The trick to most Indian cooking is to have the masalas (spices) on hand. They can last a long time if kept in airtight containers, and only need a minute or 2 dry-fried in a pan before using. After that, it really is a quite simple cuisine to prepare. And you can mix and match various masalas, rather than follow exact recipes. Experiment! Lentils and beans, too, are generally interchangeable. No 2 Indian cooks prepare the same dish in the same way... And it is a surpisingly quick way to prepare delicious meals once you've tried it once or twice! Just took a pic of my masala shelf... This post was edited by shaxhome on Wed, Apr 3, 13 at 8:38

In case there's any interest, the generic term for a "Bobcat" loader is a "skid loader". When I make a more traditional "sloppy joe" I like to add celery, green peppers and onions. Occasionally I'll add more onion close to the end or a little for topping for the extra crunch. I don't use a real recipe. I forgot the old recipe I used to use - I just experiment. Much depends on what I have on hand, how much I'm making and time constraints. Sometimes I'll cheat a bit and use some Manwich or canned/jarred spaghetti sauce or mix some tomato paste with beer. Sometimes I like a more "pizza" flavored one so I go heavy on Italian seasoning and put in some pepperoni. I like to mix sausage with the hamburger. Hot sausage picks up a bit of zest without being too hot for people. Mix in any kinds of meat you have left, much like when I make chili. A shredded beef or pork makes a great addition or substitution. I usually add a touch of Louisiana Hot Sauce, Worcestershire sauce, possibly Teriyaki, steak and BBQ sauces on occasion. Lemon pepper, garlic or garlic powder and bacon bits add a lot to it. What DOESN'T bacon help? I seldom add sugar, but some add a touch to cut the tomato bitterness and I like just a touch of mustard but not much. Dry works well. Vinegar is great although you could put some lemon juice in there too. Or both. An easy one that is very different is what I just refer to as "Taco Joes". I use basically a taco meat and if you really want to cheat, use the seasoning packet. I like them better with less "slop". But I like the sauce well-infused. BTW, some places call sloppy joes "Maid Rites" or loose meat sandwiches although they usually are less wet. Roseanne Barr used to call them sloppy joes without the slop. If it's nice and thick they're great as sort of a dip. Pick the meat up with chips and eat or mix with cheese for a dip. I think letting them go in the roaster (or crockpot if you don't have a roaster) helps blend the flavors. Be careful to not over-season. If it drys out too much add some beer, water, V8 juice, tomato juice or something and mix in. The last suggestion I have for a better sandwich: A good bun or at least toast the bun (fry it in butter to brown it). Makes a much better sandwich. Top with cheese if you like. Or toast some bread or buns, top with the meat mixture, top with cheese and broil it until bubbly.

Sloppy Joe Mix 1 small onion,finely dice(about 1/2 cup) or 2 Tbsp.dried onion flakes 1 Tbsp.finely diced garlic,or 1 heaping tsp.garlic powder 1/4 tsp. celery seed 1 tsp. chili powder(can be omitted if you don't care for it) 2 Tbsp. brown sugar 1 heaping Tbsp. prepared mustard or 1/4 tsp. dry mustard 1/2 cup water 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes or 1 C.catchup Brown 1 lb.lean ground beef with onion and garlic,break the meat up in to small pieces.Add spices and cook until meat is done.Add the water,tomato sauce,tomatoes or catchup,whichever you choose to use,and the brown sugar and mustard.Mix well,cover and simmer for 10 minutes .Remove cover and cook until most of the liquid has cooked down.Serve on toasted hamburger buns,Hoagie buns or other sandwich bun or your choice.We like cheese on ours. I had barbecue Sloppy Joes for supper tonight.Just browned a pound of meat,added salt,pepper,1 tsp.garlic powder,1 tbsp. dried onion flakes and used 1 cup prepared barbecue sauce instead of the tomato sauce.MMMMMM ........good! You can triple the dry ingredients,except for the brown sugar and store it in a zip lock bag or air tight container to have on hand. 3 Tbsp. will season 1 lb. of meat for Sloppy Joes.

No, it was not a version of Maid-Rite. The store promoted them as 'Maid-Rite' and had all the official Maid-Rite signage. Not a Mom & Pop but more of a truck stop/ C-Store sort of place. Don't remember what the gas station affiliation was. Store is still there but around here, anyway, a gas station might be a Shell station this week and a Mobil station next week. I suppose there is a small chance that it they were selling counterfeit Maid-Rites but they sure went to a lot of trouble convincing people it was the genuine article. Agree about the quality of the beef.