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A family classic, the best Sloppy Joe recipe is our favorite thing to make with a pack of ground beef. Made with whole ingredients, this is a simple, quick dinner the entire family will love.
We love a Sloppy Joe Sandwiches because they’re quick and easy to make for busy weeknights. The canned sauces are ok but I made the best homemade sloppy joes in about the same amount of time and now I can never turn back.
These Sloppy Joes are the best thing to make when you want to know what to make with a pack of ground beef. They’re simmered in a savory, tangy sauce that comes together in minutes.
We love to use this sloppy Joe mix for sandwiches but it’s also amazing to make stuffed potatoes, quesadillas, pizza and more. The limit does not exist as to what you can do with this recipe.
How To Make Homemade Sloppy Joe
This easy Sloppy Joe recipe comes together in minutes. You can easily make this is the slow cooker for parties or to make dinner time even easier.
- Prep the ingredients. Cook the onions, bell pepper and garlic until softened.
- Enhance the flavor. Stir in the chili powder and tomato paste.
- Brown the beef. Add the ground beef and cook until browned.
- Make the sauce. Whisk together the sauce ingredients and stir it in with the beef.
- Simmer. Allow the sauce to simmer until thick and saucy.
- Serve. Top a roll with your Sloppy Joe mix and serve.
The Very Best Sloppy Joe recipe is super easy to make and is ready in less than 30 minutes. It’s great to make ahead since the flavors have more time to develop and it freezes beautifully too! It’s wonderful piled on a soft fluffy hamburger bun.
How to Store Leftovers
Store leftovers sloppy Joe in an airtight container, refrigerated, for up to 5 days. Reheat in a saucepan or the microwave until warmed through.
Best Sides for Sloppy Joes
Some of our favorite side dishes for Sloppy Joes.
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The Best Sloppy Joe Recipe
Equipment
- 1 skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 lb lean ground beef, 85%-90% lean
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 tsp yellow mustard
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- 15 oz can tomato sauce
- ½ tsp salt, or to taste
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper, or to taste
- Hamburger Buns
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil until shimmering. Cook onion and bell pepper, stirring occasionally, until softened and slightly golden, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Stir in the chili powder and tomato paste cooking until the mixture has turned a deep burgundy color.
- Add the ground beef to the pan and cook until browned and no longer pink, approximately 5-7 minutes.
- In a bowl, whisk together the Worcestershire sauce, apple cider vinegar, yellow mustard, brown sugar dan tomato sauce. Pour the sauce mixture over the ground beef and stir to combine.
- Turn the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Divide beef mixture among buns and serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Kellie,
I fixed these last night, they were delicious! By far the best sloppy joes we’ve ever had. I followed your recipe to a ‘T’ except, I used stone ground mustard in place of the yellow mustard. Thank you for sharing so many great recipes.
Thank you so much! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
Made this last night with ground chicken… Excellent!
So, so good! I’m glad you liked it!
This looks delicious!!! Do you think you can use ground turkey? If so what spices would you use?
You can absolutely swap the beef for ground turkey without changing anything else about the recipe.
Y’all, if you’re reviewing a recipe, it would be great if you actually made the meal. All this, “It looks so tasty!” is not helpful.
Anyway…
I actually made this recipe and, while it WAS very tasty, it CANNOT be prepared in under 30 minutes. The amount of prep time alone was about 30 minutes just to chop all the vegetables. Plan for at least an hour if you don’t have help with prep. The author mentioned in another comment to mince the mushrooms to the point of being almost like mashed potatoes (especially if you have picky eaters). Next time I might try actually using a potato masher on the raw mushrooms to speed up the process. So much mushroom chopping…Just a thought. Another thought, I felt the final product was a little under-sauced. I had to add some extra tomato paste and Ketsup along with more Worsterchire and Dijon at the end to feel like the meat and veg were fully coated (and hidden from the picky eaters!). The flavor of the sauce is phenomenal though. Very true to Manwich style sloppy Joe’s sauce. I love how light I felt after eating this as well! A better name for these would be Guiltless Joe’s! Will definitely be making this again.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your helpful tips. I’m a silly fast chopper because I do it all the time. Sometimes the food processor can help speed things up or if your kids are old enough put them to work. Anyway, I’m so glad you loved it and I agree that maybe it could use some extra sauce. I love your little additions. Thanks so much for your helpful comments!!!