Sloppy Joes is a messy American sandwich made with crumbled, browned ground beef and a sauce made from ketchup, onions, and spices. It can be customized to individual tastes and served with fries, cole slaw, or baked beans. Its origin is debated, but it has been popular since the 20th century. Commercial versions of the sauce are available.
Sloppy Joes is an American variation of a loose meat sandwich. In the most common version of Sloppy Joe, ground beef is crumbled and browned as the base ingredient. A sauce made from ketchup, onions and various other spices is added to the browned meat and left to simmer briefly. The end result is easily spread onto hamburger buns and topped with a couple of dill wedges.
The colorful name for sandwiches like this has a lot to do with the fact that consuming a Sloppy Joe can be a messy experience. Generally, the bun is piled with the bulk meat concoction, allowing the contents to drip out of the bun during consumption. However, some people get around this by arranging the two halves of the sandwich side-by-side on a plate, topping them with the Sloppy Joe, and consuming the sandwich open-faced using a fork.
There is some difference of opinion as to the exact origin of Sloppy Joe. Some evidence supports the idea that the main recipe can be traced back to 18th century America, although many people believe that a true sloppy joe wasn’t born until the first half of the 20th century. Purists say it was impossible to invent a sloppy joe until the modern hamburger bun became a reality in the latter 19th century. Others would classify any bulk meat recipe that was served on one or more slabs of bread as a variant of Sloppy Joe.
While Sloppy Joe’s recipes vary, almost all make use of ground beef that is rumbled and browned in a skillet. The browned meat is drained of excess fat and put back on the stove over low heat. The onions are diced and added to the meat and left to soften. A sauce created with a mixture of ketchup, water, dried bell pepper, salt, pepper and oregano is added to the ground beef and onions. Once all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed, the Sloppy Joe is allowed to simmer for several minutes, allowing the flavors of the sauce to mingle with the meat.
Part of the appeal of Sloppy Joe is that you can tailor this basic recipe to suit individual tastes. For example, garlic lovers can feel free to add garlic to the sauce. If the onions are not desired, they can be omitted. The sauce can be spiced up with the introduction of chiles or cayenne powder, or made relatively bland for people who don’t tolerate many herbs and spices.
Choosing an accompaniment for a Sloppy Joe is relatively straightforward. Fries are a popular choice, but it’s also common for cole escalope or baked beans to be served with sloppy joes. The decision on the side dishes, such as the preparation of the sauce, will depend on the dietary needs of the people who will be eating the meal.
While making sloppy joe sauce is an easy task, there are several commercial versions available in grocery stores today. With most of them, all it takes to make Sloppy Joes is browning and draining the meat, opening the can of sauce, and dumping the contents onto the meat. After a short simmer, the Sloppy Joe blend is ready to serve.
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