Home > Dinner > Turkey Sloppy Joes Turkey Sloppy Joes February 11, 2020 | 29 Comments SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Jump to Recipe This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. Turkey Sloppy Joes are made with better-for-you ingredients, the best sauce, and loaded with hidden veggies. Adult-friendly and kid-approved Turkey Sloppy Joes make for a great healthy weeknight dinner that can be prepared in 30 minutes or less. Turkey Sloppy Joes: a great healthy meal Sloppy Joes might have a reputation for not being the healthiest, but I’ve changed that with a new take on the classic. This version is full of vegetables and uses lean turkey meat, turning the sandwich into a tasty and nourishing meal. The Turkey Sloppy Joes I’ve created are not only delicious with a homemade sauce that’s a snap to make but also ready in 30 minutes or less. It’s a quick, flavorful dinner that’ll leave you feeling good about what’s on your plate. QUICK TIPServe Turkey Sloppy Joes on toasted brioche buns. Here’s how to toast buns — on a grill, in a pan, or in the oven. I personally like adding a little butter to the buns and then popping them on a hot grill for 20 to 30 seconds. Ingredients Turkey Sloppy Joes Grated Yellow Onion & Minced Garlic: These aromatics create the flavor base, adding sweetness and a pungent kick that is essential to any good Sloppy Joe. Carrot, Red Bell Pepper & Baby Bella Mushrooms: This trio of veggies boosts the dish’s health factor, adds a variety of textures, and contributes a mix of sweetness, color, and savory flavors. Olive Oil: It’s used to sauté the vegetables, helping to soften them and bring out their flavors. Lean Ground Turkey: Serving as the main protein, this lean meat absorbs all the surrounding flavors and provides a healthier twist to the traditional Sloppy Joe. Ketchup, Tomato Sauce, BBQ Sauce: These contribute to the sauce’s base, offering a balance of tang, sweetness, and a smoky depth. Worcestershire Sauce, Red Wine Vinegar, Light Brown Sugar, Yellow Mustard: Added for their distinctive tastes; they work together to give the sauce complexity with notes of savory, tang, sweetness, and a mild heat. Beef Bouillon Powder: Amplifies the meaty taste, enriching the flavor profile of the turkey. Hamburger Buns: They are the carriers for the savory filling, offering a soft texture that complements the robustness of the Sloppy Joe mix. QUICK TIPUse a food processor: To get your veggies finely chopped without spending forever chopping, just add them to the processor bowl and pulse a few times. Don’t over pulse the veggies or liquefy them; just pulse enough times to get them into small pieces equivalent to a dice. How To Make Turkey Sloppy Joes Start with Veggies: In a large skillet, sauté the grated onion, minced garlic, diced red pepper, and diced carrots until they’re tender and the moisture has evaporated (about 5-7 minutes). Add Mushrooms: Incorporate diced mushrooms and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes until they’re soft. Cook the Turkey: Brown the ground turkey in the same skillet. Create the Sauce: Mix together all the sauce ingredients in a bowl, or add them directly to the skillet once the turkey is browned. Combine and Simmer: Pour the sauce over the cooked turkey and vegetables, simmering until the sauce has thickened. Assemble: Spoon the thickened meat mixture onto buns to serve your Turkey Sloppy Joes. Enjoy! Side Dishes To Serve Alongside Potato chips Bread and butter or dill pickles Elote (or plain grilled corn on the cob) Roasted Broccoli or Roasted Brussels Sprouts Onion rings French fries (or sweet potato fries) Baked beans A good pasta salad like this Orzo Pasta Salad Potato salad Cucumber Salad More EASY Ground Turkey Recipes Ground Turkey Tacos Miniature Turkey Meatloaf Loaded Taco Fries with ground turkey Ground Turkey Recipe skillet stir-fry Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Meatballs FOLLOW ALONG! Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for the latest updates, recipes and content. Turkey Sloppy Joes 5 from 15 votes - Review this recipe Turkey Sloppy Joes are made with better-for-you ingredients, the best sauce, and loaded with hidden veggies. Adult-friendly and kid-approved Turkey Sloppy Joes make for a great healthy weeknight dinner that can be prepared in 30 minutes or less. SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Print Recipe Turkey Sloppy Joes 5 from 15 votes - Review this recipe SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Print Recipe Turkey Sloppy Joes are made with better-for-you ingredients, the best sauce, and loaded with hidden veggies. Adult-friendly and kid-approved Turkey Sloppy Joes make for a great healthy weeknight dinner that can be prepared in 30 minutes or less. Course Dinner, Main Course, Sandwich Cuisine American Keyword turkey sloppy joes Prep Time 15 minutes minutes Cook Time 15 minutes minutes Total Time 30 minutes minutes Servings 4 loaded sloppy joes (maybe could stretch to 6 if serving kids!) Chelsea Lords Calories 446kcal Author Chelsea Lords Cost $9.47 Ingredients▢ 1/2 cup grated yellow onion (1 small onion)▢ 1 teaspoon minced garlic (2 cloves)▢ 1/2 cup finely chopped carrot (1 medium carrot)▢ 1 cup finely chopped red bell pepper (1 bell pepper)▢ 1 cup finely chopped baby bella mushrooms (~6 ounces)▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil▢ 1 pound lean ground turkey▢ Salt and pepper▢ 1/2 cup ketchup▢ 1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce▢ 1 tablespoon EACH: Worcestershire sauce, red wine vinegar, light brown sugar▢ 1 teaspoon yellow mustard▢ 2 teaspoons beef bouillon powder▢ 1/4 cup bbq sauce▢ Optional: 1/2 to 1 full cup freshly grated sharp Cheddar cheese (depending on how cheesy you'd like it)▢ Brioche (or your favorite) hamburger buns, for servingUS - Metric USMetric InstructionsPREP VEGGIES: Peel an onion and grate it on the large holes of a cheese grater. Mince the garlic, finely chop (or grate on the large holes) a carrot, finely chop the red pepper, and finely chop the mushrooms. ALTERNATIVELY, add a coarsely chopped carrot, coarsely chopped red pepper, and garlic to a food processor and pulse into diced pieces. Add the mushrooms separately and pulse into diced pieces.COOK VEGGIES: Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large cast iron skillet and place over medium high heat. Add in the onion, garlic, carrot, and bell pepper. Sauté for 5-7 minutes or until liquid from the veggies has evaporated. Add in the mushrooms and saute for another 2-3 minutes or until all veggies are mostly tender. Press veggies to the edges of the skillet and add 1 pound ground turkey in the center of the pan. Crumble the meat into small pieces and cook until no longer pink (but not cooked through all the way), about 5-8 minutes. As you crumble the meat, incorporate the veggies into the meat. Season with salt and pepper to taste.SAUCE: Whisk this sauce separately in a different bowl or just add it right into the skillet. Add the 1/2 cup ketchup, 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon brown sugar (Note 1), 1 teaspoon yellow mustard, 2 teaspoons beef bouillon powder, and 1/4 cup BBQ sauce. Stir well and then simmer the meat until fully cooked through and sauce has thickened, about another 3-5 minutes.FINISH: Remove the skillet from the heat. If desired, add some freshly grated cheese on top of the meat and let it stand (covered with a lid) for 2-3 minutes or until melted. Spoon the mixture on top of toasted buns (Note 2) and enjoy immediately. Video Recipe NotesNote 1: Sweetener: Depending on the BBQ sauce and ketchup you use (some are sweeter than others) you may want more or less brown sugar; add to personal preference. Note 2: Buns: I like to toast the buns; it adds flavor and keeps the buns from getting too soggy too quickly. Either grill the buns on a hot grill for 20-30 seconds, gently toast in a 350 degree F oven until buns are warmed through and barely crispy (about 5 minutes), or cook in a saute pan for 2-3 minutes over medium-high heat. Nutrition FactsServing: 4loaded sloppy joes | Calories: 446kcal | Carbohydrates: 49.5g | Protein: 24.4g | Fat: 14.8g | Cholesterol: 78.8mg | Sodium: 776.4mg | Fiber: 4.3g | Sugar: 19.3g We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed. DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? I love hearing from you when you've made one of my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @ChelseasMessyApron or leave me a comment below.
