close up shot of a sloppy Joe sandwich on a plate

These hearty, messy, delicious classic homemade sloppy joes are the perfect weeknight dinner recipe your whole family will love, all ready in less than 30 minutes!

Jump to Recipe

Prep Time5

Cook Time20

Total Time25

Servings

Classic, saucy, and made from scratch—this is the Sloppy Joe recipe you’ll come back to every time. No packet mixes, no weird fillers—just real ingredients for a proper homemade sloppy joe that’s bold, beefy, and beautifully messy (as it should be).

The sauce clings to every bite, the meat is juicy but not watery, and the flavor hits that nostalgic sweet-and-tangy balance with just the right amount of kick.

Homemade Sloppy Joe Ingredients

Sloppy Joes raw ingredients that are labeled

You’ll need:

1 pound of ground beef
2 tablespoons of butter
½ cup of finely chopped onion
8 ounces of tomato sauce
½ cup of ketchup
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
1 tablespoon of prepared mustard
2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon of white vinegar
½ teaspoon of salt
¼ teaspoon of black pepper
½ teaspoon of garlic powder
½ teaspoon of onion powder
4-6 hamburger buns for serving
2 tablespoons of butter for the buns

Ingredient Substitutions

GROUND MEAT: This recipe uses a pound of ground beef. Using ground beef gives this recipe its classic sloppy Joe flavor. Popular substitutions that are still tasty include ground turkey or ground chicken.

How to Make Sloppy Joes

1. Brown the beef: Cook in a skillet over medium-high heat, then drain and set aside.

2. Sauté the onion: Add butter, cook onions until soft (about 3 minutes).

3. Build the sauce: Add tomato sauce, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire, vinegar, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Simmer 5–7 minutes until it thickens slightly and bubbles.

cooked ground beef added to the sauce in the skillet

4. Combine: Add cooked beef back into the pan. Stir through and simmer until hot and saucy.

Serving Suggestions

Sloppy Joes are best served as soon as they’re made. If you need to make this recipe ahead of time, keep your filling and buns separate until you’re ready to serve.

For the best texture, butter the inside of each bun and toast them cut-side-down in a skillet until golden. Only toast right before serving to keep them fresh.

There are plenty of sides that you can serve with sloppy Joes. We love pairing them with traditional BBQ or picnic-style sides such as cheesy potato casserole, corn pudding, or macaroni salad. You could also serve them with coleslaw, a side salad, or Caesar salad.

Storage Instructions

Store the meat filling in the fridge for up to three days or freeze for up to two months. Reheat before serving.

overhead shot of a plate of sloppy Joe sandwich with a pickle and chips

More Sloppy Joe Recipes

We have reimagined classic sloppy Joes in so many new ways. Try our sloppy Joe bake or Philly cheesesteak sloppy Joes, too.

Homemade Sloppy Joe Recipe

4.99 from 91 votes

These hearty, messy, delicious classic homemade sloppy joes are the perfect weeknight dinner recipe your whole family will love, all ready in less than 30 minutes!

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 20

Total Time 25

Servings

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Review Recipe

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup finely chopped onion
8 ounces tomato sauce
½ cup ketchup
1 tablespoon brown sugar, more to taste
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon white vinegar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
2 tablespoons softened butter, to toast the hamburger buns
4 to 6 hamburger buns

Instructions

Brown the ground beef in a large skillet, drain the extra grease, remove the ground beef, and set it aside.
In that same skillet, add the 2 tablespoons of butter and melt over medium-high heat, and add the onions and saute until transparent, about 3 minutes.
Stir in all remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 5 to 7 minutes. Watch for bubbling and splattering tomato sauce!
Add the ground beef to the sauce in the skillet and stir together and cook until all is reheated.
Butter the inside of the buns and toast them on a griddle pan.
Spoon the meat mixture on to the prepared buns and enjoy.

Video

Notes

This sloppy Joe recipe is for 4 to 6 people, but it can be doubled or tripled. Simply make your filling and toast your buns and assemble the sloppy Joes when it’s time to eat.
Don’t wait to serve them. Sloppy Joes are best served as soon as they’re made. Adding filling to the buns and letting it sit for more than a few minutes can make your buns soggy. Instead, if you need to make this recipe ahead of time, keep your filling and buns separate until you’re ready to serve.
For perfectly toasted buns, you’ll need about 2 tablespoons of softened butter for six hamburger buns to make it happen.

Nutrition

Have You Tried This Recipe?Follow me on Pinterest @spaceshipslb

Proudly Prepared by the Spaceships Kitchen

This recipe was developed, tested, cooked and photographed by the Spaceships Kitchen. From our dinner table to yours, we hope you think it's out of this world!

Stephanie Keeping Publisher
Layne Kangas Marketing
Lexus Monroe Editorial Assistant

Sloppy Joes (Done Right)