5 Amazing Sloppy Joe Variations For You to Try
One of my favorite busy weeknight meals has to be sloppy joes. They are what I think of of a quintessential American meal--hearty, meaty and cheesy. They are easy to throw together and everyone in the family loves them.
We’re getting into my husband’s favorite time of year, and no, it’s not because of the pumpkin spice lattes or the crunchy leaves--it’s football season, baby! Our home is now filled with the lovely sounds of almost 40 year old men yelling at players on the tv every weekend--yay! ;)
One thing that gets me through are the snacks though. There’s no denying that you can at least have some fun with snacking to get you through sporting events you couldn’t care less about! We haven’t been to an actual college football games for several years, so we haven’t really done real tailgating, but we like to partake in what we call “homegating”--which is just what it sounds--”tailgaiting” at home by whipping up all the delicious sides , dips, drinks and appetizers you can dream of end enjoying on your couch in high definition instead of on cold stadium benches!
I think sloppy joes are a perfect tailgating meal, and recently I came across a recipe from The Pioneer Woman for “buffalo chicken sloppy joes” and my mind was blown! I don’t know why it never occured to me that there could be other versions of sloppy joes but it is so brilliant! I immediately had to check out what other ideas people had for non-traditional sloppy joe recipes and I wanted to share those awesome ideas with you today. There are some great ones so I hope you’ll give at least on of them a try.
1. Asian Sloppy Joes
For this recipe, it calls for ground chicken but you can also use ground pork, turkey or beef. This “sloppy joe” recipe is so delicious and fresh with Asian flavors like cooking up your meat with flavors like ginger, hoisin, sriracha and soy sauce and topping the sandwich with a coleslaw with green onions, rice wine vinegar and sesame oil.
2. Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes
Here is that idea from The Pioneer Woman and I’m actually going to share at the bottom. It is SO good! You cook up ground chicken with plenty of onions, carrots, and celery to give it lots of depth of flavor. Then you of course add your buffalo sauce and serve it over delicious hamburger buns with plenty of blue cheese crumbles and ranch to dip in.
3. Sloppy Joe with Fried Egg and Avocado
The blogger from Damn Delicious has a version of sloppy joes that she swears by that adds sliced avocado and a fried egg on top. That idea gets two thumbs up from me!
4. Spicy Sloppy Joe with Sriracha and Jalapenos
If you love spicy food, try adding ¼ cup sriracha sauce to your meat mixture and top with pickled jalepenos and melty cheddar cheese. My husband would love this spicy version!
5. Grilled Cheese Sloppy Joes
And finally, we have “grilled cheese sloppy joes”, which is just what the name implies. Grilled cheese are such staple at our house, I just know my family would love mixing it up with adding some sloppy joe meat to the mix! Great way to add in some filling protein to the meal as well.
Have you tried any of these ideas before? Or do you have any other ways you like to make your sloppy joes? And on the weekends, are you more about the snacks or the football or both? I can’t be the only one who is more excited about the jalepeno poppers and mozzarella sticks than the actual watching of the game! I swear half the time I don’t even really look up at the game and the score until half time ha!
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons . kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 pounds . ground chicken
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1/2 cup buffalo sauces
2 tablespoons honey or brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
8 hamburger buns
Crumbled blue cheese, for serving
Ranch dressing, for serving
Blue cheese dressing, for serving
Directions:
Add Recipe to Cook'n
We’re getting into my husband’s favorite time of year, and no, it’s not because of the pumpkin spice lattes or the crunchy leaves--it’s football season, baby! Our home is now filled with the lovely sounds of almost 40 year old men yelling at players on the tv every weekend--yay! ;)
One thing that gets me through are the snacks though. There’s no denying that you can at least have some fun with snacking to get you through sporting events you couldn’t care less about! We haven’t been to an actual college football games for several years, so we haven’t really done real tailgating, but we like to partake in what we call “homegating”--which is just what it sounds--”tailgaiting” at home by whipping up all the delicious sides , dips, drinks and appetizers you can dream of end enjoying on your couch in high definition instead of on cold stadium benches!
