Healthy Sloppy Joes Clean Ingredients

Published 8/4/2024 As a true midwestern staple, sloppy joes were always a fan favorite at our house growing up. My parents made this for sporting events, holidays, etc., so we decided to take everything we love about this nostalgic fave, put a healthy twist on it, and serve it up to you all! For this sloppy joe recipe, we used a leaner ground meat – chicken, but you could also use ground turkey or beef. And then — the sauce 😍 Ours is homemade with a tomatoey base and different flavor add-ins to give you the perfect sweet and salty flavor.

Our Secretly Healthy Sloppy Joes Sauce

You absolutely cannot make a proper sloppy without a #kickgass sauce. And our recipe will not disappoint in the sauce department! It’s the most perfect savory and sweet flavorings from:

Worcestershire sauce Apple cider vinegar Frank’s hot sauce Maple syrup Chili powder Garlic powder Onion powder Mustard powder Salt Pepper

Combined with that tomato-ey flavor you love in a traditional Sloppy Joe that we achieved through the just-right combination of:

Tomato paste Tomato sauce Ketchup

And we promise you, this sauce is NOT too runny (nobody needs a soggy bun!) and NOT too thick (this isn’t a thick midwestern chili recipe!).

How to Make Sloppy Joes Meat

Meat Options for Sloppy Joes

We love these healthy Sloppy Joes with ground chicken, but feel free to sub in:

ground turkey ground beef.

Just be aware that the fattier the meat you use, the more fat you’ll have to strain out of the pan before adding in the sauce to obtain that perfect Sloppy Joe thickness. We haven’t tested this with Beyond Meat or other vegetarian or vegan alternatives, but if this works for you, let us know in the comments!

No Bun? No Problem!

Are you GF? Or looking for lower carb options that aren’t as bun-heavy to make the very best Sloppy Joe? Feel free to slap this delicious Sloppy Joe filling on:

A corn tortilla A lettuce wrap On top of a salad In a buddha bowl with your fave accompaniments Dipped with tortilla chips In between grilled slices of eggplant, sweet potato or portobello mushrooms

What to Serve with Sloppy Joes

Looking for the perfect sides to round out your Sloppy Joe meal? Here are some of our favorite recipe pairings for these Joes:

Foil Pack Grilled Red Potatoes Vegan Potato Salad Healthy Baked Potato Salad Olive Oil Parmesan Grilled Corn Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad Creamy Cucumber Salad

If you love Sloppy Joes and other flavorful recipes with ground meat, you’re sure to love our Instant Pot Hamburger Soup and these Grilled Sweet and Sour Meatball Skewers and, of course, this Healthy Hamburger Casserole.