Sloppy Joes with an Asian zing

My Sloppy Joes were another star performer in those quick meals that take under 30 mins. It requires minimum to virtually no culinary skills.. Maybe that's why, they are another repeater in my kitchen.. lol.. but honestly, cook the meat, stir in the sauce - that literally comes out of a bottle (multiple bottles, but still..), throw it on slider buns.. and Voila, dinner is ready.. I usually try different variations to the sauce that I add to the meat, so it doesn't seem like the recipe is a repeater. You can also play with toppings to create different variations and again following my mantra of always using leftovers from the refrigerator. Sometimes, it makes me wonder how I have so many leftovers in my refrigerator, when most of the time I'm creating recipes from leftover ingredients.. but oh well, that's a question to be pondered upon another time. For now, I present to you Asian inspired, Sloppy Joes..

Dice your onions and bell peppers and sautée them in oil until translucent. Once done, move them to the side of the pan and add ground beef. Add salt and pepper and let it cook

While the beef is cooking, you can go ahead and make your sauce. For the sauce, I added ginger-garlic paste, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, tomato ketchup, tomato paste and hot sauce together. Add in some more chili flakes or hot sauce, if you like that extra kick. Whisk all these together so they form a smooth paste.

Make sure to keep stirring the ground meat while it's cooking. You will know its cooked, when the water has dried out and you can smell the aroma of the meat. I started out making my sloppy joes with ground beef, which is what I have mentioned in the recipe below. But over time, I have changed it up with ground chicken and ground turkey, and both versions turned out equally good! The cooking time for each of these meat would differ too.

The picture above is a reference for the color of the meat being cooked. Once your meat is cooked, stir in the sauce and mix evenly. Cook for another few minutes until the sauce has thickened. 

And your sliders are ready to assemble. You may toast or warm your buns as per your preference. 

I also top my sliders with some lettuce and cheese, but that again is a preference, you can substitute lettuce with coleslaw, or other toppings you'd like in your sliders. I used smoked cheddar in this recipe, since it went well with my other ingredients that I added to the sauce, but feel free to use any other cheese that would pair up better with your toppings. 

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

• For the meat: 
• 1 lb ground beef 
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 bell pepper, chopped 
• 1 tbsp oil
• salt & pepper according to taste
• For the sauce
• 1 tsp Ginger - garlic paste
• 1/4 cup Tomato paste
• 1/4 cup Tomato sauce
• 1/8 cup Brown sugar
• 1/4 cup Apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup Soy sauce
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp hot sauce
• 1/2 tsp red chilli flakes
• To assemble: 
• 1/2 cup Lettuce
• 1/4 cup Smoked Cheddar Cheese, grated 
• 1 pack Dinner rolls - contains 12 individual rolls 

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a pan. Add the diced onions and sautée. 
2. Add the peppers and sautée further until they are both translucent. Once done, push them to the side of the pan and add in the ground meat.
3. Add salt and pepper and mix well to break any lumps. Keep stirring while the meat is cooking. Cook until it is a light to medium brown
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together ginger-garlic paste, brown sugar, tomato sauce, tomato paste, soy sauce, cider vinegar, worcestershire sauce, hot sauce and chilli flakes.
5. Mix in this sauce to the meat, once its turned a medium brown.
6. Bring the mixture to a simmer, and cook until the sauce has thickened.
7. Toast the slider buns/dinner rolls and scoop a spoonful of meat on the slider
8. Add the lettuce and grated cheese. 

Yummilicious Sloppy Joes are ready to be served! Enjoy this delectable yet simple recipe! This is a great recipe for quick dinners or as an appetizer for parties and gatherings. It's easy to make in small batches and big. It can be stored easily, so is a great option for a make ahead meal as well.
Feel free to share and comment this recipe with your loved ones as well.. If you gave this recipe a go, or have questions, feel free to post a comment below! Until then, Live, Love, Laugh and EAT. Oh yes, EAT! :)