Sloppy joes were a staple when I was a kid. I LOVED sloppy Joe night! There’s something nostalgic about this messy and delicious meal enjoyed by kids and grown ups alike. For kids sloppy joes are a fun meal that all but gives permission to make a mess. I guess the same also goes for grown ups, HA! Also known as mince meat sandwiches, sloppy joes are really just saucy ground meat on a bun. Since I’ve got a freezer full of ground venison, the sloppy does sandwich has replaced sloppy joes. If you’ve also got a freezer full of ground game meat, you’re going to want to like, pin, or save this one! Skip the can, go for homemade!
This recipe is a GREAT recipe to throw together ahead of time and freeze. I’ve added my freezing instructions in the notes section of the recipe. The sloppy does sandwich also comes together with zero chopping! This makes it a perfect recipe for the kiddos to help make! If I’m being honest, until it came time to write this recipe down for HIH, I didn’t even measure! I just eyeballed everything and it came out different, yet delicious EVERY darn time! You really can’t go wrong. If you want it saucier, add more ketchup. Sweeter? Add more brown sugar. Spicier? Add some extra red pepper flakes. hope you’ll take this sloppy does sandwich recipe and make it your own!
Make it the Ultimate Sloppy Does Sandwich
The sloppy does filling is fantastic all on its own. We’ve spooned it over tots with cheese for sloppy does tot-chos or tossed it in a casserole dish, topped with cheese and made a sloppy does dip. The list of delicious ways to use this recipe is long! That said, to create my ultimate sloppy does sandwich here’s what you’re going to need
- Pretzel buns. My favorite are the new King’s Hawaiian, the slight sweetness and super soft texture are the perfect vessel for sloppy does.
- Shredded Colby Jack Cheese. I know the traditional sloppy Joe doesn’t have melted cheese, but trust me here. Melty cheese is a game changer! Give it a try, you won’t regret it!
- Waffle Fries. I can’t eat sloppy Joes or sloppy does with out a side of waffle fries. Bonus if you’ve got HIH Pantry Ranch to dip them in.
- Optional, but highly recommended, orange soda. In moderation of course, but just like waffle fries, orange soda is just a part of the ultimate experience.
Ultimate Sloppy Does
Equipment
- 1 large skillet
- Measuring cups and spoons
- 1 wooden spoon or spatula
Ingredients
- 1 lbs ground venison elk, moose, or ground beef would also be great.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¾ cup ketchup I prefer no sugar added
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 can diced tomatoes and green chilies
- several dashes Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt + more to taste
- 1 teaspoon black pepper + more to taste
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil followed by the ground venison. Begin to brown the venison and add the salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and red pepper flakes.
- Once the venison has browned, add in the can of diced tomatoes and green chilies, do not drain. Scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen any brown bits that developed on the bottom of the pan.
- Reduce the heat to low and add the ketchup, brown sugar, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir until combined. Allow to cook simmer on the stove for about 10 minutes. Serve on your favorite type of bread.
Notes
Allow sloppy does filling to cool- Scoop sloppy does filling into a gallon sized freezer zip bag
- Seal, allowing as much air as possible to escape
- Lay flat on a baking sheet in the freezer or solid freezer shelf and freeze for a flat and stackable make ahead meal.
Allow sloppy does filling to coolNutrition
Credit Where Credit is Due
While I’ve already mentioned that sloppy joes are nostalgic for many of us, for me, this recipe is tied to a few special people I love dearly. So, that just amps up the nostalgia factor for me. Two of my greatest girlfriends and my husband get big time credit for this recipe being more than just a recipe for me.
Back in my mid-twenties, one of my besties, Jeahn, and I would spend rainy Sundays after late nights out on the town in one of our tiny apartments making a very similar version of this recipe. Always with waffle fries and always with orange soda to drink. Were we nursing hangovers? It’s a strong possibility. This was before Doordash or UberEats so if we wanted hangover food, we had to make it ourselves! Jeahn lives in Japan now, so I don’t get to see her often, but you can bet memories of all of the fun we’ve had flood back when I make this recipe.
Another party girlfriend I made in my mid-twenties, Carrie, is the world’s funnest person, according to my husband. She gets the naming rights for this recipe. Her husband recently took up deer hunting, so our conversations have taken a turn from planning our next gala outing to how to prepare the large quantity of ground venison in her freezer. When she text me about “sloppy does” I hadn’t even thought about calling the recipe anything other than “venison sloppy joes.” Credit to Carrie!
Last but not least, I cannot make a recipe for the Field to Table page here on HIH without a mention of my expert hunter of a husband! I wouldn’t have all of this delicious game meat to create recipes around if it weren’t for his expertise in the wilderness.
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