I stole this recipe for Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes from a cookbook called Valerie’s Home Cooking. This sandwich gets most of its flavor by cooking low and slow in the slow cooker. Ground beef is cooked in a skillet with green pepper, celery, onion and garlic. The meat mixture is drained and added to a slow cooker. A sauce is made with tomato sauce, lemon lime soda, ketchup, mustard, cumin, Worcestershire, salt, oregano, black pepper and apple cider vinegar. Whisked sauce ingredients are poured over the meat mixture. After stirring everything together, the meat and sauce cook for several hours. To serve this yummy sandwich, tender saucy meat is spooned on hamburger buns. This homemade version of a Sloppy Joe will beat any canned version you’ve had.
Did you know? A Sloppy Joe is a sandwich composed of a split hamburger bun topped with a mixture of cooked ground beef, onions, green peppers and spicy tomato sauce. The name is related to its appearance and the fact that it’s messy to eat.¹ (see more trivia in the Trivia tab)
Heat 1 tbsp canola oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 2 ½ lbs ground sirloin and cook, stirring to crumble, until browned, about 8 minutes.
Stir in ¾ cup chopped green bell pepper, ½ cup chopped celery, 1 small chopped onion and 1 tbsp chopped garlic.
Cook, stirring occasionally until the onion is translucent, about 6 minutes. Drain well. Transfer to a 5 quart slow cooker.
In a bowl, add in 1 cup tomato sauce, ½ cup lemon lime soda, ½ cup ketchup, 2 tbsp yellow mustard, 1 tbsp ground cumin, 1 tbsp Worcestershire, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp dried oregano, ½ tsp black pepper and 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar.
Whisk together sauce ingredients and pour over meat mixture.
Stir meat and sauce together. Cover and cook on HIGH until slightly thickened, about 4 hours or on LOW about 8 hours.
Stir in an additional 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar. Serve on hamburger buns.
Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes
This sandwich gets most of its flavor by cooking low and slow in the slow cooker. Ground beef is cooked in a skillet with green pepper, celery, onion and garlic. The meat mixture is drained and added to a slow cooker. A sauce is made with tomato sauce, lemon lime soda, ketchup, mustard, cumin, Worcestershire, salt, oregano, black pepper and apple cider vinegar. Whisked sauce ingredients are poured over the meat mixture. After stirring everything together, the meat and sauce cook for several hours. To serve this yummy sandwich, tender saucy meat is spooned on hamburger buns. This homemade version of a Sloppy Joe will beat any canned version you’ve had.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 2 ½ lbs ground sirloin
- ¾ cup chopped green bell pepper
- ½ cup chopped celery
- 1 small onion chopped
- 1 tbsp chopped garlic
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- ½ cup lemon lime soda
- ½ cup ketchup
- 2 tbsp yellow mustard
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 8 Hamburger buns
Instructions
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Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook, stirring to crumble, until browned, about 8 minutes. Stir in bell pepper, celery, onion and garlic; cook, stirring occasionally until the onion is translucent, about 6 minutes. Drain well.
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Transfer to a 5 quart slow cooker. Stir in tomato sauce, soda, ketchup, mustard, cumin, Worcestershire, salt, oregano, black pepper and 2 tbsp vinegar. Cover and cook on HIGH until slightly thickened, about 4 hours or on LOW about 8 hours. Stir in remaining 1 tbsp vinegar. Serve on hamburger buns.
Recipe Notes
I used more than 1 cup of tomato sauce. The can I purchased had about 1 ½ cups in it and halfway through cooking I added the extra ½ cup to keep the meat from drying out. You can substitute Italian seasoning for the oregano, if you don’t want the stronger oregano flavor. Mix the sauce ingredients together in a bowl first, and then pour over the meat mixture.