Homemade Sloppy Joe Recipe

These sweet and tangy Homemade Sloppy Joes, with real ingredients and the perfect balance of flavors, is a quick and easy dinner recipe the whole family will love.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword homemade sloppy joe recipe, sloppy joe sandwiches, sloppy joes

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 20

Total Time 35

Servings

Calories 622kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

2 pounds ground beef
1 onion diced
1 green pepper diced
4 cloves garlic sliced
1/3 cup ketchup
1/3 cup BBQ sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon brown sugar optional
2 teaspoons yellow mustard
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
Water as needed
6 hamburger buns
3 tablespoons butter

Instructions

Place a large skillet over medium-heat and brown meat until cooked through, about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the beef to a clean plate.
2 pounds ground beef
Dice onion and bell pepper and mince the garlic.
1 onion, 1 green pepper, 4 cloves garlic
Next, cook the diced onion, green pepper and garlic in the beef fat and cook until onions are translucent, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
In a medium-sized bowl, combine the remaining ingredients to make the sloppy joe sauce. Taste and adjust, as desired.
1/3 cup ketchup, 1/3 cup BBQ sauce, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 2 teaspoons yellow mustard, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon salt
Return the meat mixture to the skillet over medium heat and add the sauce.
Stir well to coat the beef and veggies in the sauce. Add water, as needed, to thin out the sauce to your personal preferences. (I added about 1/4 cup of water.)
Water
While the beef is rewarming and sauce is thickening, set your oven to broil and butter the sliced sides of your hamburger buns. Place the buns on a cookie sheet, butter side-up, and toast for 2 minutes under the broiler.
3 tablespoons butter
Scoop a big spoonful of the sloppy joe mixture onto each toasted bun and serve hot.
6 hamburger buns

Notes

Ground beef is typically used to make sloppy joe meat filling but for something a little lighter, you can use ground turkey or ground chicken. If using super lean meat, you may need to add a little olive oil to the skillet to help cook the veggies.

Check out the rest of the post above for more helpful tips.

Nutrition