Looking for a healthier Sloppy Joe recipe? This is the best Sloppy Joe Recipe without ketchup. Most traditional sloppy joes are loaded with extra sugar (found in the ketchup as well as the added sugar). This recipe has all the flavor of traditional recipes including a touch of sweetness without lots of sugar.
If you use cans of sloppy joe mix found in your local grocery store you might be surprised at the amount of added sugar in the sauce. It often is added in several forms including corn syrup, sugar, molasses and high fructose corn syrup.
Take control of what your family eats by making your own homemade sloppy joes. It’s so easy to do!
Best Sloppy Joe Recipe Without Ketchup
Instead of ketchup this recipe uses a combination of tomato sauce and tomato paste to make the sauce. Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard add to the savory flavor. A bit of brown sugar adds a touch of sweetness without loading the sauce up with an excessive amount of sugar making these healthy sloppy joes.
Ingredients for Sloppy Joes without ketchup:
Here’s what you’ll need for this recipe.
- Olive oil – use olive oil or your favorite light or neutral flavor oil such as canola oil or vegetable oil.
- Onion – you’ll need a medium white onion or yellow onion
- Green Bell Pepper – use a medium sized green pepper. You can also swap this out for a red bell pepper if you prefer.
- Garlic cloves – use fresh garlic cloves or jarred minced garlic. Don’t have fresh garlic? You can swap it out for 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder for each clove of garlic called for in a recipe.
- Ground Beef – use 80/20 or 85/15 ground beef for this recipe. While beef is traditionally used for sloppy joes you can swap it out for another ground meat such as ground turkey or ground chicken.
- Tomato Sauce – this is used in place of ketchup.
- Tomato Paste – adding some tomato paste helps to thicken up the sauce.
- Worcestershire Sauce – adds a delicious savory flavor to the sauce. No Worcestershire sauce? Use soy sauce instead.
- Dijon Mustard – adds a bit of tangy flavor to the sauce. No Dijon? Swap it out for yellow mustard.
- Chili Garlic Sauce – this is optional. Chili garlic sauce adds a boost of flavor as well as a bit of heat to this recipe. You can add this to your own personal taste.
- Brown Sugar – the sauce for this recipe is traditionally a sweet tomato based sauce. The sweetness is a combination of ketchup as well as other sweeteners such as granulated sugar, molasses, corn syrup and more. For this recipe I like to use a bit of brown sugar to add sweetness without loading up the recipe with a lot of extra sugar.
- Salt and Black Pepper – a bit of each helps to add flavor.
- Hamburger Buns – serve your sloppy joe meat mixture over toasted hamburger buns or your favorite buns or rolls.
- Butter – this is used to make toasted buns.
How to make this Sloppy Joe recipe without ketchup:
Heat the olive oil in a large, high-sided skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, minced garlic, and green bell pepper. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste, and stir to combine. Sauté for 4-5 minutes, or until the vegetables soften and start to develop some color.
Add the ground beef and break into small pieces with a spatula. Cook until the meat is thoroughly browned, approximately 5-6 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully drain any excess fat from the skillet.
Return the browned beef to skillet. Add in the tomato sauce, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, mustard, and chili garlic sauce if using. Stir thoroughly to combine. Simmer, uncovered, until heated through, approximately 5-10 minutes.
While the meat simmers, place the top oven rack in the second from highest position and pre-heat the oven broiler to high. Open the hamburger buns and arrange on a large, rimmed baking sheet. Brush each surface with the melted butter and place the baking sheet under the broiler for several minutes, rotating once halfway through, or until the buns are golden brown.
Remove the baking sheet from the oven and spoon some of the warm meat sauce onto the bottom portion of each bun. Cover and serve immediately with your choice of sides. Enjoy!
How to store leftover Sloppy Joes:
Refrigerate any leftover sloppy joe mixture in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days.
Can this Sloppy Joe recipe be frozen?
Yes it sure can!
Looking to make an easy freezer meal? Double or triple the recipe. Divide the sloppy joe meat mixture into freezer containers and store in the freezer for up to 6 months. When you want a quick meal simply thaw and heat up the mixture and serve over your favorite rolls.
Can this be made keto or low carb?
Yes it can!
Start by swapping out the brown sugar for your favorite no calorie or keto friendly sweetener.
Spoon this over your favorite keto rolls or toasted bread. You can also top cauliflower rice or even cauliflower mashed potatoes to make a delicious bowl meal.
Can this be made in a slow cooker?
You can easily make this recipe in a slow cooker. You’ll want to cook the ground beef first before adding the other ingredients. The reason for this is to allow you to drain off the fat so the finished mixture isn’t greasy.
Cook the meat, breaking it up while it cooks, in the slow cooker on high for 2 to 3 hours. Once the meat has browned, drain off the excess fat. Add in the other ingredients and continue to cook on high for another 1 hour to blend flavors and thicken the sauce.
Serving Suggestions:
Serve these sloppy joes with some of your favorite side dishes. Try some of these:
Pickles
Coleslaw
French fries or onion rings
Potato Chips
Corn on the cob
Salad – try pasta salad, potato salad or your favorite green salad
Instead of serving this over toasted buns try serving it over rice or even mashed potatoes.
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Best Sloppy Joe Recipe Without Ketchup
Equipment
- Large skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium Onions diced
- 1 medium Green Bell Pepper cored and diced
- 3-4 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
- 15 ounces Tomato Sauce
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
- 1 tablespoon Chili Garlic Sauce optional
- 6 Hamburger Buns
- 2 tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large, high-sided skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, minced garlic, and green bell pepper. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste, and stir to combine. Sauté for 4-5 minutes, or until the vegetables soften and start to develop some color.1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 medium Onions, 1 medium Green Bell Pepper, 3-4 cloves Garlic
- Add the ground beef and break into small pieces with a spatula. Cook until the meat is thoroughly browned, approximately 5-6 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully drain any excess fat from the skillet.1 1/2 pounds ground beef
- Return the browned beef to skillet. Add in the tomato sauce, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, Dijon mustard, and chili garlic sauce if using. Stir thoroughly to combine. Simmer, uncovered, until heated through, approximately 5-10 minutes.15 ounces Tomato Sauce, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard, 1 tablespoon Chili Garlic Sauce
- While the meat simmers, place the top oven rack in the second from highest position and pre-heat the oven broiler to high. Open the hamburger buns and arrange on a large, rimmed baking sheet. Brush each surface with the melted butter and place the baking sheet under the broiler for several minutes, rotating once halfway through, or until the buns are golden brown.6 Hamburger Buns, 2 tablespoons butter
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and spoon some of the warm meat sauce onto the bottom portion of each bun. Cover and serve immediately with your choice of sides. Enjoy!
Nutrition
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