what a great reminder of a long forgotten favorite, or at least it can become one again with healthier ingredients like ground turkey, very nice, thank you! Reply
I made this for dinner tonight and followed recipe exactly (ok, almost exactly!! We have a lot of ground venison in the freezer so I used that instead of the ground turkey). It as DELICIOUS!!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!! The only thing I find is that my prep time is always at least double any website prep time listed!! I guess I’m a slow chopper! Lol. I did use my mini food processor for all the veggies and it was a big time saver. My husband said, “you can make this meal every week and I’d be happy!” Reply
I am SOOO happy to hear this!! Yay!! And thanks for the tip on the food processor! Thanks so much for your comment! 🙂 Reply
Omg, I feel your pain!!! I’m 41 & have been cooking since I was about 12, and it still takes me forever to chop!! Lol. I look at the times listed for recipes and double it in my mind because I know there’s no way I’ll get it done faster. Reply
You could try rice wine vinegar or 1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar. If you don’t want any vinegar, you can leave it out. (I like the way it balances flavors and sweetness!) Reply
My husband and I love this recipe. So much so, that I have shared it with my family and several friends. I grated the carrot (much faster than finely chopping), and added a 1/4 tsp of Smoked Paprika which gives it a mild Smokey flavor. Thanks for a delicious recipe! Reply
Not that I know of that will have the same effect, sorry. You can leave it out, but it gives it a really great flavor and makes the turkey taste more like beef 🙂 You may need some extra salt without it. Reply
I always use the Better Than Boullion that I always have on hand. If I don’t have beef (which I ususally do), vegetable or chicken work well, too. I prefer the extra bit of flavor that beef adds. Reply
I didn’t have any barbecue or beef bullion so I swapped with about a half tablespoon of Johnny’s French Dip Au Jus concentrate. I had to calculate the nutrition count due to my husband’s restricted diet. Here it is for anyone interested. Btw, he liked it and we’ll be making it again. The nutrition count does not include a roll. Calculated on Spark recipes but not saved there to protect your content. I wish bloggers would break out the nutrition content, trying to cook for him now is very, very time consuming. Calories231.0 Total Fat7.9 g Saturated Fat2.1 g Polyunsaturated Fat0.3 g Monounsaturated Fat1.7 g Cholesterol53.3 mg Sodium394.3 mg Potassium119.1 mg Total Carbohydrate24.0 g Dietary Fiber3.5 g Sugars11.3 g Protein17.5 g Vitamin A31.1 % Vitamin B-120.1 % Vitamin B-64.8 % Vitamin C33.0 % Vitamin D2.2 % Vitamin E1.4 % Calcium3.7 % Copper3.2 % Folate2.0 % Iron5.5 % Magnesium1.5 % Manganese3.7 % Niacin3.4 % Pantothenic Acid2.4 % Phosphorus2.2 % Riboflavin3.7 % Selenium3.5 % Thiamin2.3 % Zinc1.0 % *Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 Reply
This is very similar to another Sloppy Turkey Joe recipe that I have used for years. That recipe included a make your own “No Cook BBQ Sauce” which can be used in this recipe. What I love about your recipe is the addition of the mushrooms and the beef bouillon. I also like that you grated the onion, it does make a difference. Definitely a keeper recipe! Reply
This was a very tasty and healthy meal! A nurse came to my house and smelled what was cooking and took the recipe with her! Yummy! Reply
These are my “go-to” sloppy joes. So tasty and a great way to make a healthier version of an old favorite. I serve these on thin buns, and use the thin cheese slices to save a few more calories. Thank you for sharing this great recipe! Reply
This is my new favorite sloppy joe recipe! I made a triple batch so I could freeze some for meal prep. I subbed a small can of tomato paste for the tomato sauce (because that’s what I had on hand) and just added a bit of water to thin. I also added a couple jalapeños that needed used up. Served over sweet potato is my favorite way to eat it! Reply
Can you taste the mushrooms or do they “hide” well in the sauce. One of my boys hates mushrooms. Reply
Yes! It freezes great, just throw the cooled meat mixture in a ziplock bag, seal off any air, and freeze! 🙂 Reply
