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.
Carol Vilevac says
These are THE BEST! Am making bacon baked beans and home made dill pickles.
Sonia says
If I don’t have any tomato paste on hand will it hurt to omit it?
Amanda says
I’ve only made this recipe as written, but I think it will be fine to omit it 🙂
Neil Hackler says
This was so good!
NickP says
Made this recipe exactly with the ingredients but 3x the amount.A little more on seasonings and added pickle relish to it. When I served it I had a bowl of shredded cheddar cheese to top the sloppy joe’s. A side of coleslaw or pasta salad makes a nice meal that can be eaten all day on a snowy February day.
TMarie says
This is exactly the flavor I was looking for. I didn’t want the tomato flavored Manwich type sloppy joes. This is very similar to what my mom made. I regret not getting her recipe before she passed. Next time I will add some chopped dill pickles to the mixture as my mom did. May sound weird, but it a flavor I enjoyed.
Jae says
Thanks Amanda! This recipe was simple and very tasty. 🙂
mg says
Delicious and easy to make. Family loved it.
Nate says
The recipe is good, but as written, it is too sweet for my tastes and compared to Manwich. Probably because of all the sugar in ketchup and the added brown sugar. Next time I will completely omit the brown sugar. It is also slightly thicker and less tomato-tasting than Manwich.
Manwich Manson says
Manwich is gross. Why compare. If you are trying to make a manwich copycat, then just buy manwich for $2.
Marcus C. says
I made this last night and my wife loved it. I used a poblano pepper and a jalapeno instead of the bell pepper, just to spice it up a little. I also added a slice of American cheese on top! I would highly recommend this recipe!
AP says
Delicious and easy homemade sloppy joe recipe. Easy to tweak ingredients to make it your own, such as using agave syrup or honey for a little sweetness or subbing ground turkey or soy crumbles to make it a little healthier. No need to ever buy sloppy joe sauce in a can! I served it on a healthy seeded bun with fresh spinach cause I love adding spinach wherever I can.
Jess says
Better then manwich!!
Tim McCaslin says
Didn’t have a can of Manwich, tried this recipe and it’s better than Manwich. This is now my go to recipe.
Anya Monroe says
A quick but tasty recipe!!
Adriel says
It was great but a bit to sweet for me I would defiantly recemand it.
Anna Gerhart says
My family and I love this recipe as is or tweaked with other ingredients, spice it up with minced jalapenos. It’s so good.
Regina says
I made this vegan with burger meat made from tofu and beets-the beets help with the red color of beef. My husband loves the man which with the chunky peppers so.. I didn’t tell him. He asked if it was the new burger recipe that I was trying. I said yes. Then I told him I made the sauce from scratch. He couldn’t believe it. He said I knew the flavor seemed richer, but I thought you added something to my fav manwich. Then he added please don’t lose that recipe. Thanks for a great recipe that I’ve added to my permanent files.
Amanda says
Loved it
Anne Cuvellier says
Delicious!! Served this with the toasted rolls, cole slaw, jalapeno slices and pickles. Everyone loved it and wished I had doubled the recipe.
Thanks!
terry pounders says
Awesome recipe to bench off of…added a few drops of liquid smoke and instead of mustard i used heinz 57. Additional i added a couple teaspoons of white wine vinegar….
MKW says
I had no idea that a Sloppy Joe could taste so good.
The only thing different that I did was to omit the brown sugar.
Hats off to the recipe writer, a very true title.