Roast Beef Debris Recipe (2024)

Roast Beef Debris is a New Orleans classic – tender, shredded beef in a flavorful sauce that just melts in your mouth. Served on crunchy French bread and fully dressed with mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomatoes – it is so delicious.

Roast Beef Debris is fall-apart tender chuck roast, seasoned, seared, and cooked in a flavorful broth – the broth combines with the juice and fat from the roast and makes an amazing gravy. This roast is so delicious – served fully dressed on crunchy French bread as a po’ boy or as a main course with roasted vegetables, it is always a hit!

Roast Beef Debris has been made famous by Mother’s Restaurant in New Orleans. They serve their’s with a cabbage slaw instead of shredded lettuce, but we love the shredded lettuce.

The first time I had roast beef debris was on a po’boy in New Orleans from Parkway Bakery & Tavern. I love a fried shrimp po’boy, fully dressed – but there is something to be said about tender roast beef on crunchy bread, smothered in gravy.

Roast Beef Debris Recipe (1)

Table of Contents

  • 🥘 Ingredients Needed
  • 🍽 Equipment Needed
  • 🥣 How to Make It
  • 🍱 Recipe Yield
  • How to Make Roast Beef Debris Cheese Fries
  • 🙋‍♀️ Frequently Asked Questions
  • 🥫 Storage/Shelf Life/Reheating
  • ✏️ Helpful Tips
  • Roast Beef Debris Recipe

🥘 Ingredients Needed

Roast Beef Debris Recipe (2)

For the Roast

  • Cooking Oil – Avocado, vegetable, or canola oil – Use something that has a high smoke point so that it does not burn. (Do not use butter as it will burn.)
  • Boneless Chuck Roast, trimmed – I like to cut off as much of the fat as I easily can, though I do like to leave some so that you still get that good flavor in the broth/keep the meat juicy and tender.
  • Kosher Salt
  • Black Pepper
  • Beef Broth
  • Yellow Onion
  • Tomato Paste
  • Worcestershire Sauce
  • Hot Sauce – My favorite hot sauce to use for this recipe is Tabasco.
  • Minced Fresh Garlic

Thickening Slurry

  • Water
  • Cornstarch(You can use Arrowroot to make this Paleo/Whole30 compatible.)

For Serving

  • French Bread – You want to use a bread that is soft but has a crunchy outside. When you bite into the sandwich, you want to be able to easily bite through the bread, but it needs to be sturdy enough to hold up with all of the gravy. If you can’t find French bread, Cuban bread is a good alternative.
  • Shredded Iceberg Lettuce
  • Sliced Tomatoes
  • Sliced Dill PicklesI like to use Mt. Olive “hamburger” sliced dill pickles. (I linked them here, but I would recommend buying them in the store because it is a lot cheaper than ordering them online.)
  • Mayonnaise – Blue Plate Mayonnaise is our favorite!

🍽 Equipment Needed

  • A Dutch Oven or Oven-Safe Pot – If you do not have a pot that can go in the oven, you can cook this in a normal pot, then transfer to a baking dish covered in foil to cook in the oven. When it comes out of the oven, return the juices to the pot and mix with the cornstarch slurry to thicken while you shred the meat. Then mix it all together and serve!

🥣 How to Make It

Roast Beef Debris is really easy to make and requires only a few steps of preparation before finishing with hands-off cooking in the oven. If you have an oven-safe pot or dutch oven, this can all be made in one pot!

Cook along with me here!

  • Preheat oven to 325°F.
  • Trim the roast, then liberally season all sides with salt and pepper. (Pictures 1 – 3)
  • Heat oil in an oven safe dutch oven over medium heat, then sear the meat on all sides. The roast should be lightly browned on the outside, but still raw in the middle. It should take about 3 minutes per side. (Picture 4)
  • Once the meat is browned on all sides, remove it from the pan but keep the heat on. (Picture 5)
Roast Beef Debris Recipe (3)
  • Add the onions and garlic to the remaining oil and cook until the onions are soft. (Picture 6)
  • Next, add the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and hot sauce. (Pictures 7 – 8)
  • Stir until the onions are coated in the tomato paste, then add the beef broth to deglaze the pan. Bring the broth mixture to a boil. (Pictures 9 – 10)
Roast Beef Debris Recipe (4)
  • Return the beef to the pot and submerge it in the broth. Spoon some of the broth over the beef, then put the lid on the pot and bake for 2 ½ hours. (If your pot doesn’t have a lid, you can cover the pot with aluminum foil.) (Pictures 11 – 12) — Yes, my pot looks dirty – it’s from baking so many loaves of bread!
  • About halfway through the cooking time, remove the pot from the oven and spoon the sauce over the beef.
  • After 2 ½ hours have elapsed, remove the pot from the oven and place it back onto a warm burner over medium/low heat. (Picture 13)
  • Remove the beef from the sauce and let it rest for about 10 minutes, while you thicken the sauce.
  • Mix together water and cornstarch, then stir that into the sauce. (Picture 14) Bring the sauce to a simmer and reduce the heat for 10 minutes, while the beef is resting.
  • After 10 minutes have elapsed, shred the beef and return it to the sauce. Remove from heat. (Picture 15)
Roast Beef Debris Recipe (5)

