3 posts tagged “sloppy joes”

Sloppy Taco Chili
Yields 4 servings

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pounds ground beef sirloin
Salt and black pepper
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup hot sauce, any kind you like
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 quarts beef stock
4 scallions, chopped
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup green olives with pimento, chopped
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 cup corn tortilla chips, crushed

Heat a medium soup pot over medium-high heat with olive oil.  When oil is hot, add beef and season with salt, black pepper, chili powder and cumin. Brown the meat for 5 minutes, breaking it up into small pieces with the back of a wooden spoon. Add the garlic, onion, peppers and the bay leaf, and cook for 7-8 minutes until tender.  Add the hot sauce and tomato paste, and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Stir in stock, bring to a bubble, reduce heat and cook for 10-15 minutes. In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine the scallions, cilantro, olives and tomatoes.  Serve this mixture on top of the sloppy chili along with a handful of crushed tortilla chips.

Spanish Sloppy Joes
Yield 4 servings

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound ground beef sirloin
6 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
24 medium-sized mushrooms, crimini or white, chopped
Coarse salt and lots of black pepper
1/2 cup dry sherry
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 14-ounce can tomato sauce
4 crusty rolls, split
2 tablespoons butter, softened for easy spreading
A handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
A wedge of manchego cheese, for shaving

Heat a deep skillet over medium-high heat with olive oil. Add beef and deeply brown, 6-7 minutes, breaking it up into pieces with a wooden spoon. Add garlic, onions and mushrooms, and cook until mushrooms are dark and onions tender, 7-8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then add the sherry to deglaze the pan. Scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan and reduce liquid, 1 minute. Add Worcestershire and tomato sauce, and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low and cook 5 minutes more. Preheat broiler.

Spread rolls with softened butter and sprinkle heavily with parsley. Toast rolls until charred at edges. Top roll bottoms with sloppy mixture and some shaved manchego cheese. Set roll tops in place and serve.

Italian Sloppy Joes
Yields 4 servings

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound ground, 90 percent lean sirloin
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
5 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 medium portobello mushroom cap, finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Coarse salt and black pepper
1/2 cup red wine
3/4 cup beef stock
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 14-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
5-8 fresh basil leaves, about 1/4 cup, chopped
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Romano cheese
4 individual ciabatta rolls or any kind of crusty hoagie rolls
1 ball fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 8 slices

Preheat the broiler to high. For the meat sauce, heat a deep skillet or a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, twice around the pan. Add the ground beef and cook until lightly browned, breaking up the meat with the back of a wooden spoon. Add green pepper, onion, 3/4 of the garlic, mushrooms, allspice, red pepper flakes and a little salt and pepper to the beef and cook for about 5-8 minutes. Add the wine and cook another minute then add the beef stock, Worcestershie and tomatoes. Bring the mixture up to a bubble, reduce the heat to medium-low and gently simmer for 10 minutes. Finish it by stirring in a handful of chopped parsley.

While the meat is simmering, combine the remaining garlic with the soft butter, basil, parmesan cheese and a little salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Split the rolls in half lengthwise without cutting all the way through and separating the halves. Press open the rolls by flattening them out a little bit. Slather the insides with the butter and place 2 slices of the mozzarella on each roll. Toast until golden brown under the broiler, about 2-3 minutes. Top one side of the cheesy garlic rolls with a heap of meat and serve.