American
Lentil Sloppy Joes
Brown lentils simmered with onion, tomato sauce, mustard, and chili powder, piled on buns. A vegetarian sandwich that is actually saucy.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Total
- 40 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
Why you’ll love it
- Lentils are cheap and cook in the sauce.
- Mustard and chili powder keep it from tasting like plain tomato.
- It is a full sandwich, not a side of lentils.
- Leftovers reheat well for another night of buns.
Ingredients
Ingredient amounts scale. Oven temperature and cook time do not. Salt, spices, and leaveners are a starting point after you scale. Taste and adjust.
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Instructions
- 1
Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium. Cook the onion and pepper until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic for 30 seconds.
- 2
Add the lentils and water. Simmer 18 to 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender but not mush.
- 3
Stir in the tomato sauce, mustard, brown sugar, chili powder, Worcestershire or soy, and salt.
- 4
Simmer uncovered 8 to 10 minutes, until thick enough to sit on a bun.
- 5
Taste and add salt if it needs it.
- 6
Spoon onto the buns.
Pro tips
- Rinse the lentils. Dust from the bag makes the sauce gritty.
- If they are still crunchy when the water is gone, add another splash and keep simmering.
- Soy sauce instead of Worcestershire keeps the pot vegetarian. Use that if the bottle of Worcestershire contains anchovy.
Easy substitutions
- Brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon ketchup.
- Buns
- Baked potatoes, split, with the lentil mix on top.
Storage and reheating
Storage
Refrigerate up to 4 days. The mixture thickens.
Reheating
Warm in a saucepan with a splash of water until hot and spoonable.
Nutrition
Estimates per serving, using standard ingredient averages and rounded to the nearest gram. This is not a lab analysis, and it shifts if you change brands or add sides.
- Calories
- 420
- Protein
- 20 g
- Carbs
- 68 g
- Fat
- 8 g
- Fiber
- 14 g
Budget friendly · Stovetop
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From the kitchen
Kitchen tools we love
Practical tools these recipes actually use. This is not a review roundup, and these are not paid placements. If affiliate links are added later, they will be labeled and disclosed.
A heavy 12-inch skillet
Most of the chicken and steak recipes are written for one pan that holds heat. Stainless or cast iron both work.
An air fryer with a real basket
The air-fryer recipes expect a single layer. A crowded basket steams instead of browning.
A half-sheet pan
Drumsticks, potatoes, sausage, and carrots all use one. A dark pan browns faster than a very shiny one.
A sharp chef’s knife
These recipes do not need a specialty blade. A sharp 8-inch knife is faster and safer than a dull one.
A large cutting board
Big enough that the onion and the raw chicken are not sharing the same puddle.
Dry cups and a liquid cup
Desserts in particular expect level dry measures and a separate cup for milk.
An instant-read thermometer
Use it for poultry, pork chops, and meatloaf. Color is a weak guide.
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