Forget the canned stuff, you can make your own sloppy joe sauce at home in minutes. This homemade sauce recipe transforms regular ground beef into the much loved classic comfort food. My easy to follow recipe is full of flavor and a great balance of savory and sweet.

 

Making the perfect sloppy joe sauce is all about combining the right ingredients to achieve that nostalgic flavor. Tomato sauce, brown sugar, and Worcestershire sauce makes the perfect base for this sauce.

I will share some tips and variations to help you customize your perfect sauce. If you like your sloppy joe sauce more smoky, sweet, or spicy, keep scrolling to learn how to easily adjust the ingredients.

Why you’ll love this recipe

• Simple: This is a fast recipe to make which is perfect for a quick weeknight meal. You can make your sloppy joes in about 30 minutes.
• Taste: This amazing sauce tastes delicious, especially since it’s made without all of the preservatives and additives you might find in the canned sauce.
• Customizable: Have a picky eater or want to try something a little different than the standard sauce? You can make this sauce your own with some simple variations.
• Versatility: The sauce can be used for more than just a sandwich. Try drizzling on shredded chicken, shredded pork, for taco meat, or on a baked potato.

Sloppy Joe sauce ingredients

Sauce ingredients

• Tomato sauce – Use a can of your favorite tomato sauce.
• Ketchup – Ketchup adds a layer of sweet tomato flavor.
• Light brown sugar – Adds a hint of sweetness to the sauce. You can adjust the amount to taste.
• Worcestershire sauce – This adds some extra rich, beefy flavor.
• Ground mustard – I like using ground mustard. You can substitute with 1 tablespoon of yellow mustard.
• Garlic powder, Chili powder, Salt and Ground Black Pepper – You could also substitute with this Sloppy Joe Seasoning Mix

Sandwich ingredients

• Ground beef– I like using an 85/15 ground beef for a little extra flavor. You can use a 90/10 if you prefer leaner meat.
• Onion – Diced white onion. Make sure to dice small.
• Bell pepper – This is an option ingredient. You can use green pepper or red bell pepper.

Step one: Add tomato sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, garlic powder, ground mustard, salt, and pepper into a bowl.

Step two: Whisk to completely combine.

Step three: To make the meat, place ground beef in a large skillet. Break it up while cooking over medium heat. Once it starts to brown, drain off any excess grease and stir in diced onion and diced bell pepper. Stir another 2-3 minutes and then pour in the sloppy joe sauce.

Step four: Simmer the sauce for at least 5-10 minutes before serving.

How long to simmer sloppy joe sauce?

The amount of time you simmer sloppy joe sauce depends on your taste preference. I recommend simmering on low heat for at least 5-10 minutes before serving. If you really would like to develop the flavors, simmer for 20-30 minutes.

Variations

This recipes is very forgiving and you can adjust the ingredient according to your taste.

Smoky – If you would like your sauce a little more smokey, try adding a drop of liquid smoke to the sauce or another teaspoon of chili powder.

Sweet – Want a sweeter sauce? Add another tablespoon of brown sugar to the sauce. You can also leave out the brown sugar if you prefer a totally savory sauce.

Spicy – Try adding 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, or 1/2 teaspoon of hot sauce to the sauce mixture.

Heather’s recipe tips

• If you are making this into a sandwich I recommend toasting the hamburger buns. It helps to hold the meat.
• You can substitute ground beef with ground bison, ground turkey, or ground chicken.
• For a little extra spice, mix in a can of diced green chilis to the meat mixture.
• You can keep the meat warm in a slow cooker by placing the cooked ground beef and the sauce in a crockpot and set to warm. Perfect for a party!

Sloppy Joe sauce serving suggestions

There are so many ways to serve sloppy joe meat. Of course serving it on a hamburger bun is the classic way to enjoy this meat but it works well with many other dishes like:

• Using it for taco meat.
• On a piece of Texas toast.
• Serving it on top of a baked potato or sweet potato.
• On loaded french fries.
• On a grilled cheese sandwich.
• On top of macaroni and cheese.
• Serve it on top of a hot dog.

If you are looking for some great side dishes, check out this list of 31 sides for sloppy joes.

Common questions

More easy ground beef recipes

• Ground beef totchos
• Homemade ground beef seasonings
• Ground beef alfredo pasta
• Cheesy ground beef and rice casserole