No tags yet.
Ever since I was very young, my dad would joke and call them untidy Josephs. No matter what they were called, Sloppy Joes were a hit growing up with a lot of families, mine included. When I needed comfort food after I had my eye surgery, this recipe hit the spot. It starts off with a lot of liquid, but that reduces as it simmers so the sauce is just right in the end.
It’s a huge batch so you’ll need a large Dutch oven, about 5-6 quarts. I figure if you are taking the time to pull this together and simmer it, you should get more than one meal out of it, right? You can freeze half for a future meal or divide it up and take the leftovers for lunches.
Now that’s yumtastic!
Printable Version
Makes 6-8 servings
Ingredients
2 pounds ground beef
1 green bell pepper, diced, about 1 cup
1 red, yellow, or orange bell pepper, diced, about 1 cup
1 medium onion diced, about 1 cup
2 stalks of celery, diced, about 1 cup
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons ancho chili powder
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon anchovy paste
1 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
4 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
4 tablespoons coconut aminos
2 tablespoons Tessamae’s BBQ Sauce
2 cups beef broth
4 tablespoons gelatin
4-6 baked sweet potatoes, for serving
Salt and pepper, to taste
Olive oil or other cooking fat, about 2-4 tablespoons or more as needed
Directions
In a large Dutch oven, add about half the fat and the onion, bell peppers, and celery. Saute until the onions have begun to caramelize.
Add the garlic, tomato paste, anchovy paste, cumin, ancho chili powder, oregano, red pepper flakes. Stir until the spices and tomato paste are well-combined with the vegetables.
Add the ground beef and the remaining fat, breaking up the chunks with a wooden spoon and stirring to combine the vegetables and seasonings with the meat.
Add the vinegar, the mustard, coconut aminos, the diced tomatoes, the broth, and the gelatin. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Simmer for about an hour until the liquid in the pot reduces by almost half. The sauce will thicken as it cools.
Slice open the baked sweet potatoes and serve the Sloppy Joes on top. An alternative is to serve the untidy Josephs on top of a bed of spinach or other greens. Or if you are lazy like me, just eat it like you would chili.
