These Wimpies, or sloppy joes, are my grandma’s recipe. We’ve been enjoying this 30 minute recipe for years and they’re always a huge hit. They’re so much better than the canned version from the grocery store but just as easy to make.
My mom would make them for every party and get together and someone always ended up leaving the party with her recipe.
SAVE THIS RECIPE!
Enter your email below and we’ll send this recipe straight to your inbox.
Why this Sloppy Joe Recipe is a Keeper
- 20 Minute Meal: These easy sloppy joes only take 20 minutes to make. Perfect for a busy life.
- Easy Ingredients: All of the ingredients for these tender sandwiches can be found in your kitchen or local grocery store.
- Family Friendly: Homemade sloppy joes are a popular choice at cookouts and barbecues. They’re super simple, and are fun to eat.
If you’re browsing for more of the best sloppy joe recipes, try these: Sloppy Joe Grilled Cheese, Sloppy Joe Puffs, and Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes.
Why Are they Called Wimpies?
While these ground beef sandwiches have lots of different names, they may be called “wimpies” in Pennsylvania. This may be because of the “wimpy” buns, which fall apart easily, or they may be named after the character Wimpy from the classic cartoon Popeye, who was known for eating hamburgers.
Ingredient Notes for Ground Beef Sandwiches
- Ground Beef: Ground beef makes up the sloppy joe patties. An 80-20% beef is recommended.
- Ketchup: You can use hot sauce in addition to ketchup when coating the wimpies to make the sloppy joe’s sauce.
- Green Peppers: The original recipe calls for a chopped green bell pepper. However, you can use any color of bell pepper you want.
See the recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements.
Variations and Substitutions for this Wimpies Recipe
There are lots of different ways to make wimpies. Perhaps you want to make yours closer to your mom’s recipe or grandma’s. Here are some tips for changing them up to your liking:
- Use Ground Turkey: Instead of ground beef, you can substitute ground turkey or ground chicken instead. You can also use a can of Manwich.
- Tomato Sauce: Tomato sauce can be used in place of ketchup in this hearty comfort food.
- Crock Pot: Instead of on the stove, you can also cook the meat in a crock pot, slow cooker, or instant pot. Alternatively, you can bake this recipe into a casserole, or fry the ground meat in an air fryer.
- Brown Sugar: Instead of granulated sugar, you can use brown sugar in this recipe for a sweeter taste.
Meat Pro Tip
When browning your ground beef and vegetables, make sure to get a good sear. This adds richness to the base of your sauce.
How to Make Old Fashioned Sloppy Joes
These are the basic steps for making sloppy joes from scratch. Refer to the full, printable recipe card below for detailed instructions and nutrition information.
1. Cook the Beef
First, brown ground beef with onions and peppers in a large skillet on medium heat. Then, drain well and return the meat to the skillet.
2. Assemble Sloppy Joes and Add Seasoning
Add the vinegar, ketchup, celery seed, dry mustard, sugar, and salt and pepper. Simmer for 15 minutes to let the juices evaporate some, stirring often, then serve on your favorite sandwich roll or hamburger buns.
Best Sloppy Joe Recipe FAQs
Store the meat mixture in an airtight container in the fridge.
Reheat the beef mixture in the microwave or on the stovetop, then add to a bun.
If you’re looking for toppings, try onions, pickles, mushrooms, celery, barbecue sauce, or jalapenos.
Expert Tips for Making Easy Sloppy Joes
- Hot Sauce: Try putting a little hot sauce, chili powder, or jalapeno peppers into the wimpies for a spicy twist.
- Double: Double the recipe by increasing the ingredients in the directions proportionally.
- Flavor: For more yummy flavor, you can add lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, or thicken the sauce mixture with chili sauce.
- Vegetables: If you have a hard time getting your kids to eat their veggies, try sneaking in some finely chopped vegetables to your sloppy joes. They will never know!
- Rice: If you are gluten-free, serve over tender rice or mashed potatoes.
- Soup: Heat some soup in a saucepan to serve along with the sloppy joes.
What to Serve with Sloppy Joes
If you liked this recipe, try these ones, and be sure to follow us on social media for more delicious recipes!
SAVE THIS RECIPE!
Enter your email below and we’ll send this recipe straight to your inbox.
Wimpies (Easy Sloppy Joes)
Video
SAVE THIS RECIPE!
Enter your email and we’ll send this recipe to your inbox.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Ground Beef
- 1 Green Bell Pepper, chopped
- 1 Onion, chopped
- ¾ cup Ketchup
- 1 teaspoon Celery Seed
- 2 teaspoon Dry Mustard
- 1 teaspoon Vinegar
- 2 teaspoon Sugar
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Pepper
Instructions
- Brown beef with onions and peppers in a large skillet.
- Drain well and return to skillet.
- Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Serve on your favorite sandwich roll.
Christina’s Notes
- Hot Sauce: Try putting a little hot sauce and some jalapeno peppers into the wimpies for a spicy twist.
