Jan 12, 2015

Hawaiian Sloppy Joes

Name: Hawaiian Sloppy Joes
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 5 slices bacon, diced; 1 pound lean ground beef; 1 medium onion, diced; 1 green pepper, diced; 3-4 cloves garlic, minced; 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced; 3/4 cup ketchup; 2 tablespoons brown sugar; 1 tablespoon cider vinegar; 1 tablespoon soy sauce; 1/2 cup pineapple juice; salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Hawaiian Sloppy Joes – bacon, ground beef, and veggies in a pineapple sweet and sour sauce. Served on a toasted bun with pineapple rings on top! A delicious 30 minute weeknight meal!

Photos updated 04/01/2019.

If you love sloppy joes, you have to try my Sloppy Joe Sliders!

Bleh, Monday.

My husband goes back to work today and it’ll be really strange since he’s been on leave for over a month. He had to shave his beloved “leave beard” yesterday in preparation and I swear he almost cried. And then when the baby (who’s not a baby) saw him without the beard, he said, “Hey. Your head looks funny.”

I died.

We went to IKEA on Saturday. And btw, IKEA on a Saturday is not really a great idea. But, you know.

Since it’s in Denver (like a 40 minute drive for us) we’ve been planning this trip for awhile and I had ridiculously long list of things that we needed. I figured, I only go once a year – I might as well make the best of it. Right?

So then my husband spent all Saturday night and most of yesterday building ALL THE THINGS. The little ones got bunk beds and we got a new bed for the big one and a TV stand and several other things that required lots of sweat and curse words from the husband.

It was fun.

How To Make Hawaiian Sloppy Joes

The kids had these Hawaiian Sloppy Joes for lunch yesterday and absolutely loved them. The baby (yeah, the one that’s not a baby) kept eating all the meat mixture off his bun and then yelling, “MORE SLOPPY, PLEASE” which made the meal even more entertaining than it usually is.

These start out by frying bacon and then you cook onion, green bell pepper, and ground beef in the bacon fat. Once the veggies are softened and the meat cooked through, a sweet and sour sauce made with pineapple juice gets added and it all cooked through until it’s nice and sloppy.

Put that on a toasted bun and it’s an easy 30 minute meal that’s perfect for a weeknight. We topped our with pineapple rings and red onion and then I made a cole slaw to go with it.

Can You Make Hawaiian Sloppy Joes Ahead?

Yes, you can definitely make these Hawaiian Sloppy Joes ahead.

Don’t assemble the sandwiches, of course, but you can make the meat the night before you plan to serve them. Store them in the refrigerator in an airtight container. If the mixture isn’t sloppy enough when you reheat it, a splash of broth or water should loosen it up a little bit.

Can You Freeze Hawaiian Sloppy Joes?

Yes, you can freeze the meat for these Hawaiian Sloppy Joes. I like to freeze sloppy joe meat in a freeze ziploc bag. Make sure you squeeze out as much air as possible.

You can freeze sloppy joes for up to 3 months. Let it defrost overnight in the refrigerator and then you can reheat in the microwave, stovetop, or even the slow cooker. If the meat isn’t saucy enough, a splash of water or broth will loosen it up.

More Sloppy Joe Recipes

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