These Keto Sloppy Joes in the form of a Skillet Dinner is a great low-carb meal that's gluten-free and perfect for busy weeknights! Add this to your weekly meal plan, you won't regret it!
Ready for a delicious keto and low carb recipe? Try our Keto Sloppy Joes in skillet form!
Where does the term "Sloppy Joe" come from?
Marilyn Brown, the Director of the Consumer Test Kitchen at H.J. Heinz says their research at the Carnegie Library suggests that the origin of the sloppy joe lies with the "loose meat" sandwiches sold in Sioux City, Iowa, in the 1930s and were the creation of a cook named Joe. [The American Century Cookbook: The Most Popular Recipes of the 20th Century, Jean Anderson]
Food companies began producing packaged sloppy joe sauce, such as the now-famous Manwich, by the 1960s.
Your typical Manwich sauce contains tomato puree, tomato paste, high fructose corn syrup, distilled vinegar, corn syrup, salt, sugar, carrot fiber (WTF it carrot fiber?), dried green and red bell peppers, chili pepper, guar gum, spices, xanthan gum, dried garlic, natural flavors, and citric acid. No thank you. While not the WORST ingredient list I've ever seen I'd rather avoid toxic corn syrup and all of that sugar.
Making your own is easy, let us show you how.
What are the ingredients in this low-carb sloppy Joe recipe?
Since all sloppy joe mixes have loads of sugar we're making our own. Don't worry, it's super simple and quick! You'll need:
- butter - or a vegan alternative, we like Miyokos
- ground beef - or a vegan alternative such as Beyond Meat
- bell pepper
- onion
- garlic
- onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, sea salt
- crushed tomatoes - you can also use unsweetened tomato sauce
- brown "sugar" - we use the sugar substitute Swerve
- Worcestershire sauce or even soy sauce or tamari
- yellow mustard
What's the correct way to brown ground beef?
Yes, there is a correct way to brown ground beef whether it's actual beef or a plant-based substitute such as Beyond Meat. Here's what you'll do:
- Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. You want the meat to fry not steam so make sure the pan is hot before moving on.
- Add the ground beef to the skillet and use a spatula or the back of a wooden spoon to break into large pieces then DO NOT TOUCH IT for at least 3-5 minutes. Then ensures that it will brown.
- After 3-5 minutes use your spatula or spoon to crumble it into smaller pieces. Keep cooking only stirring occasionally until fully browned and cooked through, this will take another 3-4 minutes.
That's it! There's nothing worse than steamed ground beef so if you follow this quick how-to you'll have nice and browned ground beef every single time.
What is the nutritional information for this recipe?
As always, you can find the full nutritional breakdown including the carb count (total carbs and net carbs) for keto at the bottom of the recipe card as well as the servings at the top of the recipe card. You should always double-check your specific ingredients as different brand's ingredients may have different values.
How do I serve this Keto Sloppy Joe Skillet?
- on top of mashed cauliflower
- tucked into a low-carb hamburger bun (see below for our recommendations)
- scooped up with celery sticks as an appetizer/dip
- tuck into low-carb tortillas
- spoon into lettuce cups
- by itself with a large green side salad on the side
- fill hollowed-out bell peppers, top with cheese and bake until bubbly
Low-carb bread/hamburger bun options to make sloppy joe sandwiches:
We love this recipe for low-carb buns and this packaged bun mix! A quick tip for egg whites, buy Organic Valley's egg whites to save time in the kitchen, and save wasting those precious yolks. The only ingredients in Organic Valley's egg whites are you guessed it, egg whites. No weird stuff here, just real food.
Keto Sloppy Joes (Skillet Style)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter see post for vegan options
- 1 lb ground beef see post for vegan options
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ green bell pepper minced
- ½ large yellow onion minced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- ⅔ cup crushed tomatoes
- 3 tablespoons brown Swerve
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese dairy-free, if vegan
Instructions
- Heat the butter in a 10” or larger cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add in the ground beef and cook without touching for 4 minutes. Add in the spices. Using the back of a spatula crumble the beef and continue to cook 2-3 minutes until browned. Remove beef to a plate but do not drain the oil from the skillet.
- Add the pepper and onion to the skillet and cook 3-4 minutes before adding in the garlic, cook another minute until fragrant.
- Add the remaining ingredients to the skillet and stir to combine. Add the beef back to the skillet, reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer for 10 minutes before serving. If using the cheddar sprinkle it over the top, cover and allow the cheese to melt, this will take an additional 3-4 minutes. Serve immediately.
Gina says
thank you, thank you, thank you...Sloppy Joe's are one of my favorite comfort foods and I've missed it so much on keto...can't wait to make!
Elaine says
Looks good! But what's crushed tomato ketchup?
Alex Lester says
Ha, that would be a typo. Thanks for pointing that out! It's supposed to be just crushed tomatoes.
