Some time ago I was Paleo, or predominantly Paleo, for the better part of about a year. My husband really took to it – he likes meat and vegetables and has no problem turning away from potatoes and pasta. Me, not so much. I couldn’t last on Paleo like he could. So he continued on with it, and I was on Pinterest one day looking for recipes to make for him for lunch, and stumbled upon Paleo Sloppy Joes by Cook Like a Cavewoman. (Her blog is no longer in service, wah! But I managed to find the recipe somewhere else, and have included it here.)
So anyway I thought well these look good, and I make them, and my house smelled AH MAZE INGGGG. You know what it was? Liquid smoke. It was the first time I’d ever used liquid smoke and I wanted to drink the stuff. It takes this simple ground beef dish to a whole ‘nother level folks.
I ate a small bowl of it as-is and my mind began racing with all the things I could make with this delicious Sloppy Joe recipe. Sloppy Joe Cheese Fries? //Check.// Sloppy Joe Grilled Cheese? Someday. Sloppy Joe Sliders? Here ya go.
I made these for Super Bowl Sunday a couple weeks ago and they were a hit. They are, quite literally, sloppy. And SO delicious. I really love this method of ‘baked sliders’ and have a few more ideas up my sleeve. Which means I need to have a couple more parties to feed all the people all the foods. I hope you make these and I hope you love them!
Ingredients
15oz tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon coconut sugar
1 tablespoon coconut aminos
1 teaspoon ground mustard powder
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lb ground beef
Cooking spray
1 small yellow onion, diced fine
1 small red bell pepper, diced fine
4 garlic cloves, grated
1 jalapeno chili, seeded and minced
6 slices yellow American cheese
12 slider buns
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Split apart slider buns and lay bottoms into a 13×9 baking dish. Set aside.
2. Brown ground beef in a skillet over medium high heat and drain. Spray the skillet with cooking spray and add the peppers. Saute for about 2-3 minutes, until almost tender. Add diced onion and saute until onion is translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add grated garlic and saute for about 1 minute. Add the drained ground beef back to the skillet and lower the heat to medium. Stir to combine.
3. Add all ingredients to the ground beef mixture, from the tomato sauce through (and including) the ground black pepper. Stir to combine, and simmer for about 10-12 minutes, until thickened.
4. When the sloppy joes are thickened to your liking, pour them on top of the slider bottoms in the baking dish. Top with the slices of American cheese, and then with the slider bun tops. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
5. After 20 minutes, check to see if the cheese is melted. If so, these babies are ready to devour!