratings it received, I decided to try it. It was the best I've ever made!!! I roasted an 8 1/2 lb rump roast in my big roaster at 200-250 degrees for about 5 hours. Refrigerated the meat, skimmed off the fat and returned the meat to a preheated crock pot on high for another 4 hours. Refrigerated overnight, skimmed again and preheated crockpot to low, shredded the beef and had it out on the counter for sandwiches all day. I'm a HERO! I did add some green bell peppers and 1 onion to the beginning broth. I upped the broth to 3 1/2 cups and the pepperoncini and giardiniera to 1 and 1/2 jar each. Also 2 pkgs of the Italian dressing mix. This was all because my roast was somewhat bigger than the original 5 lb roast in the recipe. All in alll, this one is so good and so REAL ITALIAN BEEF -like!! I can't wait to show my Tennessee friends what I've been talking about for all these years! Thanks Moonbugz!! Any other great recipes you care to share? Visit me at my food blog comfortcook.blogspot.com and you'll be getting honorable mention there soon!

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Have made this seveal times - it's outstanding! Thanks for sharing.

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Wow - this was wonderful! I used a 2.75 lb rump roast & kept the rest of the ingredients the same. This is outstanding. What I did different: I omitted the sweet green peppers & it was still delicious! By my own error~I made it a little too spicy. I shouldve used 1/4 jar of pepperoncini & giardiniera instead of 1/2 of jar. I found myself trying to balance the spiciness when it was done. Even so, the flavors were not hidden by the spiciness. YUM-YUM!

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I grew up in the Chicago area. There was a place called Novi's, in Berwyn, that had the best beef for years. They cooked their roast in water to produce the gravy. only a small amount of the roast peaked out from the water. If you add garlic, crushed red pepper, minced giardiniera along with a tablespoon of the giardiniera juice you will get a fantastic gravy. Never add oregno or other green herbs or spices. In Chicago the roast is cooked until well done then sliced very thin after it cools. Gonnella bread is the final touch. It is similar to french bread. Serving options are wet (extra gravy poured inside the sandwich) sweet peppers (cooked green peppers over the beef) and/or giardiniera over the beef. PS one final touch. Refridgerate your gravy and remove the layer of fat that congeals for a better tasting sandwich, unless you love fat. For the Carms taste leave the fat in the gravy.

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Excellent flavor. But not an authentic Chicago style beef sandwich.

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