Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 50 minutes Total time: 65 minutes
About:
Hello, all! I had a craving for one of my childhood favorites the other night. That childhood favorite would be none other than a sloppy joe. Then, I had a realization. I have not had a sloppy joe since I have changed my diet to a vegetarian diet about a year ago. I had a bag of MorningStar soy crumbles in my refrigerator, but instead of grabbing a can of prepared sauce, I decided to make my own. So this was a first! My first vegetarian sloppy joe, and my first homemade sloppy joe sauce. This recipe is relatively easy to make. I enjoyed this sauce much more than any canned sauce I’ve ever had, though it does take more time and it is quite sloppy! But hey, sloppy joes are supposed to be sloppy, right? This sauce makes 4-5 sloppy joes.
Ingredients:
Soy crumbles (I use MorningStar)
3/4 cup water
1 1/4 cup ketchup
3/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoon beer mustard (Dijon also works)
3 1/4 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 large white onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 small, hot green pepper, seeded and chopped (optional)
Non-stick cooking spray
Preparation:
- Chop the onion, garlic, green bell pepper, and small, hot green pepper (the small, hot green pepper is optional and depends on whether or not you want the sauce to be spicy).
- Once everything is chopped, spray a medium sized saucepan with non-stick cooking spray (including the sides). Place the onion, garlic, and peppers into the saucepan. Heat to medium high and let them simmer until the onion is translucent and the garlic is fragrant.
- Add only 1/2 cup of the 3/4 cup of water, but add all of the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, beer or Dijon mustard, brown sugar, and salt and pepper that is called for into the saucepan. Stir and bring this to a boil.
- Once the sauce is brought to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cover. Let the sauce simmer for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so.
5. Once the sauce has been simmering for about 30 minutes, get out your soy crumbles and arm yourself with a skillet. Add the remaining 1/4 cup water to the skillet, and then toss in enough soy crumbles to feed you and whomever else you might be feeding. Bring the heat to medium high until the soy crumbles are thawed.
6. Once the crumbles are thawed and the sauce has been simmering for at least 40 minutes, spoon the sauce into the soy crumbles. If you like your sloppy joes extra sloppy, add more sauce. If you like them neat, add less.
7. Serve on a bun with your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Katie's Vegetarian Kitchen 