Saucy, beefy, and so satisfying. We’re convinced this is the BEST recipe for a homemade Sloppy Joe. Ground beef in a hearty tomato sauce served on toasted hamburger buns is a great idea for lunch or dinner. Everyone needs a great and nostalgic recipe for Sloppy Joes and THIS. IS. IT.
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Helpful Reader Review
“Soooo yummy! Took me years to find a sloppy joe recipe like the one I remember from childhood. This is it. Thank you!” – Kathy ★★★★★
This delicious Sloppy Joe recipe is a simple and inexpensive way to make a budget-friendly family dinner. The tender and juicy ground beef is sautéed with green peppers and onions, then cooked in a hearty and flavorful tomato sauce – it’s hard to stop at just one sandwich, which is why I often double the recipe.
Having some go-to ground beef recipes, such as Cheeseburger Sliders, Taco Salad, or Sloppy Joes, will make dinner time a breeze. If you have some ground beef in the freezer and need an easy meal idea, this is a must-try.
Sloppy Joes Video
This is one of my children’s favorite recipes – it’s so satisfying, and they both agree it’s better than any other sloppy joe they have tried. I just love that my son helped me cook it in the video, and my daughter got in on the taste test because these sandwiches are irresistible.
Ingredients for the Best Sloppy Joes
- Ground Beef – use lean ground beef (85-90% lean). If using a higher fat content, you will need to skim off the extra fat once the beef is cooked so you don’t end up with greasy sloppy joes. You can sub the beef with ground chicken or turkey if you prefer.
- Bell pepper – we used green, but you can substitute a different color in a pinch. If you like things spicy, add some jalapenos along with the green peppers. If you aren’t a fan of bell pepper, you can substitute 1 grated carrot (about 1/2 cup).
- Onion & Garlic – these aromatics add great flavor and disappear into the sauce, so picky eaters won’t complain.
- Homemade Sauce – just a few simple pantry ingredients will make a sauce that’s better than any store-bought sauce. The combination of tomato sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, yellow mustard, and Worcestershire hits all the right flavor notes: sweet, savory, and tangy.
How to Make Sloppy Joes
- Make sauce – In a bowl, combine tomato sauce, ketchup, worcestershire sauce, yellow mustard, and brown sugar.
Natasha’s tip if you love it spicy
If you prefer a spicy Sloppy Joes, add some hot sauce or sriracha to the sauce.
- Saute beef – In a deep skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and break up as it is being cooked. Season with salt and pepper. If you see extra fat on the bottom, tilt the pan and spoon it out.
- Sautee veggies – Add in the finely chopped onion and green pepper. Cook until vegetables are tender. Add in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add sauce – Pour in the sauce and once it comes to a light boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Add more salt and pepper if needed (see the Sloppy Joe Tasting Guide below to adjust to your taste preferences easily).
- Serve – I highly recommend buttering the buns and toasting them in a skillet for another layer of flavor. Spoon the saucy beef mixture on toasted buns and serve as sandwiches.
To Serve
There are so many different ways to enjoy a sloppy joe. You’ll want to try them all:
- Classic – Serve this with toasted hamburger buns for the classic sloppy joe recipe.
- Grilled Cheese – Add the meat mixture when making a Grilled Cheese for a hearty sandwich.
- Pizza – Add on homemade overnight pizza dough and top with cheese for a sloppy joe pizza.
- Loaded fries– There is nothing better than loaded fries, top your air fryer French fries with cheese and sloppy joe filling.
- Chili dogs – Add the meat sauce to your hot dogs.
- Baked potato – Take a loaded air fryer baked potato to the next level by topping it with this meat sauce.
Can I make Sloppy Joes in a slow cooker?
These EASY sloppy joes are GREAT to make in the crockpot. Once the meat is browned on a skillet, just add it along with all the other ingredients into the crockpot and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or on high for 2-3 hours.
What is the difference between a Sloppy Joe and a Manwich?
This sloppy joe recipe is homemade and made from scratch. Manwich is a pre-made, store-bought sauce used to make sloppy joes.
Make-Ahead and Storage
- Refrigerating – Let the meat sauce cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days in an airtight container.
- Freezing – Once the mixture is cooled, add to freezer-friendly containers or freezer bags and freeze for up to 2-3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
- Reheating – A general rule of thumb is that it’s best to reheat a recipe the same way it was cooked. Warm the meat sauce on the stovetop in a skillet or saucepan until hot. You can microwave, but use a microwave shield to catch messy splatter.
