Sloppy Joe Sauce Recipe (2024)

There’s nothing better than a hearty and Homemade Sloppy Joe Sauce that is sweet, savory and delicious!

This easy recipe combines simple ingredients with hearty ground beef for a delicious combination that is perfect served on top toasted buns or bread. It’s an easy recipe to whip up, and with all that tangy sauce, it disappears as quickly as it was made! It also can be added to casseroles or noodles for a hearty and filling meal.

Sloppy Joe Sauce Recipe (1)

Sloppy Joe Sauce

  • Making a homemade sloppy joe sauce is almost as easy as opening a can of ready-made, but so much more rich and flavorful!
  • Less messy and kid-friendly ‘sloppy joey’s’ can be made by scooping out the center of a dinner roll and filling it with sauce.
  • Sloppy Joes are so versatile and can be added to other recipes. Create a cheesy casserole, try sloppy joe spaghetti or even baked sloppy joe tacos!

Sloppy Joe Sauce Recipe (2)

Ingredients & Variations

SAUCE: Sloppy joe sauce is simple to make. It has a tangy tomato-based sauce made with tomato sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and some cider vinegar for some zest. Add some bbq or hot sauce, or experiment with different kinds of mustard to create your own signature brand!

MEAT: Ground beef is best for this sloppy joe’s recipe. But the sauce is also delicious combined with leftover meat and chopped veggies! Try cooked lentils, black beans, or cauliflower rice for a vegetarian version, if desired.

How to Make Sloppy Joes

  1. Prepare sauce ingredients.
  2. Scramble fry ground beef.
  3. Add sauce ingredients with water and simmer until thickened.

PRO TIP: For a thicker sauce, just simmer a little bit longer. Serve over toasted buns.

Sloppy Joe Sauce Recipe (3)

How to Serve Sloppy Joes

Unlike hamburgers, these hearty sammies don’t need condiments, but toppings are welcome! Offer small bowls of sliced jalapenos, shredded cheese, coleslaw, or French-fried onions! A squeeze of mustard is a zesty way to top this ‘bunwich’.

Serving a crowd? Cook up a large batch and keep warm in the slow cooker so guests can serve themselves! And don’t forget the toasted buns! Choose sturdy buns like kaiser rolls, onion rolls, or ciabatta bread.

Sloppy Joe’s are a tasty main dish that will go well with a side of creamy potato salad or some air fryer frozen fries. Or use it as a condiment itself for omelettes, tacos, burritos, chilli dogs, or nachos!

Best Shortcut Tip

Cook Sloppy Joe Sauce and keep it in the refrigerator for 4-5 days, perfect for a quick dinner or lunch all week.

To freeze, store in containers or in zipper bags, for 4-6 months. Freeze sauce in individual sized, or family sized, freezer bags then pop out and reheat for a quick dinner. Or use the sauce in other tasty recipes like .

Thaw meat sauce in the refrigerator and reheat over low heat on the stove, or covered with foil in the oven.

Sloppy Joe Sauce Recipe (4)

Easy Meals With Ground Beef!

  • Cheeseburger Casserole – easy and delicious
  • Cheesy Ground Beef Pasta – ready in 30 minutes!
  • Ground Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry – skillet recipe
  • Creamy Beef Mushroom Stroganoff recipe – a favorite
  • Texas Toast Sloppy Joes – served all at once

Sloppy Joe Sauce Recipe (5)

4.98 from 43 votes↑ Click stars to rate now!
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Homemade Sloppy Joe Sauce

These Sloppy Joes are the best! With it's tangy, bbq flavor, this hearty meat sauce is perfect served over toasted buns and makes a quick, easy and delish dinner.

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Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Equipment

Ingredients

Sloppy Joe Sauce

  • ¾ cup tomato sauce
  • ¾ cup ketchup
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
  • 1 ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • cup water

For Serving

Instructions

  • Whisk all sauce ingredients (except ground beef and water) in a bowl. Set aside.

  • Cook ground beef in a medium skillet until no pink remains.

  • Add the sauce and water, then simmer 5-7 minutes or until it reaches desired thickness.

  • Spoon meat mixture over the toasted buns and serve.

Notes

  • Refrigerate leftovers for 4-5 days. Freeze in covered containers or individual sized, or family sized, freezer bags for 4-6 months.
  • Thaw sloppy joe sauce in the refrigerator, then reheat over low heat on the stove, or covered with foil in the oven.

4.98 from 43 votes↑ Click stars to rate now!
Or to leave a comment, click here!

Nutrition Information

Calories: 360kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 70mg | Sodium: 1251mg | Potassium: 743mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 433IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 97mg | Iron: 5mg

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Course dinner, Main Course

Cuisine American

©The Shortcut Kitchen. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.

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Sloppy Joe Sauce Recipe (7)

Sloppy Joe Sauce Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the Sloppy Joe sauce made of? ›

What is the sloppy joe sauce made of? It's made with ketchup, brown sugar, tomato paste, Worcestershire, chili powder, garlic, dry mustard, and a little Tobasco (if you want). That sauce coats the ground beef, onion, and bell pepper to make the filling.

