These Ground Chicken Sloppy Joes are packed full of vegetables and flavor. They're a great one-pan, roughly 30-minute, weeknight dinner recipe you can feel good about.
If there was ever a dish to hide vegetables from picky eaters, it's these Sloppy Joes. I love this recipe because it has many vegetables - onion, bell pepper, zucchini, and celery - yet you wouldn't know it. They all cook and meld into a tasty Sloppy Joe mixture along with ground chicken and a well-seasoned tomato sauce.
The other reason this recipe works so well is it improves ground chicken. If you've ever had a disappointing chicken or turkey burger, it's probably because it was dry and didn't have flavor. With a lower fat content than beef, it's easy for poultry to become dried out when overcooked. It's especially notorious with chicken breast. But don't worry; there's no chance of making a dry chicken dinner with these Sloppy Joes.
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The tomato sauce is key to keeping everything moist. Some raisins are even tossed in for backup. When cooked in the liquid, they plump up and become juicy.
Combining dried fruit with meat is a smart combination you can find in many cuisines-and one that I love. That's why you'll find dried apricots in my Chicken Tagine recipe, dried currants in my Cardamom Chicken and Rice, and raisins in these Stuffed Cabbage Rolls.
🐓Ingredients
A good Sloppy Joe should be slightly sweet yet a little acidic. This recipe uses cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce for flavor, a little brown sugar for sweetness, and red wine vinegar for acidity. It's the perfect balance.
Ingredient Notes
- Vegetables: This is a very forgiving recipe. If you don't have one of the vegetables, you can easily substitute more of another in its place. Just use roughly the same amount. Or, if you have other vegetables you'd rather include, use those instead and cook a little more or less until they're tender.
- Jalapeno: We'll use half of a jalapeno in the recipe, providing just a little spice. For more spice, use the whole thing. For no spice, leave it out altogether.
- Smoked paprika: If you only have regular paprika, that's fine in this recipe. But get yourself some smoked! You'll thank me later. Then you can use it in this Beans and Chorizo recipe.
- Raisins: These may seem odd, but they help to add extra moisture to the dish and keep it from drying out. If you don't believe me, give them a try. I think you'll be surprised how well they fit in.
See the recipe card below for quantities and measurements.
🦃Substitutions and Variations
- Ground turkey: This dish would be just as great if made with ground turkey instead of ground chicken.
- Gluten-Free Sloppy Joes: Use tamari instead of soy sauce, and a gluten-free Worcestershire sauce, and serve on your favorite gluten-free bun.
- Spices: I can see all different kinds of spice combinations being used instead of the ones mentioned here. Maybe oregano, basil, and rosemary for an Italian version, or cinnamon, cumin, and turmeric for a more Middle Eastern flavor. Experiment with your favorites and make this recipe your own.
- Sloppy Joe Sliders: This is a great recipe for serving small portions to a crowd at a party. Use slider buns instead of full-sized ones and provide various toppings so people can assemble their own.
This round-up on Food Network offers more creative ideas on how to transform Sloppy Joe recipes in creative ways.
🔪Instructions
How to make ground chicken Sloppy Joes in six simple steps.
Chop all of the vegetables into a fine dice. Be sure to remove the seeds from the jalapeno.
Cook the vegetables over medium-high heat in the olive oil for 10 minutes, until softened.
Add the ground chicken, cumin, chili powder, paprika, and salt.
Add the soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, tomatoes, and raisins.
Break up the chicken with a spoon and cook for 6-8 minutes, until browned.
Lower the heat and simmer for another 8 minutes or so until thickened. Stir in the red wine vinegar and serve warm in toasted buns with desired toppings.
Hint: If you'd like to have the Sloppy Joe mixture a little sloppier, add a splash or two of water to the pan while simmering.
📋 Top tips
- Make sure to chop the vegetables up into small pieces, so they incorporate well into the chicken and sauce.
- Wash your hands and cutting board well after handling the jalapeno, and avoid touching your eyes and face.
🥡Storage
Store the Sloppy Joe mixture in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat thoroughly before assembling and enjoying your sandwich.
❓FAQ
If you find your sloppy joes too sloppy, add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste to the pan and stir in to combine. Cook a couple of minutes and see if it helped. Depending on the brand, some crushed tomatoes are more watery than others, which can lead to watery sloppy joes.
Yes. To freeze, put the sloppy joe mixture in a container with a tight-fitting lid, label it, and put it in the freezer. To heat, defrost partially or fully in the fridge. Pour into a pan and heat on low until hot. If the mixture is too thin, add a bit of tomato paste. If it's too thick, add a few tablespoons of water until it's reached your preferred consistency. Then assemble the sloppy joes as you like.
Ground chicken is lower in calories and fat than ground beef and if you're looking to reduce your red meat consumption, chicken is a good choice. However, it's up to you to decide if one food is a healthier choice for you than another.
🍟What to make with Sloppy Joes
Here are a few other recipes that would go well with these Sloppy Joes:
📖 Recipe
Ground Chicken Sloppy Joes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 large or 5 normal servings 1x
Description
These ground chicken sloppy joes are packed full of vegetables and flavor. A great one-pan, 30-minute, weeknight dinner recipe you can feel good about.
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion
- 1 medium green bell pepper
- 1 small - medium zucchini
- 2 stalks celery
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 jalapeno
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- ¼ cup raisins
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 4 hamburger buns, for serving
- pickles and cheese, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Prep the vegetables. Chop the onion, bell pepper, zucchini, jalapeno, garlic, and celery into small pieces. Remove the seeds from the pepper and jalapeno. For spicy Sloppy Joes, use all of the chopped jalapeno. For a mild version, use only half and save the remainder for another use.
- Cook the vegetables. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped vegetables. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes or until everything has softened and cooked down a bit.
- Cook the chicken. Add the ground chicken, cumin, chili powder, and smoked paprika to the pan. Break the chicken with a spoon and cook until browned, about 6-8 minutes.
- Add remaining ingredients and keep cooking. Pour in the soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and crushed tomatoes. Stir in the brown sugar and raisins. Lower the heat a little and simmer until thickened, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Taste and serve. Stir in the vinegar, then taste the mixture. If needed, add more salt, brown sugar, vinegar, or chopped jalapeno to your liking. Serve the Sloppy Joes on buns (lightly toasted, if desired) with pickles, cheese, onions, and maybe some chips.
Notes
This recipe makes four large Sloppy Joe sandwiches. If you were serving with multiple sides, you could stretch it to five or six servings.
If you don't like any degree of heat, leave out the jalapeno.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Main Dishes
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
🍳More Chicken Recipes
Looking for other recipes with chicken? Try these:
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