Elevated Sloppy Joes Recipe: You're 30 Minutes Away From Sandwich Night Sandwiches Dinner Beef

Cook outside the box and ditch all the weird ingredients found in those sloppy joe cans at the store. Homemade sloppy joes are incredibly easy to make and come together in one skillet in less than 30 minutes. So easy and so delicious! 

Browned beef is mixed with onion and green peppers then simmered in a sweetened tomato sauce. The secret is in finding just the right seasoning for the sauce. I'd be willing to bet this is the best sloppy joe recipe you will ever taste.

Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

• 2 pounds ground beef
• 6 sweet hoagie buns
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (divided) 
• 1 green bell pepper, ribs removed and small diced
• 1 large yellow onion, diced small
• 10 cherry tomatoes
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2/3 cup prepared ketchup
• 1/3 cup beef stock or chicken stock
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Here's how to make it:

1. Heat half the butter in a large skillet, preferably a cast-iron skillet, over medium-high heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook until onions are translucent and the bell peppers are blistered. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds or so, until fragrant.
2. Add beef, seasoned with salt and pepper, and brown, breaking apart into crumbles as it cooks, about 5 minutes. Drain the fat. Add tomato, tomato paste, ketchup, stock, brown sugar, mustard, chili powder, Worcestershire, salt, chili powder and black pepper. Stir well to combine.
3. Cook over medium-low heat for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until mixture has thickened. Remove from the pan and place in an ovenproof container with a lid. Cover to keep warm.
4. Wipe the pan out with a paper towel. Return to medium-high heat. Butter the inside of the hoagie rolls and place buttered side down inside the hot skillet. Heat until the buns are brown and crunchy toasted on the inside. You might need to press them down to make contact with the heat. Be careful not to smash.
5. Place each bun facing up on a warm plate and smoother with sloppy joe meat sauce. 

Note: Toasting the bun makes all the difference and only takes a few minutes. I don't make them until right before serving so they stay soft on the outside and crunchy on the inside.

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