Homemade turkey sloppy joes are a delicious and hearty meal that’s a family favorite. You can still enjoy sloppy joes even if you are gluten free by serving them over rice or gluten free pasta.
This recipe for sloppy joes was first published as part of my series, 31 Days of Comfort Food in 2013. This is a classic recipe, and one that I make often.
I suppose that everyone has some version of sloppy joes in their family. This one is a recipe that I’ve been eating since I was little – my grandma’s sloppy joes. My mom started making them with ground turkey years ago, and that’s how I usually do it now as well, but it is also really delicious with grass-fed ground beef if you prefer.
Tastes probably vary with regard to the amount of sweet vs. tangy flavor in the sauce. You can reduce or increase the amounts of sugar and vinegar to your liking. We really love the addition of red peppers to our sloppy joes as well…I know some people like celery in there, too. That’s what’s nice about a dish like this, there are so many variations, and you really can’t go wrong.
How to serve turkey sloppy joes and keep the recipe gluten free:
Sometimes we make extra sautéed onions and peppers and pile them on top. I like to serve sloppy joes on gluten free buns, bread, or rice, it just depends what we have on hand. You could even scoop the turkey mixture up with tortilla chips if you like. It’s pretty easy to keep this recipe gluten free.
What side dishes go with sloppy joes?
These refrigerator dill pickles are an excellent side, along with chips or french fries, of course! You could also serve a simple green salad, or vegan potato salad, or macaroni salad.
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Homemade Turkey Sloppy Joes.
Tasty and tangy, these ground turkey sloppy joes are delicious on buns, pasta, or rice. This is a family friendly recipe that's free of gluten and dairy.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground turkey
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 cup red pepper chopped (use any color pepper that you have on hand)
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 4 Tablespoons yellow mustard
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- salt and pepper
Instructions
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Brown the turkey with the onion and red pepper in a large skillet. Drain off excess grease.
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Once turkey is cooked through, add ketchup, mustard, sugar, water, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste.
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Heat through until bubbling, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook, allowing the sauce to thicken and the flavors to blend for about 30 minutes.
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Serve on gluten free buns, bread, pasta, or rice. Top with fresh tomatoes, pickles, red onion, or your choice of cheese or dairy free cheese.
Recipe Notes
Leftovers should stay fresh in the refrigerator for about 4 days.
You can freeze leftovers as well in a freezer safe container. They should stay fresh for about 3 months.
Nutrition facts are for sloppy joe mixture only, and do not include bread or rice.
This recipe for ground turkey sloppy joes is:
- hearty and tasty
- perfect for cold weather
- gluten free and dairy free
- a crowd pleasing recipe!
This post was originally published in October 2013. It has been updated with new photos.
My husband and I enjoyed this tonight ~ so good!!! I did add celery (throwback to the recipe 13 year old me and my bff made). I had mine on jasmine rice and hubby went with a toasted bun. We will definitely make again. Thank you!!!
I look forward to making this!!! It looks delicious and I think my whole family will love it!
Delicious and nutritious!
I love the addition of the red pepper and onions! That’s a great way to get some sweetness without adding a sweetener. I also never would have thought of putting it over pasta. My husband would absolutely love that. In fact, this looks like something he would really enjoy so I’m probably going to have to give this a try!
I think I started feeling like anything was okay over pasta after I lived in Cincinnati for awhile…they serve their chili over pasta there, so I just got used to it.