Cooking for One

Being an empty nester and living alone, one question I get asked all the time is “Why do you bother cooking for just yourself?”

My answer? “I’m worth it!” And so are you.

That's why I wrote my new cookbook Cooking for One that is set to release in January 2022. I realize that not everyone likes to be in the kitchen as much as I do. I also realize that meal prepping the same thing from Monday through Thursday gets boring too.

But don’t worry! All my recipes use “like” ingredients so that you can cook once, and easily eat for days eating different meals.

My French Dip Instant Pot recipe is in my Cooking for One cookbook. You’ll note that this makes lots of servings, and in my upcoming virtual demonstration with The Chopping Block I'll show you how to repurpose the beef into three different dishes: 

• Beef and Bean Taquitos
• Loaded Fries
• Italian Beef Pizza

And I’ll be making all these recipes with my Instant Pot French Dip.

French Dip Beef

Scroll down for printable version of this recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours

Yield: 8-10 servings

5-pound chuck roast

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup giardiniera (mild, spicy or make your own)

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

1 packet onion soup mix (I used beefy onion)

3 cups beef broth

1. Spray a cast iron skillet with avocado oil spray and heat to medium-high heat.
2. Season the beef with salt and pepper. Sear all sides of the beef, about 3 minutes per side. Add beef to Instant Pot.
3. In a bowl, mix the giardiniera, soy sauce, garlic powder and soup mix. Stir until combined. Pour over beef.
4. Add 3 cups beef broth to the Instant Pot.
5. Seal the Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 1:40 minutes (100 minutes). Let sit 20 minutes before releasing the pressure.
6. Remove the beef to a cutting board. Let cool slightly. Remove any big pieces of fat and store in your refrigerator for up to 5 days to use throughout the week.

Note: If you don’t have an Instant Pot, after searing beef, place in a Dutch oven and bake for two hours at 325 degrees.

One of my favorite ways to use this beef is making an Italian Beef pizza! I hope you join me on Saturday, December 11 at 11am CST to get the full recipes and hang out with me virtually to get all of your cooking for one questions answered.

Yield: 8-10

Author: Biz Velatini

Print

With ImageWithout Image

Instant Pot French Dip Beef

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 2 HourTotal time: 2 H & 15 M

Ingredients

• 5-pound chuck roast
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup giardiniera (mild, spicy or make your own)
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 packet onion soup mix (I used beefy onion)
• 3 cups beef broth

Instructions

1. Spray a cast iron skillet with avocado oil spray and heat to medium-high heat.
2. Season the beef with salt and pepper. Sear all sides of the beef, about 3 minutes per side. Add beef to Instant Pot.
3. In a bowl, mix the giardiniera, soy sauce, garlic powder and soup mix. Stir until combined. Pour over beef.
4. Add 3 cups beef broth to the Instant Pot.
5. Seal the Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 1:40 minutes (100 minutes). Let sit 20 minutes before releasing the pressure.
6. Remove the beef to a cutting board. Let cool slightly. Remove any big pieces of fat and store in your refrigerator for up to 5 days to use throughout the week.

https://www.thechoppingblock.com/blog/cooking-for-one