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.
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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.
Gabriella says
This recipe is awsome. I havent has Sloppy Joe’s since I was a child. This was a great lunch.
Ron says
Decided to cut out the canned Manwich and try this! WOW! My new “go to” when craving Sloppy Joe!!! Kick the can!
Sandi Buhlman says
This is a great recipe.
I also omit the brown sugar and mustard and use it as a meatloaf sauce. AMAZING meatloaf that everyone comes back for seconds!
Nicole says
Great recipe! I really enjoyed it AS IS. I was going to post a comment here before making it because there is something that I find very frustrating and I just don’t understand why people do it. Then I decided to just make it first so I could truly rate it myself. I see this a lot everywhere, why are people rating it at 5 stars and then submitting their reviews with the multiple changes they have made to the recipe? In that case you’re not rating this recipe, you’re rating your own which isn’t helpful to someone looking for a highly rated recipe that doesn’t want to read through all of the reviews with your changes. Anyways, that’s just really a pet peeve of mine. The recipe is either good, which I felt these were great sloppy joes, or it’s not.
Carol says
I didn’t think the sloppy jokes were so good. I followed the recipe exactly
The Chunky Chef says
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy this recipe! We’ve always loved them, and they’re definitely a reader favorite. However, we all have different tastes 🙂
Sarah says
This recipe was great! I love to cook, i just tried the brown sugar in this! my husband and kids as well as me of course loved it! Thank you for sharing this,😁
Nataile says
This was great! I found your site while looking for an easy shepherd’s pie recipe to use up some leftover potatoes, went on a deep dive, then made this instead.
I used 4 servings’ worth of beef, 1/3 cup tomato sauce, less ketchup, no sugar, and a splash of Stubb’s BBQ sauce, and it was great. I got fancy and added cheddar cheese, horseradish and sour cream to my sandwich.
Thanks for this awesome early fall recipe! The shepherd’s pie will have to wait! hehe.
Debby says
This is a great recipe but with a few tweaks. First of all, I double it because even with my husband and I, it goes too fast! I add an 8 oz can of tomato sauce instead of tomato paste (no leftover paste in the fridge) and I cut down the water to just enough to rinse out the can and cut down catsup to 2 Tbsp. I sauté the minced onions, peppers and garlic in the butter and oil because I don’t want to drain off that wonderful butter and olive oil flavor with the hamburger. I add all the rest of the ingredients to the onions/pepper mix and add cooked hamburger last. We like it with a little kick so we add the red pepper flakes, hot sauce and a splash more Worcestershire sauce.
This is so good— no need to buy the canned sauce again as I have all the ingredients on hand in my pantry and it is so quick to make. Yummy!!!
Kimberly D. says
Incredibly delicious and come together easily. Thank you! Funny thing is I started craving sloppy joes (which has never happened before). Came across this recipe a few days later and immediately made it. My family and I decided it’s absolutely superior to canned sauce. Thank you!
Randy says
We made this tonight and it is wonderful. We omitted the sugar and it was plenty sweet.
Great recipe will cook this again. 🙂
lydia ensor says
Loved this! Quick to make. Hubby loved it!
Terri Phillips says
This was very tasty – I didn’t have any tomato paste on hand but additional ketchup worked just fine. My husband didn’t quite believe that I had made it from scratch. And I am sure the leftovers will be eaten quickly.
Chris says
Hi! Was it light or dark brown sugar you used?
Cant wait to try it out! Thanks 🙂
The Chunky Chef says
You could use either, but I normally use light.
mary gardiner says
The BEST sloppy jo’s I’ve tasted since I left high school 60 years ago. Always looked for that good flavor and this recipe has it. This week I have made it 4 times, for grown children and their families and have used 15 lbs of ground beef. Everyone one of them has asked for the recipe and all the ingredients are usually already on hand. Thank you for publishing this recipe, we all love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Courtney says
I do not usually leave reviews but I had to this time. This is by far the best sloppy Joe mixture my husband and I have ever had. We did leave out the bell peppers because he isn’t a fan and the brown sugar because I am diabetic. It was still perfect. My husband gave it a 9.5 out of 10 and he always thought sloppy joes were just meh. I do recommend either doubling or tripling the recipe so you can have leftovers lol.
Nicki says
My guy was craving Sloppy Joes for dinner, and we always have a can of Manwich for such “emergencies”. Not tonight! There were no more emergency cans! He looked pretty sad, so I told him I’d make them. He wasn’t feeling very hopeful… until he took that first bite! He said this was WAY better than Manwich, and only wants this from now on 🙂 He usually only has 2 sandwiches, and as full as he was, he still made a 3rd one LOL Thank you so much for this recipe! Definitely a keeper!!!
Ben Brown says
I’m never using a seasoning packet again. These were the best I’ve had anywhere.
Marilyn Padilla says
I have made this a few times. My 6 year old and I love it! I use ground turkey, leave out the tomato paste and I only use 1/2 tsp chili powder and 2/3 cup of water.. SO YUMMY!
Irene says
The best sloppy Joe I ever had!
Deborah Winsberg says
My family and I really enjoyed this sloppy joe recipe. Great flavor! We will make this again.
Janice Kuehl says
Definitely the very Best I’ve ever made😋. All the way with the toasted Brioche buns… we always had homemade growing up! Yummy!