What's the recipe for Sloppy Joe's? ›

Add olive oil to a large skillet or dutch oven and place over medium heat. Add onion and green pepper and garlic and saute for a few minutes. Next, add ground beef and cook, breaking up meat as it cooks. Once the meat has browned, add ketchup, mustard, brown sugar, tobasco sauce, black pepper and waater, and stir.

What can I add to sloppy joes to make them taste better? ›

Keep reading to discover all of the ingredients that will take your Sloppy Joe sauce to the next level.
  1. Salsa brings a spicy twist. ...
  2. Try gochujang for Korean-inspired Sloppy Joes. ...
  3. Experiment with Worcestershire sauce. ...
  4. Red pepper flakes bring the heat. ...
  5. Miso provides the umami your Sloppy Joe sauce is missing.
Feb 19, 2024

Should you drain meat before adding Sloppy Joe sauce? ›

Do you drain the meat for sloppy joes? We suggest draining the browned beef, because excess grease serves as a barrier to sloppy joe seasonings. You'll want the beef to absorb these wonderful flavors as it cooks.

What are the ingredients in Del Monte Sloppy Joe sauce? ›

Tomato Puree (Water, Tomato Paste), High Fructose Corn Syrup, Distilled Vinegar, Green and Red Bell Peppers, Salt, Modified Food Starch (Corn), Worcestershire Sauce Concentrate (Distilled Vinegar, Corn Syrup, Water, Salt, Garlic Powder, Spices, Tamarind, Natural Flavor), Spices, Dehydrated Onions, Garlic Powder, ...

How do you make sloppy joes thicker? ›

  1. Flour can be used similar to corn starch.
  2. Other thickeners used are bread crumbs, potato flakes and oats. ...
  3. Go gradually with these. ...
  4. Use oats to thicken sloppy-joes as to absorb the excess but it will be thicker the next day.
  5. Barley can be used but is more expensive.
Oct 29, 2021

What's the difference between a Sloppy Joe and a sloppy Jane? ›

A Sloppy Jane is a Sloppy Joe made with ground turkey instead of ground beef.

What exactly is a Sloppy Joe? ›

At its core, the Sloppy Joe consists of three basic elements — ground beef, tossed with a sweet, tomato-rich sauce (made with ketchup, chili sauce, or actual tomato sauce), and piled on a squishy white bun.

What is the fancy name for sloppy joes? ›

Manwich, slush burger, yum yums, dynamite, spoonburgers, tavern sandwich; a Sloppy Joe can be called by many other names. The most well-known however is Manwich.

What goes good on sloppy joes? ›

Toppings, Sauces & Salsas
  • Caramelized Mushrooms. Caramelized mushrooms are so sweet and tender, and they add the perfect burst of flavor to a Sloppy Joe by complementing meaty flavors and adding in extra protein! ...
  • Roasted Corn Salsa. ...
  • Edamame Guacamole (High Protein) ...
  • Garlic Sauce.
Oct 27, 2023

What is a good side for Sloppy Joe? ›

French Fries: Crispy, golden french fries are a classic and popular choice to serve with Sloppy Joes. Onion Rings: Onion rings provide a crunchy and savory complement to the saucy Sloppy Joes. Cole Slaw: Creamy coleslaw offers a refreshing and slightly tangy contrast to the rich flavors of Sloppy Joes.

What do you top sloppy joes with? ›

Garnish with shredded lettuce, chopped tomato, shredded pepper-Jack cheese, chopped avocado, pickled or fresh jalapeño slices and chopped cilantro, if desired.

Why is sloppy joe so sloppy? ›

One of them starts in Havana, Cuba. There, a man named José García served a sandwich based on a Cuban dish called ropa vieja. García also sold iced seafood in his restaurant, and the floor was often wet from melted ice. This led some customers to tease García for having a “sloppy” restaurant.

How long will sloppy joes last in fridge? ›

Leftovers. Let the sloppy joes cool down fully before transferring to an airtight container and storing in the fridge. Leftovers will last 3-4 days. You can reheat either in the microwave, or using the stovetop.

Do you cook the meat before the sauce? ›

It is usually better to cook the ground beef first, then add the sauce. To that end you can use the same pan. Just brown the beef until it is, well, brown.

Is sloppy joe and Manwich the same thing? ›

Manwich, a portmanteau of man and sandwich, is the brand name of a canned sloppy joe sauce produced by ConAgra Foods and Hunt's, introduced in 1969. The can contains seasoned tomato sauce that is added to ground beef cooked in a skillet.

What does sloppy joe sauce taste like? ›

Once you've gathered the ingredients, it's basically like making Bolognese. And the flavour is somewhat reminiscent of it too, except Sloppy Joes taste a bit more like BBQ Sauce. The one big difference is that the sauce is cooked right down so it's really thick and not saucy at all.

What exactly is a sloppy joe? ›

At its core, the Sloppy Joe consists of three basic elements — ground beef, tossed with a sweet, tomato-rich sauce (made with ketchup, chili sauce, or actual tomato sauce), and piled on a squishy white bun.

What's the difference between Sloppy Joes and Sloppy Jane? ›

Unlike traditional can Sloppy Joes, which are often loaded with unhealthy additives and preservatives, Sloppy Janes are made with lean meat, low-fat ingredients, and a variety of fresh vegetables. They are easy to make and require only a few simple ingredients.

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