Serve the roast beef on crunchy french bread slathered with Blue Plate mayonnaise, a layer of shredded lettuce, and a layer of sliced tomatoes. Top the tomatoes with beef and add a few sliced pickles if desired. Enjoy!

Roast Beef Debris Recipe (6)

🍱 Recipe Yield

This recipe should serve 8 people. If making six-inch po’boys, you should be able to make 8. We like to make this recipe for dinner, then have it for lunch another day, then make Roast Beef Debris Cheese Fries. (Nostalgia for late-night college comfort food!)

Roast Beef Debris Recipe (7)

How to Make Roast Beef Debris Cheese Fries

  • Bake fries according to the package directions on a lined baking sheet. (These fries are messy so lining the sheet makes it easier to clean!)
  • While the fries are baking, heat up the leftover roast beef debris with a little bit of gravy and shred some cheddar cheese.
  • When the fries are done, remove them from the oven and top with roast beef debris, gravy, and shredded cheese.
  • Put the whole thing back in the oven for 3 – 5 minutes to melt the cheese and let the fries sop up some gravy. (I just leave the oven at whatever temperature I used to bake the fries.)
  • Remove from the oven once the cheese is melted and enjoy!
Roast Beef Debris Recipe (8)

Serve topped with green onions and a side of ranch. Roast Beef Debris is honestly worth making just for the debris cheese fries! It is cheesy, saucy, melty, and delicious.

Roast Beef Debris Recipe (9)

🙋‍♀️ Frequently Asked Questions

What does “fully dressed” mean with regard to a po’ boy?

Fully dressed means that the sandwich has mayonnaise, lettuce, tomatoes, and sometimes pickles. Fully dressed is the best way to ensure you have all the flavor!


What kind of meat do you use for Roast Beef Debris?

Roast Beef Debris is best made using a chuck roast, but you can also use a rump roast.

What is New Orleans Debris?

Typically, New Orleans Debris or Roast Beef Debris is the shredded pieces of roast beef mixed with the fat and cooking juices that get turned into a gravy.

In my research for this post, I learned that debris is often pronounced using the French pronunciation, like “day-bree.” My husband and I have never heard anyone say it that way but that doesn’t mean no one does!

Roast Beef Debris Recipe (10)

🍳 Serving Suggestions & Uses

We love to serve Roast Beef Debris Po’ Boys with a side of French fries and coleslaw.

Roast Beef Debris Recipe (11)

🥫 Storage/Shelf Life/Reheating

Once cooled, roast beef debris can be stored in the refrigerator in an air-tight container for 3 – 5 days or frozen for around 3 months.

✏️ Helpful Tips

  • Make sure to serve Roast Beef Debris Po’ Boys fully dressed!
  • If you have leftover Roast Beef Debris, be sure to make Debris Cheese Fries.
  • Trim most of the fat off the roast before searing it, but leave a little bit behind to keep the roast moist and flavorful.

🌶️ Other Great Cajun & Creole Recipes

Snacks

Sweet and Spicy Bourbon Candied Pecan Recipe

Sauces

Paleo Raising Cane’s Dipping Sauce Copycat Recipe

Side Dishes

Southern Collard Greens Recipe

Have You Tried This Recipe?

Please rate it and leave a comment below. I would love to hear what you think!

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Roast Beef Debris Recipe (16)

Roast Beef Debris

4.86 from 21 votes

Roast Beef Debris is a New Orleans classic – tender, shredded beef in a flavorful sauce that just melts in your mouth. Served on crunchy French bread and fully dressed with mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomatoes – it is so delicious.

