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.
Aria says
Being from Australia, I had always heard of this American dish on TV shows, but hadn’t ever seen it made here. I decided to finally see what they were like and found your recipe and decided to make it. Oh my.. my family LOVE these! What have we been missing all these years?! Absolutely delicious! Thank you! I have made this several times now. Today I asked my hubby what he wanted for dinner and the answer was swift – those sloppy Joes!
Wendy K says
Made this recipe and it was delicious!! It is now my favorite sloppy joe recipe!! Thank you!
Leah says
Best “Untidy Josephs” 😉 I have ever had! Better than Manwich by 1000! I added a little less than half the amount of brown sugar.
Bonnie Connin says
Delicious
Megan Lucas says
I made this for dinner last night and we all loved it very much! I used potato chips for our side dish and I also made macaroni salad to go with it. My husband asked for seconds before he was finished with his first plate, so I KNOW he loved it! Thank you for this awesome recipe! I grew up eating Sloppy Joe’s as a kid, but my mom used the canned Sloppy Joe version, but this version was the BEST and I cannot believe how delicious it tasted!!
Desiree says
Delicious and easy! I have made homemade before and also used Manwich but doctor it up. This is less expensive than the can …thanks for sharing!
Linda says
Made this sloppy Joe recipe for family supper. Everyone loved it.
Kevin Enser says
Very good and happy I tried your recipe. Embarrassed to say that in the past; I’d use a sloppy joe mix from an envelope and ground beef. Spouse liked it also and had two.
Pat says
Great recipe!
Trudy LaComb says
Awesome.
B Smith says
I absolutely love this recipe! If I’m making it for my kids I leave out the chili powder, but the recipe is perfect just the way it is
Christine Reynolds says
I love this Sloppy Joe recipe. I follow the directions except just a tad less brown sugar and it’s yummy. I’ve made it several times and will continue to make it. Thank you.
Lisa says
These were yummy–I was worried about the sweetness but that tablespoon of tomato paste took the edge off. Served the joes on soft toasted onion buns. They didn’t turn out very sloppy but the meat was still nice and moist and my neatnik husband didn’t mind. Thanks!
Chris says
Excellent recipe. This is my family’s favorite sloppy joe recipe.
Heidi Phillips says
A bit too sweet. Added a teaspoon or two of apple cider vinegar and it evened it out perfect. Otherwise, a great recipe. I also seasoned the meat a bit while browning.
Vickie says
Made this tonight! I used ground venison, I added a diced jalapeño, and I used about 1.5tsp of brown sugar. I’ll definitely be making this again! I didn’t need to drain it because venison is so lean. Other than that I thought the flavor was really good! Thank you for sharing!
Aylin Mardin says
This was yummy! I don’t normally look at prep times but today I am thinking about it because I needed a quick recipe. 5 minutes prep?? Can people realliy pull out all these ingredients, measure them, clean and chop a pepper, clean and dice an onion and MINCE three cloves of garlic in 5 minutes?? I decided to time myself. Took me 21 minutes working fast with no distractions to get this all ready to cook. Is it me or does she have minions dicing and mincing for her?
The Chunky Chef says
No minions, unfortunately, those would be handy! I don’t measure all the spices etc out before hand, because I can do that while the beef is cooking. And yes, I can chop a pepper, onion and mince the garlic during those 5 minutes of prep. Just takes practice 🙂
Tammy L. says
Very good!
Vickie P. says
I tried this recipe and it is delicious. My husband really enjoyed it. I had all the ingredients required for this recipe in my pantry, except for the ground beef, so this was also a bonus. You definitely want to use the brioche bun.
Juah Toe says
Made this last night and it was soooo yummy!!! Included all the optional ingredients but didn’t add the worcestershire sauce bc I couldn’t find any and it didn’t call for much so no big deal. Tasted wonderful!! Took me back to my childhood :’) will be making it again!
Aaliyah Robertson says
Oh, so it tasted good without it? Noted!! I just tried this recipe and it’s absolutely delicious but I was wondering if the worcestershire sauce was necessary. Thanks!