Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes are a fun way to make that childhood favorite. This version is a little bit more grown up.
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Did you know that February is National Canned Food Month? I am excited to be working with Mom It Forward as part of their Cans Get You Cooking Program.
Do you have certain childhood food memories? Certain foods that remind you of growing up and dinner time as a kid? Sloppy Joes is one of those for me. Sloppy Joes were a frequent visitor to our dinner table and we loved them. So when I had kids I assumed my children would also love them. I was wrong. How can a kid not love a sloppy joe!!?? Well, my kids didn’t like them so for many years I was deprived of one of my favorite childhood foods.
Now that Jim and I are empty nesters, bring on the sloppy joes!
I make them a little different than my mom did. Her version included hamburger and the sloppy joe seasoning mix from the store that comes in the little envelope.
Today I’ve got a little bit more sophisticated and grown up version of sloppy joes but it’s got that familiar sloppy joe tang and I think your kids will love it too. And I think if I served my children today’s version of Sloppy Joes they might change their mind. Instead of hamburger I used a chuck roast and I cooked it in the slow cooker. Yum! They are just as sloppy as my childhood version but I love the flavor and texture so much better.
I added in a few carrots and green peppers which gives the sloppy joes some extra flavor and texture.
In addition to the traditional ketchup I add in a can of tomato paste to thicken the mixture up a bit. Tomato paste, along with other canned goods are pretty much a staple in my kitchen pantry. Being able to integrate some canned foods in with your fresh produce makes homemade so much easier. Having a well stocked pantry makes it easier to prepare delicious and nutritious meals for your family each night.
The sweetness of the sloppy joe comes from some brown sugar and the tang from worcestershire sauce, dijon mustard and some apple cider vinegar. Cut up your chuck roast into one inch pieces and combine it in your slow cooker with everything else. I like to cook it on high for about 5 hours or low for 6-8 hours. You want the meat to be nice and tender and easy to pull apart with a fork.
After I shred the meat in the slow cooker I let it cook for another 30 minutes or so until it thickens up a bit. You will still need to drain off a little juice probably.
Sloppy Joes earn their name. They can be a bit sloppy to eat. I actually prefer to eat mine as an open face sandwich and use a knife and fork!
Cans Get You Cooking produced a 30-minute special that will air on Cooking Channel during the month of February, National Canned Food Month. The special features Cooking Channel star Kelsey Nixon as she takes viewers down the canned food aisle and into her kitchen, sharing fun canned food facts, and creating delicious recipes inspired by the canned foods in her Cantry. You still have a chance to catch the show on February 28, 2015 10:00AM EST. I love Kelsey Nixon!
In honor of National Canned Food Month, Kelsey Nixon will be judging Cans Get You Cooking’s Cantry Cook-Off Recipe Contest! Entrants must create a unique recipe using at least two canned food items and submit the recipe, along with a photo of their dish for a chance to win $5,000! Entrants have until March 31, 2015 to enter! Here’s where everyone (and you!) can enter: CookingChannelTV.com/cans
Have you heard of Cantry Thursdays? By the time Thursdays roll around, most of your fresh groceries have been used or have spoiled, and admit it, you’re tired from the long week and don’t want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. The solution is not the takeout menu drawer…it’s your Cantry. Nutritious, fresh and flavorful meals are achievable quickly and easily thanks to the canned foods in your pantry. Be sure your cantry is well stocked!
Be sure to visit the Cans Get You Cooking site for lots of other great information and recipes.
You can check out my favorite slow cooker here.
***If you love EASY and DELICIOUS meals that you can make for your family in your slow cooker, please join me over on Instgram where I share ALL slow cooker recipes! Hope to see you there! Find me on Instagram at @slowcookerrecipelove ***
Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes
- 3 lbs. boneless chuck roast
- 1 C onions chopped
- 1 C carrots diced
- 1 C green pepper diced
- 2 tsp fresh garlic minced
- 1 1/2 C ketchup
- 1 small can tomato paste
- 1/3 C dijon mustard
- 2 Tbsps Worcestershire Sauce
- 4 Tbsps. brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- Cut roast into 1 - 1 1/2 inch pieces.
Combine onions, garlic, ketchup, tomato paste, mustard, worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and vinegar
- Place roast, carrots and green peppers into slow cooker.
- Pour sauce mixture over the top and stir to combine.
- Cook on high for 5 hours or low for 6-8 or until meat shreds easily.
- After shredding meat allow to sit and thicken in the slow cooker for 30 minutes or so.
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It looks delicious, I plan to try it out this weekend. But I think you accidentally swapped the high and low cooking times in your instructions.
Thanks for the recipe! Made this today and we all loved it! I did however take out about 1 cup of the sauce before I put the shredded beef back into the crock pot. It just would of been too soupy.
Fyi – In the instructions you wrote…. Cook on low for 5 hours or high for 6-8 or until meat shreds easily. (high for 5 hours or low for 6-8)
Hi! I’m trying this tonight and it smells wonderful! But as I was looking at the pictures, I saw a can of tomato paste, but it wasn’t listed in the recipe. Maybe that’s why Dawn’s was too soupy?
YOu are right Sue – there should be a small can of tomato paste in the list of ingredients. So sorry about that!!!
I am drooling! I wish I had this right now!
Hi! I made this today, and my fiancee noticed that I forgot to put the can of tomato paste in. It’s listed in the ingredients, but not in the instructions.
Catherine, Thanks for the heads up, I’ve got it fixed