Author: Kari

Servings: 8

Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Thickening Sauce/Resting Beef: 10 minutes mins

Total: 2 hours hrs 50 minutes mins

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons avocado, vegetable, or canola oil
  • 1 3 – 4 pound boneless chuck roast, trimmed
  • 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 4 cups beef broth
  • 1 cup sliced yellow onion
  • ¼ cup tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon hot sauce
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced

Thickening Slurry

  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot for Paleo

For Serving

  • French bread
  • shredded iceberg lettuce
  • sliced tomatoes
  • sliced dill pickles
  • mayonnaise

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325°F.

  • Trim the roast, then liberally season all sides with salt and pepper.

  • Heat oil in an oven safe dutch oven over medium heat, then sear the meat on all sides. The roast should be lightly browned on the outside, but still raw in the middle. It should take about 3 minutes per side.

    3 tablespoons avocado, vegetable, or canola oil, 1 3 – 4 pound boneless chuck roast, trimmed

  • Once the meat is browned on all sides, remove it from the pan but keep the heat on.

  • Add the onions and garlic to the remaining oil and cook until the onions are soft.

    1 cup sliced yellow onion, 4 cloves garlic, minced

  • Next, add the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and hot sauce.

    ¼ cup tomato paste, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon hot sauce

  • Stir until the onions are coated in the tomato paste, then add the beef broth to deglaze the pan.

  • Bring the broth mixture to a boil.

  • Return the beef to the pot and submerge it in the broth. Spoon some of the broth over the beef, then put the lid on the pot and bake for 2 ½ hours. (If your pot doesn't have a lid, you can cover the pot with aluminum foil.)

  • About halfway through the cooking time, remove the pot from the oven and spoon the sauce over the beef.

  • After 2 ½ hours have elapsed, remove the pot from the oven and place it back onto a warm burner over medium/low heat.

  • Remove the beef from the sauce and let it rest for about 10 minutes, while you thicken the sauce.

  • Mix together water and cornstarch, then stir that into the sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer and reduce the heat for 10 minutes, while the beef is resting.

    1 tablespoon water, 1 tablespoon cornstarch

  • After 10 minutes have elapsed, shred the beef and return it to the sauce. Remove from heat.

  • Serve the beef on crunchy french bread slathered with mayonnaise, a layer of shredded lettuce, and a layer of sliced tomatoes. Top the tomatoes with beef and add a few sliced pickles if desired. Enjoy!

    French bread, shredded iceberg lettuce, sliced tomatoes, sliced dill pickles, mayonnaise

Notes

Once cooled, roast beef debris can be stored in the refrigerator in an air-tight container for 3 – 5 days or frozen for around 3 months.

If you have leftover Roast Beef Debris, be sure to make Debris Cheese Fries.

If you don’t have a dutch oven or oven-safe pot, you can sear the beef in a pot on the stove, then create the sauce in the same pot. To bake, place the beef in an oven-safe casserole dish, pour the sauce over the meat, and top it with aluminum foil. After baking, remove the beef from the dish to rest and pour the sauce back in the pot to finish the recipe as directed.

Special Equipment Needeed

  • dutch oven or oven safe pot

Nutrition

Serving: 0.5cupCalories: 78kcalCarbohydrates: 5gProtein: 2gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 989mgPotassium: 205mgFiber: 1gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 129IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 21mgIron: 1mg

Nutrition information is approximate and is automatically calculated, so should only be used as a guide.

Course: Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine: American, Cajun, Southern

Keyword: roast beef debris, roast beef po boys, roast beef sandwich

Did you make this recipe?Mention @southernbytes or tag #southernbytes!

Filed Under: , Dairy-Free Recipes, Gluten-Free Recipes, Keto Recipes, Kid Friendly Recipes, Main Courses, Oven Recipes, Paleo Recipes, Southern Recipes, Whole30 Recipes

Roast Beef Debris Recipe (17)

Hi, I'm Kari!

I am a newlywed, food blogger, health coach, and mama to a hot mess of a border collie. I love to put a new spin on old family recipes and I try to make as many meals as possible with an Instant Pot.

Read More About ME

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Roast Beef Debris Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between roast beef and debris? ›

The roast beef po'boy became a city-wide sensation and just about a decade later gave rise to the now Louisiana-famous term "debris." According to Mother's Restaurant, the legendary New Orleans institution and self-proclaimed originator of the term, debris are the tasty remnants of roast beef that fall off the chuck as ...

