Easy Homemade Sloppy Joes - With Step By Step Instructions

Craving a nostalgic dinner? Our Homemade Sloppy Joes recipe will become your new favorite go-to comfort food. Packed with tasty BBQ savory flavours and juicy goodness! It's a breeze to whip up and on the table in just 30 minutes!

Why You'll LOVE This Easy Recipe

It's mouthwateringly good! Our sloppy joes are so good, juicy, messy, cheesy and that homemade Sloppy Joe sauce is completely irresistible!

Low cost ingredients - with ground beef and fresh veggies, this is a low cost, easy dinner, packed with BBQ smoky flavors that the kids will love!

Versatile - you can cook the Sloppy Joes meat on the hob, in the oven or in the Crock-Pot, plus it's a great make-ahead dish too. And we'll give you loads of ways to use up leftovers.

Sloppy Joe Recipe

Makes – 6 Sloppy Joes

Prep Time – 5 minutes 

Cook Time – approx 25 minutes (on the hob)

Total Time – approx. 30 minutes

Our Most Popular Alternative – Italian Sloppy Joes

Equipment Needed

• Chopping board
• Vegetable knife
• Skillet pan - with a lid
• Cooking spoon
• Tablespoon
• Cup
• Grater
• Breadknife

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Sloppy Joes Ingredients

Everything you'll need to make our delicious easy sloppy joes recipe!

For the sloppy joes meat sauce

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 brown onion - finely diced
• 1 red bell pepper - finely diced
• 1 yellow bell pepper - finely diced (you can swap for green bell pepper)
• 1lb lean ground beef (500g minced beef)
• 15oz can of chopped tomatoes (400g tin)
• 3 tablespoon BBQ sauce (just choose your favourite)
• Splash of Worcestershire sauce (optional)
• Salt and black pepper

To serve

• 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (alternatively use 6 slices of burger cheese)
• 6 hamburger buns
• 2 Little Gem lettuces - shredded
• 12 gherkins

If you're feeding a crowd just double or treble the recipe. Simple. 

How To Make Homemade Sloppy Joes

Okay - sloppy joes are just so easy to cook - you really can't mess up! AND the kids just LOVE them - total dinner winner!

Step One - sauté the diced vegetables

• Grab a large skillet and toss in the olive oil, diced onions and bell peppers. Gently fry over a medium heat for around 5 minutes until they start to soften.

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Step Two - brown the ground beef

• Add the ground beef to the skillet, break it up with the spoon and fry it over a medium heat so that it starts to brown.

Step Three - add the tomatoes and BBQ sauce to the meat mixture

• Pour in the can of tomatoes and the BBQ sauce, season with salt and pepper, then bring the Sloppy Joe meat sauce to the boil. Then reduce the heat to low and simmer with the lid off for around 20 minutes. If you like to sweeten the meat and tomato sauce you can add a pinch of brown sugar too.

Step Four - add the shredded cheese

• Sprinkle the shredded sharp Cheddar cheese over the top of the Sloppy Joe meat in the skillet pan. And let it melt into the meat sauce.

Step Five - serve the homemade Sloppy Joes

• Take the skillet of Sloppy Joe meat mixture over to the table and let everyone load up their burger buns like loose meat sandwiches - with shredded lettuce. You can toast the burger buns if you wish, my kids like them not-toasted so that's how I serve them.

You can serve with the classics - ketchup, yellow mustard and extra cheese if you like.

Just look how messy and delicious they look, don't you just want to sink your teeth in?!

Sloppy Joes Recipe Tips Straight From Our Kitchen

Can you make Sloppy Joes in a Crock-pot?

Sure you can! Add all the ingredients (no need to brown) then mix them together and cook on high for around 3-4 hours or low for around 6 hours.

Cooking in the crockpot can make the meat sauce a little more liquid. You can thicken the meat sauce by mixing a teaspoon of cornflour with some cold water and stir it through the sauce, cook for a few minutes until it thickens.

Can I make vegetarian Sloppy Joes?

Absolutely - just switch the ground beef for your preferred brand of vegetarian alternative.

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How do you make vegan Sloppy Joes?

Switch the ground beef and cheese for a plant based alternative. And double check the ingredients on the BBQ sauce to make sure it's okay to use.

What are some substitutions for ground beef in a Sloppy Joe recipe?

You can swap the ground beef for ground turkey or chicken. Or you can use vegetarian or vegan alternatives. Also you can make a great Sloppy Joe recipe using canned brown lentils in place of the ground beef.

Can you make Sloppy Joes ahead of time?

Okay, so you can absolutely make the meat sauce and prepare the toppings ahead of time. But don't load it onto the burger buns or they'll go really soggy.

What kind of bread do I use?

You can use burger buns, dinner rolls, brioche buns, crusty bread, ciabatta, any kind of bread you like to eat.

Get more easy ground beef recipes here

What Can I Do With Sloppy Joe Meat?

If you've got leftover sloppy joe meat there's loads of ways you can use it up. 

• Serve spooned over rice and sprinkled with shredded cheese. 

• Stir through freshly cooked rice for a quick version of dirty rice. 

• Serve spooned over cheesy mash potatoes or stuff into baked potatoes.

• Use the leftover sloppy joe meat to make savory hand-pies.

• Use to top fries and serve as loaded fries with shredded cheese and jalapeño. 

• Stuff into tacos or burritos with beans and salad.

Get more easy ground beef recipes here

How To Store Leftover Sloppy Joe Meat

Cool the meat sauce down quickly and store in an airtight container or freezer bag in the refrigerator or freezer. It will keep for up to 2 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer.

Defrost thoroughly in the refrigerator before reheating.

How To Reheat Sloppy Joes Meat

Tip the ground beef sauce into a saucepan and warm up over a medium heat on the hob. Always make sure it's reheated to a minimum of 170F (75C) and cooked at that temperature for 4-5 minutes.

What To Serve With Sloppy Joes

Sloppy Joes are one of those super easy feel-good family dinners that goes alongside loads of different side dishes. Which is great when you're busy and you just want dinner to be easy!

• French Fries - go for regular or waffle, they're both great!
• Ranch Slaw - there's nothing this doesn't go great with!
• Garden Salad
• Crudités and Dip Platter
• Buttery Corn Cobs
• Potato Chips

More Ground Beef Recipes To Try

When you’re cooking for a family then beef mince makes an appearance as a dinner idea at least once a week so it’s nice to have some different recipes to try instead of the usual spaghetti bolognese… just to keep dinner interesting!

Browse all our meat recipes here

Make your family's mealtimes more interesting with one of our mouthwatering beef mince recipes

You might LOVE our quick chilli con carne with baked beans recipe. 

• Bolognese Pasta Bake - serve up some proper comfort food with this wholesome, delicious and filling pasta bake that the whole family will just LOVE!

• Beef Mince Curry - throw together a quick curry with this super easy minced beef recipe. Serve with fluffy rice and naan breads.

• Minced Beef Pie - use the slow cooker to make this delicious pie filling and then finish in the oven with a shop bought puff pastry crust. Totally delicious with a side of mustard mash and proper onion gravy.

Need Some Family Meal Ideas?

Check out our meal planning here – it’s filled with recipes, meal planning tips and pre-filled printable meal plans weekly or seasonally. We’ve got hundreds of the BEST family recipes and Family Recipes your whole family will LOVE!

Get more really delicious easy minced beef recipes here

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