The Best Sloppy Joe Recipe
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Servings: 6
This Sloppy Joe recipe is the ultimate comfort food! A café favourite for years, it’s packed with savoury, smoky, and slightly sweet flavours, making it perfect for a hearty breakfast or brunch or even a main meal. Serve it on toasted bread with cheese, a fried egg, and fresh spinach for the best experience.
Ingredients
Sloppy Joe Mixture
- 2 tablespoons 30ml olive oil (enough to cover the base of your pot)
- 2 large onions roughly chopped
- 500 g beef mince
- 500 g pork mince or use all beef mince – 1kg- if you prefer
- 2 tablespoons 30ml tomato paste
- 2/3 cup 160ml BBQ sauce (ordinary or smoky)
- ½ cup 125ml tomato sauce (ketchup)
- ¼ cup 60ml Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup 60ml soy sauce
- Freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup 80ml boiling water (optional)
For Serving (Suggested)
- Good-quality bread
- Butter
- Fresh spinach optional
- Cheddar cheese
- Fried eggs
Instructions
- Place a large, heavy pot on the stove and warm up just enough olive oil to cover the base.
- Once the oil is warm, add the 2 roughly chopped onions. Reduce the heat to low and sauté for about 10 minutes, or until the onions are completely soft and translucent. Cooking everything slowly really enhances the flavour of this Sloppy Joe.
- Next, add the beef mince and cook it slowly, breaking it up as it cooks, until there’s no pink left.
- Stir in the tomato paste and let it cook for a couple of minutes. This helps eliminate any metallic taste from the tomato paste.
- Now it’s time for the sauces! Add:
- BBQ Sauce
- Tomato Sauce
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Soy Sauce
- Add freshly cracked black pepper to taste. I like a good teaspoon of pepper.
- Stir everything well, bring it to a boil, and then reduce the heat to a simmer for about 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. This allows all the flavours to meld beautifully.
Serving
- Toast some nice bread
- Top with some fresh spinach if liked
- Top with some sliced cheddar cheese
- Spoon over a good-sized ladle of the sloppy joe
- Top with one or two fried eggs
Video
Notes
If you like your Sloppy Joe nice and sloppy, add about 1/3 to 1/2 cup (80 - 125ml) of boiling water at the end, cooking for just a couple more minutes. If your meat was particularly fatty, you might notice an oil slick on top—just skim that off with a ladle.