There’s no match for a warm homemade sandwich, from Hamburgers to my famous Philly Cheesesteak. This Sloppy Joe Recipe is definitely at the top of my list. What is your favorite sandwich? I’d love to hear from you in the comments.
Sloppy Joes
Ingredients
For the Sauce
- 15 oz can tomato sauce
- 1/4 cup ketchup*
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 tsp yellow mustard, or to taste
- 2-3 tsp brown sugar, or to taste*
For the Sloppy Joes
- 1 Tbsp extra light olive oil, or any high-heat cooking oil
- 1 lb lean ground beef, 85%-90% lean
- ½ tsp fine sea salt, or to taste
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 small green bell pepper, seeded and finely diced, or use 1/2 cup grated carrot
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 5 hamburger buns, toasted if desired
Instructions
- Make the Sauce – In a medium bowl, combine the tomato sauce, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and brown sugar, and set it aside.
- Cook the Beef – Place a large skillet or dutch oven over medium/high heat. Add olive oil and ground beef. Saute the beef for about 5 minutes until cooked through and no longer pink, breaking it up with a spatula. If you see extra fat on the bottom, tilt the pan and spoon it out or blot it up with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add vegetables – Stir in the diced peppers and onion. Cook another 5 minutes until the veggies are tender and beef is browned. Add garlic and saute 30 seconds until fragrant, stirring constantly.
- Add the sauce and bring to a light boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for about 10-15 minutes or until thickened to your liking. Adjust the seasoning taste* and add water if you prefer a looser consistency. Serve on toasted buns for Sloppy Joe Sandwiches.
Notes
- Too sweet? Add a pinch of salt or 1/ 2 tsp apple-cider vinegar
- Too Tangy? Add 1/2 tsp brown sugar or a drizzle of ketchup
- Too Tomato-y? Simmer an extra 5 min to concentrate flavors and caramelize sugars.
- Missing depth? Add extra Worcestershire.
- Too loose? Simmer uncovered 3-5 minutes to thicken
- Too thick? Add a splash of water
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Love Ground Beef Recipes? Try these:
- Slow Cooker Beef Chili
- Meatloaf
- Spaghetti and Meatballs
- Bolognese Sauce
- Lasagna
- Ground Beef Stroganoff
- Mexican Beef and Rice Skillet
An absolute FAVE for camping! I pre make the meat mix and just heat it up on the camp stove. With toasted brioche and topped w lots of pickles and pickled red onions – a true delight! Love it!
Hi MJ! Thank you so much for sharing. I’m glad you’re loving the recipe.
We made too much but it was good. Lunch for tomorrow.
We tripled the recipe and it turned out great.
I personally like mores spice so I added more seasonings. White pepper and more Black pepper. However for everyone else the recipe was spot on and everyone liked it.
As always another one for the favorites. I may try it with chicken next time. 🙂 Thanks.
I’m so glad you loved it!
We have made this several times and love the recipe. It is very healthy. Followed it exactly except used a whole green pepper for more veggie. The right amount of sweetness and wasn’t soupy at all. Perfect!
Hi Joanne! Thank you for the feedback. So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Made this for a large gathering and everyone wanted the recipe!
Yay so good to hear that it was a huge hit!
This isn’t sloppy joe, this is garlic pasta sauce. If you’re used to a sweet bbq flavor for sloppy joes, skip this one.
Hi Trek, did you possibly skip the sugar? You can also use a sweet BBQ sauce for a sweeter profile.
Hi Natasha, I actually increased the sugar after I found it lacking for my personal tastes. The recipe unfortunately lacked the acidity and sweet tang I’m used to having with sloppy joes. I think BBQ sauce is a good adjustment for anyone that might share my sentiments.
“Best sloppy joes ever!” That was reaction from family. Drained the beef, and for fun used a tiny dollop of BBQ sauce and a bit of Stout beer. Turned out delicious.
Love it! Thanks a lot for sharing that with us!
My family and I loved this recipe. It has replaced my old recipe that used ketchup. The flavors are wonderful! I added a bit more salt at the end and a few more dashes of Worstershire – but that’s the great thing about cooking, you season to your own taste! This will be a regular in our house!
That’s great, Kristin! Thanks for sharing.
