Sloppy Joes have been around since at least 1940 when it was mentioned in an Ohio restaurant ad. Others claim it was created in an Iowa café in 1930 by a cook named Joe. Manwich sloppy joe sauce and various dry mixes began appearing in markets in the 60s, making it an easy and popular family meal for busy home cooks.
Sloppy Joes are typically made with ground beef, onions, peppers, and ketchup, all cooked in a skillet and served on hamburger buns. The sandwich is likely referred to as “sloppy” because of its messy appearance and loose meat sauce. To eat these sloppy sandwiches, you’ll need a knife and fork.
Serve sloppy joes with French fries or potato chips. Or serve them with a side salad or cup of soup.
How To Make Sloppy Joes
- Break the ground beef up and brown it in a skillet over medium heat, undisturbed, for about 4 minutes before you add the chopped onion, then continue to cook for another 5 minutes or so until the onions are softened and the beef is browned and no longer pink.
- Stir the flour into the beef mixture until absorbed and continue cooking and stirring for 2 minutes. This helps eliminate any flour taste.
- Add the Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, and water, then cover the pan, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes, until the sauce is thickened.
- Taste the mixture at this point and add salt and pepper, to taste.
- While the sauce is cooking, butter the buns lightly and toast them on a griddle or under the broiler.
- Serve the sloppy joe sauce in the split toasted buns.
Variation Ideas
- Keep sloppy joes light by serving them open-face, skipping the other half of the bun.
- Omit the onions if you aren’t a fan, or add green peppers or mushrooms in their place.
- Instead of ground beef, make the sandwiches with ground turkey—preferably thigh meat—or ground pork or sausage meat.
- Top open-face sloppy joe sandwiches with sliced or shredded cheese and broil to melt the cheese.
- The sandwiches are an excellent choice for parties and get-togethers. It’s easy to scale the recipe up for a crowd.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
- Refrigerate leftover sloppy joe sauce in a shallow covered container within 2 hours and eat within 4 days.
- To freeze leftover sloppy joe sauce, transfer the fully cooled sauce to freezer containers or freezer bags. Label the containers with the name and date and freeze for up to 4 months.
- Reheat leftovers in a skillet with a small amount of water. Or heat in a foil-covered baking dish in a 350 F oven until hot, or in the microwave, stirring several times to ensure the sauce is evenly heated. The USDA advises a minimum safe temperature of 165 F for leftovers.
Sloppy Joe Sandwiches Recipe
When it comes to quick, easy, and tasty family meals, sloppy joe sandwiches have long been a favorite. Make these easy sloppy joes for your family or scale the recipe up for a crowd!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Sandwiches, Easy Meals
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef (85/15 is best)
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- Dash ground black pepper, or to taste
- 4 split toasted sandwich rolls
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef and break it up into smaller pieces. Let it cook, undisturbed, for 4 minutes. Add the onions and continue cooking, stirring often, for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the onions are translucent and the ground beef is completely cooked and no longer pink.
- Stir the flour into the beef mixture until absorbed into the fat and continue to cook for 2 minutes.
- Add the Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, and water to the mixture. Cover and reduce the heat to low; cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until thickened. Taste and add salt and pepper, as needed.
- Serve the sloppy joe sauce in the toasted sandwich rolls.
