This recipe for homemade sloppy joes is an easy one-pan dinner and the perfect healthy comfort food. Made with ground beef and a rich, flavorful tomato sauce, our healthy sloppy joes are a kid-friendly meal that the adults will love too.
These homemade sloppy joes are a classic childhood comfort food recipe made with healthier ingredients for an easy one-pan dinner. We took this classic dinner recipe and made it into a weeknight staple by using simple ingredients to create a flavorful, 30-minute meal that kids and adults will enjoy!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- One Pan Meal
- Kid-Friendly
- Healthy Comfort Food
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Ground Beef - Traditional sloppy joes are made with ground beef, but you can also use ground venison or ground turkey.
- Tomatoes - Tomato paste and tomato sauce create the classic flavors and sauce of traditional sloppy joes.
- Honey - Honey gives the tomato sauce a slightly sweet flavor. You can use cane sugar as a substitute.
- Mustard - This recipe calls for yellow mustard, but you can also use Dijon mustard.
- Worcestershire Sauce - Worcestershire Sauce adds a savory flavor.
- Onion - Diced sweet onion adds flavor and texture to the dish.
- Spices - Minced garlic, chili powder and salt all add flavor to the dish.
Complete list of ingredients and amounts is located on the recipe card below.
Kitchen Tools & Equipment
- Cast Iron Skillet - A cast iron skillet is the perfect dish to make the sloppy joes in.
- Meat Masher - A meat masher helps separate the meat as it cooks.
How to Make Homemade Sloppy Joes
Step 1. Add the ground beef, onion and garlic to the skillet.
Step 2. Brown the beef.
Step 3. Add the tomato paste to the skillet.
Step 4. Stir the tomato paste into the beef.
Step 5. Add the remaining ingredients to the skillet.
Step 6. Stir to combine and bring to a slight boil before serving.
Recipe Serving Suggestions
This recipe makes about 6 servings of sloppy joe meat. We love to serve the meat on buns or rolls for a traditional sloppy joe dinner. You can also serve the meat on top of potatoes or tater tots.
If you like this healthy comfort food recipe, you will love our other easy dinners.
Expert Tips & Variations
- Meal prep sloppy joes - We love to make this recipe at the beginning of the week as a meal prep recipe for easy lunches or dinners.
- Add some heat - Spice the recipe up by adding hot sauce to the sloppy joe meat when cooking.
How to Store Sloppy Joes
- Refrigerator - store the sloppy joe meat in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days
- Freezer - in an airtight container for up to 3 months
Recipe FAQ
The sloppy joe meat is already gluten-free and can be served on gluten-free buns.
More Dinner Recipes
Homemade Sloppy Joes
This recipe for homemade sloppy joes is an easy one-pan dinner and the perfect healthy comfort food. Made with ground beef and a rich, flavorful tomato sauce, our healthy sloppy joes are a kid-friendly meal that the adults will love too.
Ingredients
- 1lb ground beef
- ¼ cup diced yellow onion
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1-15oz can tomato sauce
- 1-6oz can tomato paste
- 1 Tablespoons honey
- 1 Tablespoon yellow mustard
- 3 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Place a skillet or pan on a burner turned to medium.
- Add the ground beef, diced onion and minced garlic to the skillet and cook until the beef is browned.
- Drain any excess oil from the skillet.
- Add the tomato paste to the skillet and stir to combine with the beef.
- Pour the tomato sauce, honey, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder and salt into the skillet.
- Use a spatula to mix everything together and allow the mixture to cook until it comes to a slight boil.
- When it comes to a boil, turn the burner off and remove the meat from the heat.
- Allow the meat to cool slightly before serving.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 274Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 67mgSodium: 750mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 3gSugar: 10gProtein: 23g
[…] Grilled Sloppy Joes by Ally from Tjoelker Family Farm […]