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 for dinner.
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.
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Ingredient Notes
- Ground Turkey – 93% lean ground turkey will give you the best flavor and texture in this recipe. If you go with a leaner mix of ground turkey, the sloppy joes will be on the dry side.
- Ketchup and Mustard – Ketchup and mustard are two key ingredients that make up the flavorful sauce. If you are out of ketchup, you can use tomato sauce, but the flavor will be a little different. If you can’t have mustard due to an allergy, you can leave it out and add a bit more vinegar.
- Vinegar – I used apple cider vinegar, but I have used white vinegar as well, and it works just fine.
Gluten Free Serving Options
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.
You could also serve the meat mixture over a baked potato, and then top with extra sautéed onions and peppers.
Serving Suggestions
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.
Storage/Freezing
Store leftovers in an airtight container. They should stay fresh for about 4 days.
You can freeze this if you like – just store in a freezer safe bag or container and the sloppy joe mixture should stay fresh in the freezer for about 3 months.
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Recipe
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 93% lean ground turkey
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 cup red pepper chopped (use any color pepper that you have on hand)
- 1 cup ketchup
- ½ cup water
- 2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 4 Tablespoons yellow mustard
- ¼ 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
I recommend 93% lean ground turkey for the best flavor and texture. If you go any leaner than that, you will find that these may be dry.
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 post was originally published in October 2013. It has been updated with new photos.
Pam Vickery
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!!!
Pam Vickery
I look forward to making this!!! It looks delicious and I think my whole family will love it!
Darryl
Delicious and nutritious!
Kristen
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!
Kelly
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.