Sloppy joes are one of America’s favourite comfort foods! What’s not to love from its combination of sweet and savoury to the messiness when the fillings ooze out with every bite you take. Also, there is something so innately satisfying with eating with your hands.
Sloppy joes are always a go-to dish to serve at parties or gatherings especially when there are children involved. As we know, children can be very fussy eaters, but it is very rare that a child will turn down a classic sloppy joe.
Homemade sloppy joes are easy to make as all the ingredients can be made in one skillet in under 30 minutes or so. The perfect sloppy joe should combine the perfect balance of savoury, sweet, tangy, zesty, coupled with the perfect texture and consistency of the ground beef and vegetables.
With all the ingredients cooked together in a skillet, the secret is finding the right sweet spot for the perfect seasoning. If you nail the seasoning, you’ll nail the sloppy joe.
This homemade recipe will make you proud at your next family gathering!
PrintSloppy Joes Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 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
- 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
- In a large skillet, melt the butter and oil over a MED/MED-HIGH heat.
- Then, add the ground beef to brown and break them apart into crumbles as it cooks for about 5 minutes.
- Drain the beef by transferring it into a colander.
- In the same skillet, add the onions and bell pepper to cook for about 2-3 minutes.
- Then, add the garlic to cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds or so.
- Add the beef back into the skillet followed by tomato paste and mix everything together.
- Then add the ketchup, water, brown sugar, mustard, chilli powder, Worcestershire sauce, salt, red pepper flakes and black pepper. Stir well to mix everything together.
- Continue cooking over MED heat for 10-15 minutes until desired consistency is achieved.
- Remove from heat and serve over toasted buns.
- To toast the buns, add a drizzle of vegetable oil on to a clean skillet and set the heat on high. Once the oil is hot, add the buns and toast them to your liking. Place them on a cooling rack while cooking the filling, so they are ready to be served.
Notes
- You can use any type of buns to your liking, but Pretzel buns or Brioche buns are most suitable for sloppy joes.
- You can choose to opt out or adjust spices that you dislike according to your liking. However, note that this will disrupt the final taste of your sloppy joes.