Step away from the canned sauce and give these homemade sloppy joes a try! They’re truly the best version of a childhood favorite!
As we head into the upcoming holiday season, I’ve been thinking about family-friendly meals. You know, those meals that your kids always want to eat. In our house, this Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese is number one on our list… with these sloppy joes being number 2! With two little ones myself, I know ALL too well how frustrating it is to cook a meal and have them promptly turn up their noses and say it’s “gross”. *facepalm*
I’ve always been a fan of classic sloppy joes. There’s something so innately satisfying about the sweet and savory combination and messiness of it all! And I know you all love them too, since I’ve been getting a lot of requests for sloppy joe recipes.
I’ve made a LOT of sloppy joe recipes lately, trying to come up with the perfect one. Some were too sweet, others too spicy. Well guys, I finally got it. The perfect balance. This sloppy joe recipe is sweet, tangy, zesty and savory, with the perfect texture and consistency.
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE SLOPPY JOES
Homemade sloppy joes are incredibly easy to make, and come together in one skillet in about 20 minutes or so. Browned beef is mixed with onion and green pepper and simmered in a sweetened tomato/ketchup sauce. The secret is in finding the right seasoning for the sauce!
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MANWICH AND SLOPPY JOES?
Technically Manwich is a pre-made sauce that’s used to make sloppy joes. I’m not sure exactly what’s in it, and have never tried it myself, so I can’t say that my recipe tastes similar or not. Manwich is marketed as a easy way to make sloppy joes… but in reality, homemade sloppy joes are JUST as easy to make!
HOW DID SLOPPY JOES GET THEIR NAME?
From what I can glean from the good ol’ internet, a cook named Joe in a cafe in Sioux City, Iowa added a tomato sauce to a loose meat sandwich. It must have been a favorite and took off!
WHAT CAN I DO WITH SLOPPY JOE MEAT?
Number one, slap some on a toasted bun!! After that, here are some of my favorite things to do:
- Spoon some over some crispy waffle fries. Bonus points if you also melt some cheese over the fries before adding the sloppy joe meat!
- Add some to a grilled cheese.
- Roll up in crescent roll dough and bake at 375 F degrees for about 12-15 minutes. Cheese makes a great addition to these as well!
- Add some on top of a burger.
CAN YOU MAKE SLOPPY JOES IN A CROCKPOT?
You can! Just brown the beef and add all the remaining ingredients (no buns though), and cook on LOW for about 4-6 hours, or HIGH for 2-3 hours. This will have a softer texture than skillet sloppy joes though.
PRO TIPS FOR MAKING HOMEMADE SLOPPY JOES:
- Before you get started, toast your buns. Toasting the bun makes ALL the difference, and only takes a few minutes. Crank up the heat under the skillet to high, and add a drizzle of vegetable oil. When the oil is hot, add the buns, then place the buns cut side up on a cooling rack after they’re toasted.
- Watch the sauce so that it doesn’t reduce too much. When too much of the sauce reduces, it gives you a dry sloppy joe mixture. Everyone likes theirs a little differently, but for me, I cook it down so that I can see the bits of meat, and when I drag my spoon through the sauce, it leaves a trail where the sauce is parted. If the sauce immediately flows back into that trail, it’s too liquid-y. I want a few seconds before the sauce covers the trail, which gives me a saucy consistency that’s not too liquid.
- Choose your favorite type of bun. I usually go for either a pretzel bun (like I did in these Beer and Chorizo Sloppy Joes!), or a brioche bun.
SHOP THE RECIPE:
- Skillet – I like to use either stainless steel or cast iron for this, as they both give a great sear!
- Wooden plate – I love these for sandwiches!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1/3 green bell pepper, minced
- 1/2 large yellow onion, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste
- 2/3 cup ketchup
- 1/3 cup water
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar (or less, if you prefer)
- 1 tsp yellow mustard
- 3/4 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- dash of hot sauce (optional)
Instructions
- Heat butter and oil in large skillet over MED/MED-HIGH heat. Add beef and brown, breaking apart into crumbles as it cooks, about 5 minutes. Transfer to colander to drain.
- Add onion and bell pepper to same skillet and cook 2-3 minutes, until soft. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds or so, until fragrant. Add beef back to the skillet and add tomato paste. Stir well.
- Add ketchup, water, brown sugar, mustard, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, salt, red pepper flakes (if using), and black pepper. Stir well to combine.
- Cook over MED heat for 10-15 minutes, until mixture has thickened to your liking. Remove from heat and serve over toasted buns.
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
- Cool the mixture completely, then add to freezer containers and freeze for up to 4 months.
- Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat before serving.
Video
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Amy Sciortino says
Just made this tonight. I have been craving sloppy joes and this recipe did not disappoint!
Patricia Kidder says
I remember making this recipe a long time ago for a school fair. . It was the best ever. I am glad to find it again. I even make it in a crockpot with the hamburger raw. If the fat is too much you can soak it up with white bread.
