The 4-Ingredient Quick Trick For Weeknight Sloppy Joes

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Whether made of meat or plant-based proteins, spooned onto a bun or baked into a crowd-pleasing casserole, sloppy Joes make a marvelous meal just about anytime. The quickest and simplest method for preparing this dish is to brown up your preferred filling and mix it with a can of Manwich Original Sloppy Joe Sauce or the brand of your choosing. However, if you find yourself short on canned sloppy Joe sauce, you can easily assemble a delicious four-ingredient sauce to rival the popular canned varieties using a mixture of mustard, ketchup, brown sugar, and vinegar.

The ingredient ratios and amounts can vary based on your personal taste and how many sloppy Joes you're preparing. Generally, per one pound of meat, you'll want to begin with a base of one cup of ketchup, a couple of tablespoons of prepared mustard, and a tablespoon each of brown sugar and vinegar. You can vary the style of any of these four ingredients by using apple cider vinegar to bring out the savory flavors or switching to a spicy mustard for a kick of heat.

With the right amount of tangy tomato flavors and savory zing, you can stir up this sauce and use it as-is or reach into your pantry for a few other ingredients to amp it up even more. Consider all the ways to upgrade canned sloppy Joe sauce and let these inspire your choices for your homemade mix. With just a handful of basic ingredients, your sloppy Joes will be irresistible.

The four-ingredient substitute sloppy Joe sauce is a wonder on its own, but a few clever additions can enhance it to suit a number of appetites. For example, a dash of liquid smoke or a sprinkle of smoked paprika will give your sloppy Joe sauce a unique and crave-worthy savory flavor. You can also base your other ingredient mix-ins on what will best complement the protein you're using for the filling.

If you're making a sloppy Joe mix with ground chicken or turkey, shake a dash of poultry seasoning into your four-ingredient sauce. A dash of hot sauce like Original Tabasco or even a bit of spicy pickled pepper brine will provide an extra hint of vinegar flavor for an Instant Pot lentil sloppy Joes recipe or other plant-based versions. For sloppy Joes served on a sweet bun like brioche or similar, you can either counter this sweetness with more tangy and savory elements or lean into that flavor profile.

Mix a portion of maple syrup into your sauce for a naturally sweetened upgrade. You can also try banana ketchup in place of a typical ketchup for a more robust and slightly sweeter base for the sauce. Whether sweet, spicy, tangy, or umami, any of your pantry favorites will make an ideal addition to this simple and effective four-ingredient sloppy Joe sauce.