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Healthy Sloppy Joes have been one of my go-to dinner recipes lately because it comes together easily in one pan, and it’s a perfect comfort food for busy days. I also like to sometimes sneak in a little extra vegetables in the mixture – if you dice up a little bit of leeks, squash, kale, etc super small and mix it in, then you won’t even notice!

Nutritional benefits of this recipe

Instead of using brown sugar, you’ll use honey or coconut sugar for this recipe as the sweetener.
You’ll use tomato sauce rather than the traditional high-sugar ketchup that most recipes call for. Then we naturally sweeten it with the coconut sugar / honey.
Healthier buns – I used sprouted Ezekiel buns by Food For Life Baking (you can find them in the frozen bread section).
Ground beef is rich in iron, protein, zinc, b-vitamins like B12, etc. I recommend buying grass-fed products which are much healthier for you and the animal!

Ingredients for Healthy Sloppy Joes

Ground beef

Onion

Bell pepper – optional to implement more veggies

Garlic

Tomato sauce

Tomato paste

Red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar

Mustard – yellow or stone ground work best in my opinion. If you love dijon, then feel free to use it.

Coconut sugar or honey – as a natural sweetener. Sloppy joes usually have a lot of ketchup which is very high in refined sugar. I opted for tomato sauce and adding coconut sugar/honey to add a bit of sweetness! It’s still so delicious, I promise!! You can also use half tomato sauce and half ketchup – but I still recommend buying a healthy ketchup like one from Primal Kitchen.

Spices – I used salt, smoked paprika, chili powder, and black pepper.

Hamburger buns – I used Sprouted Ezekiel Buns as a healthier but still delicious option. You can find them in the frozen section of your grocery store.

How to make Healthy Sloppy Joes

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook until softened and the onions are translucent and golden, about 5 minutes. Add the minced garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds.
Add the ground beef and cook until browned, breaking it up with a wooden spatula, about 6-8 minutes.
Turn the temperature down to low and add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, honey, vinegar, chili powder, smoked paprika, salt, and black pepper. Stir until well combined.
Let the mixture simmer for 10 minutes until the sauce has thickened.
Serve on hamburger buns and enjoy with a side salad or other side of choice.
Please leave a review if you made this recipe because it helps me so much!! Thank you!

Modifications

Add some other diced veggies, such as leeks, sweet potatoes, fennel, etc. Just dice it up super small to blend in with the texture of the meat and nobody will know as long as you don’t add a whole bunch.
Use ground turkey instead of beef, or just follow my Turkey Sloppy Joes recipe.
If you want a more authentic sloppy Joe recipe, then substitute half the tomato sauce for a healthy ketchup. I recommend still buying a healthier ketchup that does not have any HFCS or corn syrup at all. Primal Kitchen has healthy options!

Other recipes you’ll love

Turkey Sloppy Joes

Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Pantry Chili

Turkey Sweet Potato Chili

I hope you love these Healthy Sloppy Joes! Please be sure to leave a comment and rating if you give it a try. I would love to know what you think, and it helps my website so much to have comments and ratings!