Decadent Sloppy Joes Perfect as an Appie or a Main Dish
Sloppy Joes were a quick weeknight meal in by house growing up and when I was trying to feed a couple of kids quickly before hockey practice. But this recipe is inspired by refined, layered flavours you’d expect in a fine-dining kitchen. This Decadent Sloppy Joe takes the nostalgic sandwich and transforms it into something glossy and luxurious that you could serve at a dinner party or as an appetizer. We serve in on a puffed Yorkshire pudding and a cool dollop of horseradish creme fraiche. Of course you can also ways slap this on a good old brioche bun and it will be just as stunning.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Decadent and Elevated – more like a Bolognese than a quick sauce
Balanced Flavor – Worcestershire, Dijon and brown sugar give us that traditional sweet, tangy, savory depth.
Slow-Cooked Luxury – 2-3 hours of gentle simmering builds a silky, restaurant worthy sauce.
Is This Recipe For You
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 2.5-3 hours
Servings: 6 hearty sandwiches or 8-10 Yorkshire puddings
Occasion: Dinner party, fall entertaining, cozy weekends
What Do You Need
Fresh
- ground beef
- onion
- garlic
- carrots
- celery
- sour cream or creme fraiche
- milk eggs
Pantry
- olive oil
- tomato paste
- red wine
- beef stock
- canned crushed tomatoes
- Worcestershire sauce
- Dijon mustard
- brown sugar
- paprika
- white miso paste
- bay leaf
- salt and pepper
- horseradish
- flour
- vegetable oil
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
2.5 – 3 hours
Serves
6
Ingredients
Sloppy Joe Filling
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 2 carrots, finely diced
- 3 celery stalks, finely diced
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 3/4 cup red wine
- 1 1/2 cups beef stock
- 1 1/2 cups crushed canned tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar packed
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp miso paste
- 1 bay leaf
- salt and pepper
Yorkshire Puddings
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup milk
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2-3 Tbsp beef drippings or vegetable oil
Horseradish Creme Fraiche
- 1 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
- 2-3 tsp prepared horseradish (to taste) I prefer more
- pinch of salt
Steps
1
Make the Sloppy Joe Filling
Heat the oil in the Dutch oven. Add carrot, celery, and onion; cook until softened.
Add garlic; cook 1 minute.
Put in your ground beef; season and brown deeply for 10 minutes.
Stir in tomato paste and paprika. Cook until brick red.
Deglaze with red wine, scraping fond; reduce by half.
Add stock, tomatoes, Worcestershire, mustard, brown sugar, miso and bay leaf.
Simmer on low, partially covered, for 2-3 hours until thick and glossy.
2
Bake the Yorkshires
Heat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Place muffin tin with 1/2 tsp of oil in each well inside oven until smoking hot
Whisk together flour, milk, eggs and salt until smooth.
Carefully pour batter into hot tin wells. (2/3 full)
Bake 20-25 minutes, without opening the oven until puffed and golden.
3
Make the Horseradish Creme Fraiche
Mix the sour cream or creme fraiche with the horseradish, and salt. Chill.
4
Assemble
Place Yorkshire puddings on a platter.
Spoon in a generous mound of Sloppy Joe filling.
Top with a dollop of horseradish creme fraiche.
Garnish with shaved Parmesan cheese.
Expert Tips and Tricks
Serve the Yorkshire immediately – they lose their puff if they sit too long.
Make the Sloppy Joe Filling the day before for maximum depth of flavour.
Consider these Popover pans to make your Yorkshire Puddings extra.
FAQ
What wine should I use? Whatever you’ve got handy. A Syrah or cabernet would be best.
Can I use another base? Besides the obvious choice of a bun, you could also consider puff pastry shells or small vol-au-vents would look beautifully.
Ingredients
Sloppy Joe Filling
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion finely diced
- 2 carrots finely diced
- 3 celery stalks finely diced
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 3/4 cup red wine
- 1 1/2 cups beef stock
- 1 1/2 cups crushed canned tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar packed
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp miso paste
- 1 bay leaf
- salt and pepper
Yorkshire Puddings
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup milk
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2-3 Tbsp beef drippings or vegetable oil
Horseradish Creme Fraiche
- 1 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
- 2-3 tsp prepared horseradish to taste I prefer more
- pinch of salt
Instructions
Make the Sloppy Joe Filling
- Heat the oil in the Dutch oven. Add carrot, celery, and onion; cook until softened.
- Add garlic; cook 1 minute.
- Season and brown the ground beef deeply for 10 minutes.
- Stir in tomato paste and paprika. Cook until brick red.
- Deglaze with red wine, scraping fond; reduce by half.
- Add stock, tomatoes, Worcestershire, mustard, brown sugar, miso and bay leaf.
- Simmer on low, partially covered, for 2-3 hours until thick and glossy.
Bake the Yorkshires
- Heat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Place muffin tin with 1/2 tsp of oil in each well inside oven until smoking hot
- Whisk together flour, milk, eggs and salt until smooth.
- Carefully pour batter into hot tin wells. (2/3 full)
- Bake 20-25 minutes, without opening the oven until puffed and golden.
Make the Horseradish Creme Fraiche
- Mix the sour cream or creme fraiche with the horseradish, and salt. Chill.
Assemble
- Place Yorkshire puddings on a platter.
- Spoon in a generous mound of Sloppy Joe filling.
- Top with a dollop of horseradish creme fraiche.
- Garnish with shaved Parmesan cheese.
Notes
Nutrition
Hawksworth restaurant inspired these Decadent Sloppy Joes with their refined comfort food. Slow-cooked beef with Worcestershire, Dijon and brown sugar spooned into golden Yorkshire and topped with horseradish creme fraiche is beautiful party bite or you can hunker down with your fork and knife for a bigger version.
Join the Conversation
I made these for a favourite couple of our family that just had their first baby. Easy to heat up but obviously still special and homemade. What occasion did you whip these up for?