- Vegetables: If you have a hard time getting your kids to eat their veggies, try sneaking in some finely chopped vegetables to your sloppy joes. They will never know!
- Rice: If you are gluten free, serve over rice, rice cauliflower or even mashed potatoes to make a hearty meal.
- Scale the recipe: Simply adjust the serving size in the recipe card and the ingredients will update automatically.
- Make your own All Purpose Seasoning: When a recipe calls for All Purpose Seasoning, you can use my homemade All Purpose Seasoning recipe or substitute salt and pepper to taste.
- Meat doneness: I always use a meat thermometer to test for doneness when cooking meat.
- Use unsalted butter: I use unsalted butter so I can control the salt level in the recipe.
- Preheat the oven: Unless otherwise noted, always preheat your oven before baking.
For more helpful information about this recipe, such as variations, substitutions and other pro-tips, check out the blog post.
We love sloppy joes! Thanks for the recipe.
Sloppy Joes are one of our very favorite dinners. I can’t wait to try this recipe.
I too was raised in the 50 ties Scranton, Pa. My mom worked the Wimpy Stand at Rocky Glenn on Polish Day
The difference between Sloppy Joes and Wimpies is this: Sloppy Joes are made with only ground beef. Wimpies are made with a mixture of ground beef and ground “SPAM”. Yes, you read it right…. SPAM! I have the original recipe, that was sold at Rocky Glenn. I have made this for very large groups, e.g. graduations, street fairs, etc. People always wonder about the unique taste, yet can’t identify it. I brought a portion of ‘Scranton’ to a little mountain town in CA (Coarsegold)
Bill Snigar
snigar@sti.net — Coarsegold, CA
WOW! I never knew that! Thanks for sharing your story with me. It’s fascinating. I remember going to Rocky Glen when I was little. I just may give SPAM a try in the recipe! 🙂
Just made these tonight for dinner and they are excellent! They are nice and mild. Not too much of a red sauce or bite to them. Thanks for publishing!
I’m so glad you liked them!! They are a family favorite for sure!
Love it! Looking forward to enjoying them during the game today!
I hope you liked them! 🙂
This was my dads famous dish we make always!! The recipe is very close he uses one different ingredient which is hard to find ….so I HAVE PRINTED YOUR’S OUT .
Thank You for this new one we will try I’m sure its yummy…..
YAY! Glad I could help!
I am from Central PA originally and we call them Barbeque sandwiches….I’ll never forget moving to St. Louis and inviting people over for Barbeque!!!! They thought they were getting pork steaks! haha Moved to Texas and they thought they were getting beef steaks….we always get a laugh out of it! Your recipe looks good…not quite the same as mine, we use Heinz chili sauce and yellow mustard…no celery seed.
We called them Hamburger Shortcake in our family. That is what my mother’s family called it, growing up in Nebraska. And, they were what they always ate on Christmas Eve!
We are having 13 people over for Easter. I wanted something easy and fun that would not require a lot of time in the kitchen. Last night I decided on Sloppy Joes and Banana Pudding. I am going to make the SJ mixture in the crock pot so it can simmer a couple hrs. Everyone will be able to help themselves. I love carrot sticks with my SJ. I remember them in our school cafeteria when I was a kid. Just remember the SJ and the carrot sticks. Not sure what else was served. I chop up all my peppers in all colors and then freeze them in gallon bags. When I need them I just take what I need. Cuts down prep time. I do this when the peppers are on sale. Same with my onions.
Oh my!! Those look amazing. I will have to make these for sure. Thanks!
I can’t wait to try this ! We would call them untidy Joseph’s when we were little 🙂
That is an awesome name! I love it!
We love sloppy joes, especially for family parties. Yum!
We love sloppy joes. I never heard them called Wimpies before.
I was just talking to my oldest about making sloppy joes!
Looks yummy- and easy, too- can’t wait to try it 🙂
cant find “print”
The Print Link is right under the photo in the recipe.
When I grew up in the 50’s ,Wimpies weren’t party food; this was (especially in the colder months in Scranton,Pa.) a staple menu favorite! Pasta, potato soup, wimpies, scallops & taters from Phillips Seafood on Fridays (Catholic upbringing) got us happily through the winter months. Thanks for sharing!!
You are so very welcome! As a fellow Scrantonian, I know how popular they are — most people from out of the area don’t even know what a wimpie is! I’m so glad you like the recipe and thanks for stopping by!
Very shortly this web page will be famous among all blog visitors, due to it’s nice posts
I like the sound of this recipe. And need to make for a crowd. 20 pounds of burger at least. Would chopping the pepper and onions in food processor affect the recipe? Thanks!
I don’t think so. I would drain off any excess liquid that you get when it comes out of the food processor and I wouldn’t chop them too fine, either. I hope you like it! And thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Thanks! Was thinking the same thing about the extra liquid. Guess we’ll just have a ‘chopping’ party…lol.
I made the whimpies….they were easy and delicious!!!!
Thanks, Cathy! I’m glad you liked them!