My wife and I have not had a sloppy Joe in a very long time. We tried this recipe and loved it. My wife said she could have this every week. It had just enough sweetness and tomato’s. I did adjust it to our taste like adding Jalapeno, cumin and white pepper. Outstanding…Thank you for this recipe.
I’m so glad to hear that. Thank you for sharing.
I tried this recipe because of the 5 star review but I didn’t like it. I added 2 Tbs more brown sugar because 1 Tbs wasn’t enough. The flavor isn’t your traditional sloppy Jo. After simmering 30 more minutes it still didn’t thicken. I’ll have to try another recipe.
HI Kathy, did you use a smaller pan – if so, the surface area is smaller and it would require a longer cooking time. You can definitely add sugar to taste especially depending on the tomato product you use.
My store stopped carrying the canned sauce. Made this for guys at work. Needed a bit more than 3 pounds so I added some oatmeal to make it go further like my mom used to do. I’ve never liked sloppy joes but this recipe has me rethinking. Tastes great! I knew it would because Natasha’s fish taco and sauce recipe is amazing!! Thank you.
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Lisa!
Followed the recipe exactly and we LOVED it! Consistency and taste were spot on. Served with freshly baked buns from the bakery and coleslaw on the side.
That sounds great! Thank you for sharing. I’m glad you loved the recipe.
So good and easy…i added a little ketchup because i wanted it a little sweeter. Hubby loved it and I will def make it again.
I’m so glad it was enjoyed, Kimi!
Unbelievable! I hadn’t had a sloppy Joe since the college hall and this is absolutely terrific. Blew me away! It’s nothing like the soupy messy sandwich I remember.
I used red onion, added an extra half pound of ground beef, and also added four green onions chopped up.
This was a true masterpiece and one of the best tasting dishes I’ve ever made. Cooked this for me and my buddies out in Silvervthorne, CO after a big day of skiing. They couldn’t get enough of this.
Sounds amazing! I’m so glad it was a hit!
Came out delicious..
it needs to simmer maybe more to reduce the liquidy texture that some people mentioned..
Thx Natasha..
Hi Sherry, thank you for your comments and suggestion. We appreciate it.
Please tell me it is a mistake that was made, adding 15 oz. Tomato sauce…I have one soupy mess. Surely that can’t be right. Do you mean ’paste’ rather than sauce? I am feeling pretty aggravated by what I have ended up with..
Hi Dee! I’m sorry you’re having difficulty with the recipe. That’s correct, we used 15oz tomato sauce. It likely needed to simmer longer. Be sure to simmer uncovered for at least 10-15 minutes or until thickened to your liking.
Ugg Dee! Bet you did what I did! I misread and simmered while it was covered instead of uncovered!!! I came right here to ask see if I could use tomatoe paste to thicken it up and saw your comment, and Natasha’s response. So I squeezed in a table spoon or so of tomato paste to thicken it, and simmered uncovered. That did the trick. Flavor is very good.
Best ever. I used a can of Mamwich I had sitting around instead of tomato sauce and it was sooo good. Served with toasted Brioche
Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
This was delicious! Great base recipe. I swapped the green bell pepper for pablano pepper for extra smokiness. Added a dash of chipotle powder and seasoned to taste. DH loves it and will be added to rotation!
Thank you for sharing, Jodi!
Here is one tip that I have been making for years. After I make sloppy joes, I always add depending on how much meat I have…I add cans and cans of pork and beans. Now these are called sloppy kids. Put these on a bun. My family loves these
Oh that sounds terrific! thank you for sharing! Can you share what brand of pork and beans you love to use?
Made this and was disappointed that I put the brown sugar in the recipe. It ruined it. It would have been good had that not been an ingredient.
Hi, I’m sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy it. The little bit of brown sugar helps to balance the acidity. If you are changing anything in the recipe (especially if altering any of the salty ingredients, you will need to decrease the amount of brown sugar to keep it balanced.
Excellent recipe! This is really good. I made mine with ground venison so really lean. As per other reviews I added a dash of chili powder and a tablespoon of vinegar. I also added a few drops of liquid smoke. These are things I do the canned stuff you buy. I also cut the sauce in half and added ketchup to make up the difference. Far and above anything from a can. Really delicious! Thank you!
Sounds great to hear that ground version works well too! Thanks a lot for this review and for sharing your experiencev trying out this recipe.
Too sweet for my taste. We added tex mex seasoning and chili powder.