I think sloppy joes are a perfect tailgating meal, and recently I came across a recipe from The Pioneer Woman for “buffalo chicken sloppy joes” and my mind was blown! I don’t know why it never occured to me that there could be other versions of sloppy joes but it is so brilliant! I immediately had to check out what other ideas people had for non-traditional sloppy joe recipes and I wanted to share those awesome ideas with you today. There are some great ones so I hope you’ll give at least on of them a try.
1. Asian Sloppy Joes
For this recipe, it calls for ground chicken but you can also use ground pork, turkey or beef. This “sloppy joe” recipe is so delicious and fresh with Asian flavors like cooking up your meat with flavors like ginger, hoisin, sriracha and soy sauce and topping the sandwich with a coleslaw with green onions, rice wine vinegar and sesame oil.
2. Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes
Here is that idea from The Pioneer Woman and I’m actually going to share at the bottom. It is SO good! You cook up ground chicken with plenty of onions, carrots, and celery to give it lots of depth of flavor. Then you of course add your buffalo sauce and serve it over delicious hamburger buns with plenty of blue cheese crumbles and ranch to dip in.
3. Sloppy Joe with Fried Egg and Avocado
The blogger from Damn Delicious has a version of sloppy joes that she swears by that adds sliced avocado and a fried egg on top. That idea gets two thumbs up from me!
4. Spicy Sloppy Joe with Sriracha and Jalapenos
If you love spicy food, try adding ¼ cup sriracha sauce to your meat mixture and top with pickled jalepenos and melty cheddar cheese. My husband would love this spicy version!
5. Grilled Cheese Sloppy Joes
And finally, we have “grilled cheese sloppy joes”, which is just what the name implies. Grilled cheese are such staple at our house, I just know my family would love mixing it up with adding some sloppy joe meat to the mix! Great way to add in some filling protein to the meal as well.
Have you tried any of these ideas before? Or do you have any other ways you like to make your sloppy joes? And on the weekends, are you more about the snacks or the football or both? I can’t be the only one who is more excited about the jalepeno poppers and mozzarella sticks than the actual watching of the game! I swear half the time I don’t even really look up at the game and the score until half time ha!
Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes
Everybody's favorite hot wing in sandwich form! Total Time: 35 min
Prep time:
Cook time:
Serving size: 8
Calories per serving: 237
Ingredients:
Cook time:
Serving size: 8
Calories per serving: 237
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons . kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 pounds . ground chicken
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1/2 cup buffalo sauces
2 tablespoons honey or brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
8 hamburger buns
Crumbled blue cheese, for serving
Ranch dressing, for serving
Blue cheese dressing, for serving
Directions:
Step 1. In a large skillet or Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, salt, and pepper. Cook until the vegetables are softened but not browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add the ground chicken and cook until the meat is crumbly and no longer pink.
Step 2: Add the tomato sauce, buffalo sauce, honey, and Worcestershire, stirring well to combine. Simmer until heated through, tasting for salt.
Step 3: Serve sloppy joe filling hot on hamburger buns with crumbled blue cheese and ranch or blue cheese dressing.
Step 4: Slow cooker reheat instructions: Allow the filling to cool completely before transferring it to an airtight container and storing it in the refrigerator. At least 2 hours before it’s time to eat, place the filling into the crock of a slow cooker and heat on low, stirring occasionally, until hot, 1 to 2 hours.
Source: thepioneerwoman.com
Step 2: Add the tomato sauce, buffalo sauce, honey, and Worcestershire, stirring well to combine. Simmer until heated through, tasting for salt.
Step 3: Serve sloppy joe filling hot on hamburger buns with crumbled blue cheese and ranch or blue cheese dressing.
Step 4: Slow cooker reheat instructions: Allow the filling to cool completely before transferring it to an airtight container and storing it in the refrigerator. At least 2 hours before it’s time to eat, place the filling into the crock of a slow cooker and heat on low, stirring occasionally, until hot, 1 to 2 hours.
Source: thepioneerwoman.com
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
Mary Richardson
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2014
Email the author! mary@dvo.com
