What Is The Meaning Of 'Au Jus'?

Au jus is a French term that, although it sounds fancy on a menu, refers to nothing more than meat served in its natural juices. It literally translates to “with the juice.” The word jus, pronounced zhoo, refers to the thickened juices from a roast or other meat. Most of us are most familiar with the term being used with prime rib, in prime rib au jus. When used in the name of dishes or on restaurant menus, the term traditionally appears just after the particular meat it is modifying. However, it has been corrupted in recent times and used as a noun, as if it were a particular sauce. For example, we sometimes hear usages such as steak with au jus. This makes no literal sense. Modern cookbooks often tell you how to “make the au jus,” as well.

Pronunciation and Usage of Au Jus

The French pronunciation of au jus is something like oh-zhoo, but English speakers tend to say oh-zhoos or oh-joos.

Prime rib au jus means “prime rib with the juice.” Prime rib with au jus (gravy, broth, etc.) is technically redundant. Another confusing misuse of the term is French dip au jus or French dip with au jus. French dip is a roast beef sandwich that is meant to be dipped into the pan juices. Therefore, adding au jus to the name is redundant, and a French dip without jus would be nothing more than a dry piece of meat inside bread or a roll.

Roast beef sandwich au jus, which is essentially the same thing, makes more literal sense, and simply means a roast beef sandwich served with the jus for dipping.

What is It?

Although broth is sometimes added to the drippings from a roast in order to extend it, it is not really the same as gravy, which is the thickened drippings from a meat preparation.

However, when cooking even a large piece of meat, the drippings tend to evaporate and brown in the pan; deglazing the pan with stock or other liquid is customary, and the resultant jus may be seasoned, slightly reduced, and strained. It is not really thickened like a gravy, but the jus, when reduced and strained in this way, is often called a gravy.

Another method involves preparing a liquid mixture in advance, typically consisting of wine, onions, celery, and thyme, and then cooking it down. This mixture is then added to the roasting pan and the standing rib roast or other beef roast is roasted at low heat for 1 to 2 hours. The natural juices from the roast will drip into the liquid under the roasting rack, and beef broth or another broth can be added as needed to keep the broth from cooking away. After the roast is done, it is strained, and the fat is separated out. The results are then served with the roast au jus.

Sometimes the word jus is also used to refer to an unthickened liquid flavored with the essence of a certain ingredient, such as a vegetable or mushroom. For example, a mushroom jus can be made by simmering mushrooms in stock or broth until the liquid has a strong mushroom flavor and becomes concentrated.

This can then be strained (or passed through a food mill) and used as the basis of a sauce, gravy, soup, etc. A jus made in this way may also be called an essence.

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