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Home » Slow Cooker » Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes

August 13, 2018 By Sara 40 Comments

Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes

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These slow cooker sloppy joes are made with ground beef, tomato sauce, brown sugar and spices, all cooked to savory perfection. An easy crock pot meal that’s kid friendly and perfect for serving a crowd.

Once you’ve tried homemade sloppy joes, you’ll never go back to the kind that comes in a can. This slow cooker sloppy joe recipe takes just 10 minutes to assemble. Let your meat simmer all day long, then serve on buns for a meal that the kids will love.

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Slow cooker sloppy joes on a bun served with fries and pickles.

I don’t think there’s a better feeling than sitting down with classic comfort food like these slow cooker sloppy joes. Not only are they simple to make, but you can easily double the recipe and have leftovers. It’s one of my favorite meals and I know my family will agree.

HOW DO YOU MAKE SLOW COOKER SLOPPY JOES?

These crock pot sloppy joes are extremely easy and quick to throw together. They’re made with ground beef, tomato sauce, brown sugar, and spices, cooked to a savory perfection in the crock pot.  The simmering really draws out the flavor and makes the meat super tender. I guarantee these will be a family favorite!

Ground beef, onions, tomato sauce, brown sugar and spices in a slow cooker.

I suggest using a leaner beef such as 90% lean ground beef, in your crock pot sloppy joes. It’s still got a lot of flavor, but without all the grease. Ground turkey can be used instead of beef but make sure you use 93% lean ground turkey and not the 99% lean turkey breast.

Slow cooker sloppy joe meat with a serving spoon.

If you want to mix up this dish and make it your own, you can add other ingredients such as bell peppers, herbs, bacon or sriracha. It’s also popular to add a slice of cheese to your sloppy joe sandwich – we typically use cheddar cheese. Make sure to use a sturdy hamburger bun and toast it before serving so that your bread won’t get soggy under all that saucy meat.

A slow cooker full of sloppy joe meat.

WHERE DID THE SLOPPY JOE COME FROM?

It’s not quite certain exactly who created the sloppy joe, but the creation is largely attributed to a cook name Joe. He added some tomato sauce to some loose meat he had and thus the sloppy joe was born. However, there’s also two other versions of the story. One story says sloppy joes were created in Havana at a saloon, and the other says it was in Florida at a famous bar.

WHAT IS THE ORIGINAL SLOPPY JOE RECIPE?

The original sloppy joe recipe hasn’t changed much over the years. It’s such a basic and easy mixture that there wasn’t much to switch around. However, the original mixture includes ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, sugar, salt, and pepper.

A crock pot sloppy joe on a hamburger bun served with french fries.

With school starting back up, I’ve really been making sure I have some recipes planned that the whole family will happily eat. However, they have to be easy and something I can toss together in just minutes. I love crock pot sloppy joes because I can literally dump it and go–the perfect dinner for a busy night.

MORE SLOW COOKER RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE

  • Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef
  • Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
  • Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak
  • Slow Cooker Turkey Chili
  • Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos

Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes Video


Slow cooker sloppy joe on a bun served with fries and pickles.
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4.94 from 16 votes

Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes

These slow cooker sloppy joes are made with ground beef, tomato sauce, brown sugar and spices, all cooked to savory perfection. An easy crock pot meal that's kid friendly and perfect for serving a crowd.
Course Main
Cuisine American
Keyword sloppy joes, slow cooker sloppy joes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 10 minutes
Servings 6
Calories 376kcal
Author Sara Welch

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 pounds ground beef I use 90% lean
  • 1/2 cup onion finely diced
  • 2 8 ounce cans tomato sauce
  • 1/2 cup ketchup
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 6 hamburger buns
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Heat the oil in a large pan over medium high heat.
  • Place the ground beef in the pan and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 6-8 minutes, breaking up the meat with a spatula.
  • Add the onion and cook for an addition 4-5 minutes.
  • Place the beef and onion mixture in the slow cooker along with the tomato sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
  • Stir to combine the ingredients.
  • Cook on HIGH for 3 hours or LOW for 6 hours.
  • Spoon the meat onto the hamburger buns then serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 376kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 494mg | Potassium: 517mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 105IU | Vitamin C: 2.6mg | Calcium: 100mg | Iron: 4.2mg

Filed Under: Dinner, Slow Cooker Tagged With: Beef, Hamburger, Sandwich

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Comments

  1. Julie DOBRYMAN says

    January 17, 2021 at 6:44 am

    5 stars
    Doubled this for a football game watch party. Great recipe!

    Reply
  2. Veronica says

    October 31, 2020 at 10:04 am

    5 stars
    I’d love to make 3 lbs of beef! Should I double the sauce or same? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Sara says

      October 31, 2020 at 9:56 pm

      Yes you would double the sauce!

      Reply
  3. Jo says

    September 30, 2020 at 5:33 pm

    5 stars
    Made it again, and it never disappoints! Grrrrreat recipe! Thank you very much!

    Reply
  4. Jess says

    September 3, 2020 at 3:31 pm

    5 stars
    Easy and delicious! Left overs are perfect for the kids Zoom lunch

    Reply
  5. marisa varela says

    July 30, 2020 at 2:29 pm

    5 stars
    Wow so good! Subbed with ground turkey and going to double the recipe next time for leftovers!

    Reply
  6. Cami says

    May 30, 2020 at 3:36 pm

    5 stars
    Absolutely amazing. My family loved it. My husband came in and could only comment on how good it smelled in the house. Even my 3 picky kids gobbled it up. It’s hard to impress every member of a family of 6 but this recipe did it!

    Reply
  7. Michel6 says

    May 11, 2020 at 12:00 pm

    Can I add green pepper, and if so, when?

    Reply
    • Sara says

      May 11, 2020 at 2:20 pm

      Yes, stir it into the cooked ground beef right before it goes into the slow cooker.

      Reply
  8. Leigh says

    April 28, 2020 at 1:37 am

    This recipe is sooooo very good. Not only does the aroma smell divine throughout the entire house but the Joes’ tasted equally as pleasing. I will be making this many times. Follow to the T, it is so worth it. Thank you for sharing ❤️

    Reply
  9. Laura says

    March 11, 2020 at 10:55 am

    Can I ask why we are cooking the meat first? I was planning to throw the meat and veggies in for several hours till browned while I ran errands, etc., then add sauces later. I don’t like the idea of having to stand over the meat and veggies at the stove. That’s an extra pan to wash and defeats the reason I am using a slow cooker in the first place. Thoughts?

    Reply
    • Sara says

      March 12, 2020 at 7:38 am

      You pre-cook the meat so that it doesn’t cook up in one giant clump in the slow cooker, it needs to be broken up first.

      Reply
  10. Deb says

    November 2, 2019 at 7:17 pm

    5 stars
    My kids love these so I make them a few times a month now! I’ve even frozen the meat mixture

    Reply
  11. John latino says

    October 11, 2019 at 1:56 pm

    Want to make the Sloppy Joe recipe on Sunday for a football watch party. Do you think substituting chili sauce for ketchup would work? Thanks

    Reply
    • Sara says

      October 12, 2019 at 3:41 pm

      Yes that is fine!

      Reply
  12. Bea says

    August 17, 2019 at 2:57 pm

    5 stars
    My grandkids always ask me to make this! Easy recipe to feed a crowd!

    Reply
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With 3 young kids, dinner can feel like feeding time at the zoo! I'm a mom on a mission to create easy, healthy and family friendly recipes ...Read More
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