Andrea says
Hi! Is it 344 k per serving? And what is the serving size? Thank you
Alex Lester says
The nutritional info is per serving, the serving amount can be found at the top of each recipe card. Hope this helps!
Tina says
I see the nutritional info, but what is the actual serving size? 1/2c? 2/3c?
Judie says
Love your recipes,,but, I am suddenly getting your videos covering most of the recipe I’m trying to read! No way to get it off! Help!
Amanda Edler says
Hands down my favorite for my whole family.
Melanie Lauck. says
excellant
Mary Jackson says
This was outstanding.
Tanya says
This is yummy! Can’t wait to serve it later on some wonder bread chaffles!
Teresa says
Great recipe! My family loved them and my husband said they were better than Manwich by far. Thank you!
cheryl m walker says
Dude, this is so good. We ate them on keto buns and it was transformational for a weeknight meal. Also, the men loved it so much I’m gonna call them men-wiches or something like that. Thanks for the recipe.
Stephanie Hohmann says
Delicious!!! Added a bit of cayenne and used petite diced tomatoes instead of crushed because that is what I had on hand.
Annamarie says
How is this low carb? Since there was no serving size listed I figured the whole recipe myself. I used everything as listed. Assuming a half cup portion, it is at least 65 carbs! Please explain 6 carbs!!
Cast Iron Keto says
Hi Annamarie, as stated at the top of the nutritional card, the nutritional information listed is per serving. The recipe card lists the servings at 4. Even if you ate the entire pan, there would only be 24 total carbs and 20 net carbs.
Carolyn Sellers says
Recipes sound delicious, but I'm not suppose to eat any citric acid, which is in tomatoes.
Do you know a way of making similar RECIPE without the tomatoes or paste or sauce with tomatoes?
Cast Iron Keto says
Hi Carolyn, I've seen a few people use beets in place of tomatoes - could be an option?
Carolyn Kraintz says
Loved it!
Michelle LeBlanc says
Oh this was SO good!!! I only deviated from the cast iron pan (I don't have one) but these Sloppy Joe's turned out just fine. I put together buns from a low carb hamburger bun mix, and yes used pre-separated egg whites, the Sloppy Joe mix came together in no time and dinner was served! Sliced pickles on the side, easy peasy. Thanks for the tip for cooking the ground beef; I'll do this from now on.
LaDonna says
Excellent! I was out of swerve so I subbed 2 tbsp of coconut sugar and for the crushed tomatoes I used 8oz can of plain tomato sauce. Also I made keto hamburger buns to go with it. This recipe is a keeper!
Denise says
Made this for my family and they absolutely loved it. This is one for my recipe book.
Thank you
Jim McManus says
I have no idea what you mean by "back of the spatula". The bottom? The handle? They don't really have a front or back.
Susan says
I have made this a few times now. OMG, it is sooooo good. I cut the swerve by 1/2 tbl spoon. I have had it over mashed cauliflower, keto bread, spaghetti squash and LOVE it all. My hubby won't even ]eat the traditional recipe anymore, he loves this and the grandkids think it's awesome.
NICOLE says
AMAZING!!
Christine says
This is really good but if you don’t like spicy. Back off of the red pepper flakes
jess says
Recipe claims gluten-free but worcestershire sauce is usually NOT gluten free. Just a heads up for people making this for a celiac / gluten intolerant person.
Cast Iron Keto says
Actually, Worcestershire sauce is usually gluten-free with the most common household brand being Lea & Perrins. We expect that if someone is gluten-free, they know to choose gluten-free ingredients. You can also sub in tamari for the Worcestershire sauce as well. Thanks for your note!
Shannon says
Used red bell pepper and a jalapeno. Did not use the brown sugar (brown swerve), replaced with Splenda and still came out good. Serving over mashed cauliflower. Thanks!
Jodi says
Great recipe turned out yummy
Bec says
Hi Alex,
This recipe looks fantastic and I plan to make it tonight. I just thought you should know that the accessibility menu you have on your site doesn't work.... it never loads. I'm visually challenged and was hoping to use the tool to help because the font in your recipe card is so small.
At any rate, I'm new to the keto diet, so I'll be back to rate your recipe after I try it!
Cast Iron Keto says
Hi Bec, we appreciate you bringing this to our attention! The accessibility menu is working for us on Chrome, would you mind sharing if you're on desktop, mobile, or tablet and the browser you're using so we can troubleshoot? We're sorry you're having issues but we'll do our best to get it fixed asap. Thanks!
Mary says
Thank you! This recipe is delicious and I plan on using it as a staple in my recipes.
BrittanyL. says
Kids and I love this recipe!! It’s my go to any time we make sloppy joes! My boys use buns but my daughter and I eat it with a salad or by itself with cheese.