Minnesota Sloppy Joe (2024)

Minnesota Sloppy Joes are made with cream of mushroom soup and defined by the potato chips and dill pickles that go on top of the sloppy joe, inside the bun. Forget about just having potato chips on the side to go with the sloppy joe; crunch right into the chips and pickles as you take your bites of the sandwich. For another fun way to prepare a sloppy joe, try my super-special Sloppy Joe Recipe!

Minnesota Sloppy Joe

In the 1930s, a cook named Joe (makes sense) decided to add some tomato sauce to ground beef. These “loose meat sandwiches” with tomato sauce became known as Sloppy Joes.

This Minnesota Sloppy Joe recipe adds cream of mushroom soup to the ground beef, and folks here in the midwest know a thing or two about using cream-of-mushroom soup in lots of our hot dishes!

What makes a “Minnesota” Sloppy Joe different? Lots of things! The sauce itself utilizes that cream of mushroom mentioned earlier, but it is also all about the way it is served. Pickles and potato chips. I highly recommend crunchy dill pickles and plain salty potato chips. It’s a total package and one that folks outside of the midwest may not understand. No worries! We don’t mind keeping some of our delicious secrets here! 😉

How to Make Minnesota Sloppy Joes

If you are from the midwest, there is no doubt you have a few cans of cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup in your kitchen for recipes like my Chicken Wild Rice Casserole. Well, you can add these Minnesota Sloppy Joes to the list of recipes that use cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup. You could also get away with using cream of chicken gumbo soup.

To make the sloppy joes, begin by browning the ground beef in a large skillet until it is no longer pink. Add the ketchup, mustard, and cream of mushroom soup. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 30 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Top the beef mixture onto a toasted bun, but before you put on that top bun, add the potato chips and dill pickle chips to the sloppy joe. Enjoy the crunch and flavor in each bite!

Tips, Tricks, and Variations

The number one thing I tell people who make sloppy joes is to toast the bun. Sloppy joes are supposed to be “sloppy” not “soggy”. Toasting the bun keeps the juices from soaking into the bun and making it a soggy mess. I also love to eat my sloppy joes open-faced on bread.

Another variation to the recipe is to use ground chicken or pork. Turkey would be delicious as well. You could also use vegetable protein in place of the ground beef for a meatless sloppy joe.

How to Serve Leftovers

If you have any sloppy joe leftover, you can store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days. I love sloppy joes heated up the day after it has been made. Here are a few options you can use the sloppy joes for (besides in a hamburger bun):

• Chili Dog
• Bake it with rice and cheese in a bell pepper
• Pile it on Chili Cheese Fries
• Add it to your baked potato
• Scoop it up with some Fritos or add it to a plate of nachos

Looking for More Dinner Recipes?

Hamburger Macaroni Skillet

Easy Hamburger Stroganoff

Pork Chop Casserole

Amish Country Casserole