Comfort food in under 30 minutes! This Sloppy Joe Pasta takes the flavors of a sloppy joe and puts them in a big bowl of comforting pasta. The recipe makes 2 generous servings, but can easily be doubled or tripled to feed a crowd!
Calling all sloppy joe lovers! After you make this Sloppy Joe Pasta, you’ll want to also try this Sloppy Joe Dip or these Buffalo Sloppy Joes.
You all know that I’m a sloppy joe lover, right? I’ve got all kinds of versions of them here on Taste and Tell, including an Enchilada Sloppy Joe Recipe, Sloppy Dogs, Cuban Sloppy Joes, Chicken Sloppy Joes, Hawaiian Sloppy Joes… and that’s just scratching the surface! But one thing I hadn’t done is a pasta version of sloppy joes.
This recipe makes 2 generous servings. But since I knew my kids would go crazy for this sloppy joe pasta, I doubled the recipe. It made enough to feed a crowd! But I was happy, because not only was it amazing that night, but it was pretty darn good as leftovers, too. And did I mention how easy and fast this was? Really, by the time my pasta was done cooking, everything else was finished and ready to go. The directions were clear, and dinner was on the table before I even knew it. It was a definite home run!!
Tips and Tricks
This recipe makes 2 very generous portions. In fact, you could probably feed 4 regular appetites with this recipe. But it is easy to double if you need more.
I like the rotini in this recipe, but you can use any short cut pasta, like penne or farfalle.
Keep any leftovers refrigerated. You can reheat it in the microwave, or on the stovetop. If reheating on the stovetop, you may need to add some beef broth to loosen it up.
I like to add some sliced green onions on top after, but you can omit those, if desired.
More Family Friendly Pasta Recipes
Penne Pasta Bake
Skillet Pasta with Sausage
Tuscan Pasta with Sausage
Tuna Casserole
Alfredo Pasta with Bacon
Baked Mac and Cheese
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Sloppy Joe Pasta
Ingredients
For the Sauce:
- 3/4 cup tomato sauce
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
For the Pasta and Remainder of Dish:
- 2 cups dry rotini or any spiral-shaped pasta
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup diced onion
- 1 medium green bell pepper diced (about 1/2 cup)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- 1 cup freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
For the sauce:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the sauce and set aside.
For the pasta and the remainder of the dish:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and cook the pasta accordion toe the directions on the package.
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat up the vegetable oil. Add the onion, green bell pepper and garlic. Sauté until fragrant and softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add the ground beef to the skillet and break it up with your spatula or wooden spoon. Cook until ground beef is thoroughly cooked through, about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Add the sauce to the skillet. Then add the pasta (drained of excess water), and the cheese on top. Turn the heat down to medium-low, and toss the mixture until the cheese has melted and the ingredients are evenly coated and distributed throughout.
- Serve warm.
MaryB says
Delicious! I had leftover tomato sauce and decided to try this pasta recipe. So glad I did!
Amanda S says
We loved this recipe! Tasted just like Sloppy Joe’s! I will definitely add into rotation. Made exactly as recommended except doubled the recipe since I have 3 boys, a hubby, and father in law to feed! If your family enjoys Sloppy Joe’s, you need to try this yummiest!
Liana says
How do I make this for 4 people?
Deborah says
I would just double everything.
Amie says
I just purchased your cookbook and am so pleased with the recipes so far. I’ll be cooking this one this week. But, as I was reading the recipe, I had a good chuckle.
“Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and cook the pasta accordion toe the directions on the package.”. Accordion Toe? HA! Cute.
Laura Ketchie says
This hit the spot! Tasty and filling, I won’t have any qualms making this again! Great quick meal.
Laura says
Thank your for this easy week-night recipe. My daughter dubbed it, “awesome!”
kathleen says
Fixed this for dinner last week and it was really good. I love sloppy joes and making it with pasta instead of as a sandwich is brilliant. This will go on our favorites board.
Emma says
Could you sub out store bought sloppy joe sauce?
Deborah says
I haven’t tried it with store bought, so I’m not sure. I’m guessing it would work, but I couldn’t say for sure.
kathleen says
You could probably make it with store bought sauce, but i have never had a store bought that is as good as this…
Coryn says
This was so good! This is definitely going into the regular rotation.
Deborah says
I’m so glad you liked it!!
Janelle says
This turned out AMAZING!! I doubled the recipe for my family. Perfection!
Deborah says
So happy to hear it was a hit!
Holly says
Looks amazing! Dying to make this 🙂 1 question: do you mean tomato sauce as in ketchup?
Deborah says
No – just plain tomato sauce (basically a tomato puree.)
Stacy says
Ohmygoodness. This was SO good!!!! Usually I send leftovers to work with my husband, but I kept these for MYSELF!
Cheryl Newton says
Hi, Deborah,
This looks tasty! 1 question, though: how much onion? It’s mentioned in the directions, but not listed in the ingredients.
Thanks,
Cheryl
Julie @ Table for Two says
Omg, this looks incredible!!! Thank you for the sweet words, friend! I’m so glad you were able to find recipes in this cookbook for you and your family!! I love that you doubled this! We have doubled this specific recipe before too because we LOVE it!! xoxoxo
Ashley@blondegirlcravings says
This looks tasty! I know my kiddos would do some serious work on this dish.
Chels R. says
Mmm, I love Sloppy Joes! I’ve put a sloppy joe mixture on top of a pizza before but never thought to put it into pasta. Love how simple it is.