The bun bag is empty and dinner still needs to happen
Brown two pounds of ground turkey with onion and bell pepper, stir in ketchup, brown sugar, and a splash of Worcestershire, and simmer it down until it's thick enough to hold on a fork. Cool it flat in a quart bag before it goes anywhere near the freezer.
The microwave is the fastest route back to dinner, but sloppy joe mix at full power splatters sauce across the inside of the door in about ninety seconds. Run it at half power in a covered bowl, stirring at the halfway mark, and the microwave stays clean.
Some weeks the bun bag runs out before the sloppy joe does, and that's fine. Spoon it over rice or a baked potato instead, and nobody at the table notices the switch.
Ingredients
The batch makes about 6 cups (serves 6). Plan on about 25 minutes to cook, then freeze.
- 1.5 pounds ground turkey
- 1 diced onion and 1 diced bell pepper
- 1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce and 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar and 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
- 1 tablespoon mustard, salt, and pepper
- To serve: buns or rice
How to Make It
- Brown the turkey with the onion and pepper.
- Stir in the tomato sauce, paste, brown sugar, Worcestershire, and mustard.
- Simmer 10 minutes until thick and saucy; season to taste.
- Cool completely before freezing.
Freeze It
A saucy mix like this freezes and reheats cleanly. Freeze it flat so a single pack thaws fast.
- Freeze in flat, labeled bags or containers (best within 3 months)
- Single-serve portions thaw faster than one big block
- Note the reheat time on the bag
Thaw and reheat on practice night
Reheat the saucy turkey from frozen and serve it on buns, or over rice when you are out of bread.
- Stovetop from frozen: covered pan with a splash of water, 12 to 15 minutes, stirring
- Microwave from frozen: 5 to 6 minutes, stirring halfway
- Spoon onto toasted buns or over rice
- Serve with: toasted buns or rice, pickles, baby carrots, oven fries
Parent Tip
The grated-in bell pepper adds a vegetable most kids will not notice.
Make it fit tonight
Small changes that make this one fit your night
Sloppy joe on a toasted bun
Toast the bun first so it doesn't turn to mush under the sauce.
Sloppy joe over rice
Spoon it over a bowl of rice on the week the bread bag is empty.
Sloppy joe baked potato
Split a potato and pile the meat mixture into the middle like a topping bar.
Sloppy joe nachos
Layer it over tortilla chips with cheese for a dinner that skips plates entirely.
Sloppy joe stuffed peppers
Hollow out a bell pepper, fill it with the meat mixture, and bake for ten minutes.
Plan the next step
Portion a batch
Add a sloppy-joe batch to the planner and freeze it in single-dinner packs.