What is the debris in au jus? ›

Basically, when the meat has cooked down so much that all of the connective tissue is gone and it crumbles apart, which the rendered fat helping make a real nice gravy or au jus. In Cajun Country, debris usually means, literally, the leftovers of a butchered hog.

What is debris in cooking? ›

"Debris" is the term given to the tender bits of meat that fall off a roast beef and sit in the pan drippings and gravy.

What is New Orleans debris? ›

Debris is the roast. beef that falls off the roast into the au jus gravy while. it's baking in the oven. Follow Mother's Restaurant.

What kind of beef roast shreds? ›

Chuck roast is arguably the best cut to use for pulled beef. Similar to the front shoulder of pork (or the pork “butt”) chuck roasts, being from the front shoulder of the steer, are chock full of fat, collagen, and marbling.

Why does my roast beef come out tough? ›

With lots of connective tissue (also known as collagen), these cuts can be tough if undercooked or hurried along in the cooking process. However, with slow-cooker pot roast, pressure cooker pot roast, or low-and-slow braised pot roast, the collagen breaks up for tender, succulent meat.

What is in a packet of au jus gravy mix? ›

Ingredients : 'CORNSTARCH, CORN SYRUP SOLIDS, SALT, AUTOLYZED YEAST EXTRACT (BARLEY), SUGAR, BEEF FAT, CARAMEL COLOR, MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE, ONION POWDER, CARRAGEENAN GUM, HYDROLYZED SOY PROTEIN, HYDROLYZED CORN PROTEIN, HYDROLYZED WHEAT GLUTEN, NATURAL FLAVOR, SPICE, DISODIUM GUANYLATE, DISODIUM INOSINATE, CITRIC ACID.

Is beef broth the same as au jus? ›

Beef broth is made by simmering beef bones, mirepoix (typically onion, carrots, and celery), hearty herbs, and spices in water, to extract flavor into the liquid. Au jus is basically beefed up beef broth. Amplify the savory flavor of beef broth by simmering it with drippings from roast beef (double beef flavor).

Is beef gravy the same as au jus? ›

Like gravy, jus (pronounced zhoo) starts with the drippings from cooked meat. Unlike gravy, however, it is not thickened with flour; instead, the liquid is reduced until it reaches the desired consistency, which is usually thinner than gravy.

What is called debris? ›

: the remains of something broken down or destroyed : ruins. 2. : an accumulation of fragments of rock. 3. : something discarded : rubbish.

What is another word for food debris? ›

What is another word for food waste?
excessive edibles discardedthrown-away food
wasted mealsfood loss
kitchen wastespoiled food
rotten food

What is Bouie meat? ›

When a calf from the farm was butchered, Dad sautéed fresh calf's liver and onions in that skillet. It seemed that no part of the animal went unused. He also relished making “bouie,” a stew of chopped fresh heart, kidney, spleen, and sweetbreads, and enjoyed it as a delicacy.

What is debris at Mothers in New Orleans? ›

While the woman at the counter followed the script when I asked for Mother's definition of debris — “It's shredded beef that falls in its own juice while cooking” — the debris I was served on three recent visits looked and tasted more like boiled beef subjected to a blender.

What is a Ferdie Poboy? ›

a po' boy packed with baked ham, roast beef, debris and gravy, served dressed. File: (fee-lay) a thickener for gumbo made from ground sassafras root.

What's the difference between roast beef and beefsteak? ›

Unlike roast beef, which is slow-cooked, steak is renowned for its quick preparation on a high-heat surface, be it a grill, skillet, or broiler. The fast searing process seals in the flavours, juices, and marbling of the meat, resulting in a delectable crust on the outside while keeping the inside tender and succulent.

Is roast beef and beef the same thing? ›

Roast beef is a dish of beef that is roasted, generally served as the main dish of a meal. In the Anglosphere, roast beef is one of the meats often served at Sunday lunch or dinner.

What is a beef roast vs chuck roast? ›

While both are large, tough cuts of budget-friendly beef, the main difference that sets these two roasts apart is where on the animal they're cut from. Top round roast is cut from the rear leg and is more lean than chuck roast, which is cut from the shoulder and contains more fat.

What is the difference between roasting and searing? ›

Searing creates a caramelized, golden outside while roasting yields juicy, evenly-cooked meat.

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