I have a recipe from a friend have been using it for years. Very good stuff.

If I’m making Sloppy Joe’s, it’s because I don’t want to cook, so I use Manwich.

I've never had "Manwich" -- not even sure what it is. For sloppy joes I use a recipe from an old Betty Crocker cookbook.

I use A recipe I inherited from my mother in law. It’s basically ketchup, Worcestershire, lemon juice, paprika, onion. I often sub tomato paste instead of ketchup, because ketchup is so sweet. Then I adjust thickness with water and add sweetness to taste with brown sugar or agave

I have always winged it-- it's how I was taught. I vividly remember my dad on the phone, guiding me. He'd say smell it-- does it smell like it goes in sloppy joe's? This is how I cook to this day. (I was probably 8 or so)

We like sloppy joes every once in a while. Hate the Manwich stuff, though.

My ingredients include lean ground beef, chopped red and green bell pepper, onion, and celery, pinch of garlic powder, brown sugar, splash of apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire, S&P to taste. No recipe, sorry, but I can write down the steps if you're interested. It's extremely simple.

I don't make sloppy joes often either-- in fact, the last time I did was for a niece who had just had a baby (he's almost 3 now!). I used a trick for them that I saw on Skinnytaste or a similar site.. I cut the ground beef with some chopped zucchini. It was very tasty and a great idea to get some extra veggies in a "fast food" meal. I also use onion and a variety of peppers (red, green, yellow).

Another trick I use is pickle juice for some of the vinegar.

I sound like I am on her payroll (not!), but the Sloppy Joe recipe from Once Upon a Chef is great.

I saute onions then 1 lb. beef.

1/2 c ketchup

1 T mustard

1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Calls for 2T brown sugar but I might add only half T. Sometimes I leave it out.

My mom’s recipe is wing it and I know she uses at least some of the above ingredients but she uses celery and vinegar. I didn’t do well with winging so I found a recipe.

We always call this bbq.

My aunt (that's who I was talking about this with) said she sometimes used Manwich, sometimes from scratch, but she asked her family which they prefer and they liked Manwich. But she also referenced a recipe using tomato soup, which I don't think I've heard of.

My DH doesn't like sloppy joes, so we have it only when he's out of town. I make it or buy it from the deli at our grocery, but they add diced green peppers which don't set well with me. I like the idea of adding zucchini, though.

This whole thing came up because my aunt and I are going to another eel house for dinner and they are having sloppy joes, so we got to talking about all the different ways we all make them. I just like how it's hard to go wrong with them!

I'm with Chickadee. Quick old Manwich makes a fast meal every one liked. Of course you needed Ruffles to dip in the meat to make it really unhealthy!

I am often asked to bring sloppy joes to events. I got the recipe from an old church cookbook.

1 pound lean ground beef

chopped celery, onion, and red or orange pepper sautéed with the beef

drain any excess grease

mix together: 3/4 cup ketchup, 3 heaping tablespoons prepared mustard, 2 tablespoons sugar, 1. Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

add to the beef and simmer until it is heated through

i sometimes make a batch of this if I am not going to be home at dinner time. It is so easy for DH to get for himself. I just keep it in the fridge until needed. He can then put a "blob" on a bun, wrap it in a paper towel and micro for 35 seconds. It is foolproof ( which DH needs) :)

Bpath, what’s an eel house?

I haven't had sloppy Joes since I was a kid. My mom made it from scratch. There may have been cloves.

I hated it.

We don’t have them often but it’s Manwich, topped with shredded cheddar and onions when we do. We like the bold option (I think that’s what it’s called) because it has more punch to it.

I have been using this recipe from Grainlady that I found in a thread on the Cooking Forum from 2014. I did not add any fat to brown the meat. My grandkids loved when I made it for lunch this summer.

Sloppy Joes
(serves 10-12)

1/2 c. finely chopped onion
1/4 c. finely chopped celery
1 T. fat (if using extra lean beef)
1 small can tomato sauce
1 T. vinegar
1-1/2 t. salt
pepper
1-pound ground beef
1/4 c. catsup
1 T. sugar

Melt fat in skillet (if needed). Brown beef along with onion and celery. Drain fat. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer for 10-20 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

My mom made them from scratch, but for my kids it was Manwich. We haven’t had them in years since the kids are grown!

Somewhat timely question. DH hates sloppy joes so I haven't had one in decades. I don't think I've ever even made them myself. Last month he was out of town and I thought "Hmm. I'll make some sloppy joes!" Looked up some recipes online, picked one, made it. Too sweet! I'm sure I made it with less brown sugar than called for too because I don't really like sweet food. Now I know that I don't ever need to make it again.

We love Manwich on good buns with shredded cheese and crispy onions. Ooh - my mouth is watering!

Chickadee, what, you've never been to an eel house for Slippery Joes? Ha ha, typo, I meant "another relative's house".

Sloppy Joes are 1950s comfort food to me! No sugar or anything sweet, though. My mom used Heinz chili sauce instead of catsup and she used tomato soup. Onions of course. Pepper and garlic, too.

My mom's is what I think it should taste like. Manwich was a huge disappointment when I eventually had it. Sauté onion, brown crumbled ground beef, salt, pepper, ketchup, and yellow mustard. All to taste and served on toasted hamburger buns, so the bread doesn't get gummy.

I would never add sugar because ketchup has a lot, already. I'd add Worchestershire, though.

The first time I served it to my kids, they weren't impressed. The weird thing is, that as their palates became more sophisticated, they also decided Sloppy Joes were tasty. I have a sudden craving for it over some oven fries.

Never had them growing up so never learned to make them. MIL made them for DH but he doesn't like them - she's not the best cook. Actually that's an understatement - we know dinner is done when the smoke alarm goes off!

There have been a couple of mentions of tomato soup. I think my other aunt uses soup, too. I can't remember if my mom used soup, and I can't ask her :( and I doubt this is in her recipe books :) I usually use ketchup, but not always; if I don't use ketchup, I do add a pinch of sugar, it just helps smooth out the vinegar. So many ways to make the comfort food!

I also notice that a few other DHs join mine in not liking it, I wonder why that is? Seems like a manly thing; heck they even named the can Manwich lol.

Throughout elementary and high school, cafeteria food could be pretty awful. Except Sloppy Joes day, when everyone ate in the cafeteria. Interestingly, it was officially called Barbecued Beef on a Bun.

I used to make it occasionally with one of those Schilling or similar packets. It comes out a little on the sweet side.

I found that when I make a good meaty pasta sauce, it's wonderful the second or third day over toasted hamburger buns. Speaking of hamburger buns, have you tried the Brioche hamburger buns at Whole Foods? I'll never go back to the regular kind. Now watch them be discontinued.

I love sloppy joes but never liked any recipe I've tried so this thread is great. I'll take another stab at it. There's a very casual saloon/restaurant by our cabin that serves SJs and that's what I always get when I go there.

DH would have them every week if I let him. We use original Manwich but I insist on using onion buns and Tillamook cheddar cheese slices. I like to serve them with Bushes Baked Beans.

Sloppy Joes. Sloppy, sloppy Joes . . .

Lunch Lady Land

I am usually a from scratch cook. I love sloppy joes. This Stonewall Kitchen product makes the best sloppy joes I've ever had and is now my gold standard. I use a non-stick skillet, skip the oil and add just a pinch of Penzey's Italian herb seasoning

https://www.stonewallkitchen.com/sloppy-joe-R2029.html

seagrass, what do you like about the Stonewall Kitchen product?