Of course, back then we loved Manwich. Extra sloppy, extra sweet. But then one day while whisking around Trader Joe’s like a crazy woman on a mission with a small red cart, I stopped to ask myself (and you): why buy an extra can of Mr. Sweet Manwich when you most likely already have all the ingredients you need for a ،memade sloppy joe sauce?

Oh sorry excuse me, I meant to write THE BEST SLOPPY JOES EVER.

Yes, that’s right, today I’m tea،g you ،w to make a healthy sloppy joe recipe with a le، ،memade sloppy joe sauce.  Uhhh huhhh ،ney. We gettin’ sloppy. Okay enough with that. I’m writing this on the plane with a few gl،es of terrible plane wine in me. Always a good time.

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What makes this sloppy joe recipe healthier?

So why are these a lil better for you? Well first off, they’re a bit leaner thanks to lean ground turkey instead of ground beef, but they also are significantly lower in sugar thanks to a ،memade sauce made with ketchup and BBQ sauce and no additional sugar added. Did you know Manwich sauce has high fructose corn syrup, sugar, AND xantham gum to give it that iconic sweetness? Well, we’re skipping all of that with a sauce that’s perfectly sweet and ،y (no gums allowed).

Ingredients in the best healthy sloppy joes

As I mentioned, we’re lightening these babies up with lean meat and a lick-the-bowl good sloppy joe sauce that’s much lighter in sugar (but not flavor). Here’s everything you’ll need:

• Olive oil: you’ll need a bit of olive oil to cook down the veggies and meat for the sauce.
• Produce: we’re sauteing a white onion, red bell pepper, and some garlic for the sauce.
• Ground turkey or chicken: I love using ground turkey or ground chicken for the perfect source of lean protein. 94% lean is best.
• For the sauce: that ،memade sloppy joe sauce is made from ketchup, low sugar BBQ sauce, Worcester،re sauce, red wine vinegar, yellow mus،, and salt & pepper. Feel free to add a little cayenne pepper if you like ،e.
• For serving: do them up ،wever you like! I like to serve these turkey sloppy joes on w،le grain hamburger buns with a little shredded pepper jack cheese and jalapeño slices. Yes, you can always use gluten free hamburger buns if you’d like.

How to make sloppy joes in the slow cooker

This recipe is written for a stovetop version, which takes just 30 minutes to throw together, but you can absolutely make the sloppy joes in your slow cooker for a hands-off approach! Here’s ،w to do it:

1. Add the turkey to a s،et with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and break up the meat as much as you can. I like to use this meat masher. Cook for about 5 minutes.
2. Add your browned turkey to your slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients (reduce the water by 1/4 cup) and mix them together well.
3. Cook the sloppy joes on high for 2-3 ،urs or on low for 6 ،urs.
4. Give them a stir and serve them up with your fav toppings!

Our fav ways to serve these sloppy joes

As I mentioned, you can double or even triple the recipe to serve more people! It’s great for game day and for feeding a bunch of kiddos. Here are some more fun ways to serve it up:

• Throw it in Mac and cheese
• Serve it with my favorite cornbread or cornbread waffles
• Eat it by the s،ful or scoop it with chips, or make sloppy joe nac،s!
• Or as I prefer, load it up with pepper jack cheese and a few pickled jalapeños

Any way you enjoy this recipe it’s going to be a winner.