Ok, the entire time I was making this recipe, I was singing Adam Sandler’s Lunch Lady Land. It was inevitable. Sloppy Joes, are the essential school lunch room meal. A big savory sandwich, where messy is key. This dish brought back some closer memories for me. When my sister was little, she used to be a very selective eater. At home, we normally ate Indian food and while growing up, eating American food was a treat. We used to want pizza, pasta, hamburgers and all the foods that we normally saw our peer eating. I remember her coming home one day and asking mom why she didn’t make sloppy joes. At this point, I was really getting into cooking (I was about 12 years old at the time). I liked making a variety of foods (even if it was all canned and store-bought). So, my mother and I went to the grocery store and bought a can of sloppy joe filling and some rolls. I felt grand opening up the can of sloppy joe filling and heating it up. I toasted the rolls and placed the sloppy joe filling on top. Then I watched as my sister devoured the whole thing! She really enjoyed it (I love cooking for my sister!) So, I think I will forever associate this dish with that memory.
Today, I try not to use many prepared/canned foods. The sodium content alone in many of the foods, makes me shudder. After not having this dish in such a long time, I decided to have a go at making this filling. It turned out wonderfully with enough that I was able to freeze some for the future. I made these with some homemade rolls (recipe tomorrow) and my husband and I were set for a feast! I can’t wait to see my sister again and maybe make this recipe for her. Her tastes have refined since she was little but I am sure she would be definitely up for some Sloppy Joes! I love you Sohana!
Ingredients:
1 onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 lbs ground beef
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 1/3 cup Heinz Ketchup (Heinz is Gluten Free according to website)
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon chile powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2/3 cup water
Directions:
- In a large pan, saute onions and brown sugar until onions start to brown.
- Add bell pepper and cook with onions until peppers are softened
- In a separate skillet, brown beef, breaking it up as best as possible.
- Drain grease from beef and add beef to onions and peppers mixture
- Add remaining ingredients and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Serve with Homemade Rolls.
Gluten Sensitivity: Serve with Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls, Cornbread (made with rice flour instead of all-purpose flour) or over rice.
Yum!
🙂
Love you too!! Can’t wait to try it!!
I love you too darling 🙂
My son loves sloppy joes… sloppier the better! and for me, I’m been seeking out gluten free lately, so this is perfect!
I am so happy to be able to help with your search 🙂 I have found that the hardest part of gluten free cooking, is thinking you can’t make the foods you normally like. Many recipes, are naturally gluten free or just a little bit of research can show you a lot of good substitutes (ex: cornbread recipe you can substitute rice flour – can be found in Indian stores). I hope you get a chance to glance at my Gluten Free Cooking page and it helps you out. Happy Cooking and thank you for visiting!