Myke Chapman says
Don’t know why I was craving a sloppy joe today, but thank god i did and stumbled upon this. It’s great. We live near a restaurant that has a 15$ sloppy joe on their menu (made from prime rib or something expensive). This annihilates it… no contest. In fact someone should go to that restaurant and slap whoever’s responsible.. I’m gonna eat these for a week on little Hawaiian slider rolls and die happy.
Mel says
My goodness, thank-you so much for this recipe! I was looking for something crowd pleasing and this hit all the right notes. We have some tomato-haters so I swapped bbq sauce for the tomato and actually found my self out of What’s-this-here sauce so I used some Kitchen Bouqet instead. This was such a quick and easy meal to throw together on work night, I tucked this right into my recipe box to use again. Thank-you, thank-you!
Sylvia says
My kids really enjoyed this sloppy joe recipe! My daughter and I both felt like it needed a little more sauce so next time I plan to double the sauce. Thanks for sharing!
Nathan Lamphere says
Really good. I left out the tomato paste. Replaced chili pepper but with paprika.
Amanda says
I tasted it shortly before serving, and it really close to perfect but needed something to bump up the flavor a little. Added a splash of apple cider vinegar, which really did the trick. This will be my new go-to Sloppy Joe recipe (with the splash of vinegar at the end).
Lexis H says
While this is easy I would say its *as easy* as browning meat and pouring a can of sauce over it. That said, this stuff is worth it. I’ve made this several times and then last week made Manwich and it just tasted awful (after years of “enjoying” the stuff). We will never go back!!
Kaye Elle says
ACV! Brilliant. That’s exactly what it needed. Thank you
Tia says
I just made these and they were AMAZING. So easy to make and delicious – thank you!
Wendy says
Doubled this recipe and glad i did. No left overs! I may 1/2 the brown sugar next time.
Sylvia says
Just made this for dinner, husband was a huge fan! I substituted the green bell pepper for red bell pepper as it was all I had. Turned out amazing! Definitely making this again!
Shirley says
Thanks this recipe sounds good and easy was going to buy manwich. But didn’t like it last time and your recipe sounds better
Lorraine says
I love sloppy joes. My husband does not, therefore I make them very seldom. Well, my husband loved this! My only change would be to eliminate the brown sugar next time.
Kieara says
Super easy and honestly tastes almost exact like Manwich, but with that homemade touch 😉 I loved it!
Dillon says
On no, please dont tell me it tastes almost exactly like manwich. Thats what i was trying to avoid? Thats what my girlfriend uses and it almost ruined sloppy joes for me. Lol
Rouge goat says
No way! Manwich is garbage. This tastes like it you went to see a buddy you hadn’t seen in forever and you went and had some beers. Three pints in and he’s like “dude, let’s go. Imma take you to get the best sloppy joe ever” . You meander the the city to a alley basement entrance and the place is packed with locals, run by an 85 year old Islander that simply goes by Joe. Nothing else is served only sloppy joes.
Cron says
Have made this now several times with “crumbles,” soy-based ground beef substitute. It is excellent, and I doubt most could tell the difference versus recipe made with real meat. That said, had to use extra olive oil to cook meat substitute, and probably 2-3 times the amount of water, as the crumbles do not produce the amount of liquid ground beef does.
Sour girl says
I’m so sad… it’s sour. It’s just awful and I followed your recipe to a T. I’m no chef, not by any means, but ya girl can cook and I’m in utter disbelief at how… awful and totally unlike sloppy joe’s this is. Maybe my tongue is illiterate…. but no. I don’t think so. But hey… if you like extra garlicky and sour beef sammiches, have at it! D:
The Chunky Chef says
I’m so surprised it turned out sour for you, especially with so many other people’s positive experiences. I’m not even sure what would have made it sour. You didn’t substitute anything?
Allison Reiter says
Super delicious!!! I used impossible ground beef for a vegan option and it came out amazingly! I can’t wait to make a huge batch and freeze some as well. Thank you!!
Sue H. says
Very tasty! I used a tablespoon of real maple syrup instead of brown sugar; added 1 tsp each of apple cider vinegar, liquid smoked flavoring, and A-1 steak sauce, along with your ingredients. Really delicious recipe!
FayJay says
So good!! Flavors blend so well, sometimes in recipes a certain flavor overpowers, not this one, all work together to make a delicious recipe.
Sara Vix says
Yes!!! So good, my family loved this. I used dehydrated onion flakes, came out great. I will make again😋
Sandy S. says
My Son and I really enjoyed this recipe. I have not made sloppy joes in years. This was worth it!!
Yvonne Alexander says
This recipe was so very good. My family devoured it. Will definitely make again soon. Keep the great recipes coming!
connie says
So good! Didn’t cook onion and pepper separately, just threw in with ham!burger as it was getting done.