That’s why I’m wearing a shirt!
I have never seen it heard of a “loose meat sandwich” before. I learned something from this thread.
Mine are so messy, default is always fork and knife.
When I served Sloppy Joes the other night, my gf was impressed. She hadn’t had one in a while. Then I told her about loose meat sandwiches, tavern sandwiches, etc. She went from impressed to nervous to frightened in a few minutes.
While out for errands yesterday, I drove past a sign at White Castle indicating they have Sloppy Joe sliders. I’ll probably be skipping those but confess a bit of curiosity.
They are a very regional food and likely a term you wouldn’t have run into unless you watch Roseanne, I guess (I never got that far in the series where they have the loose meat sandwich diner or whatever it was). I think I only learned of them maybe a dozen years ago, probably while visiting my friend in Iowa City and passing by a Maid Rite on the way. Almost all the Maid Rites, at least, are located in Iowa and western Illinois near the Iowa border. There’s one way south in Illinois, as well, and two, for some reason, in western Ohio, a bit north of Dayton. I think that could be used as a very loose proxy for where the use of the term and sandwich is centered.
Ah, yes, I saw that the other day. I had them a few years back. They were … meh. But for me, every time I get something other than my usual jalapeno cheeseburger, I’m disappointed. Here in Chicago on Wabash and Cermak, the White Castle there has a “1921” slider (there’s only four locations in the US that serve it.) It’s interesting as it’s a freshly formed and griddled patty, served with cheese, romaine lettuce, tomato, onion, and sprinkled with Lawry’s. It actually tastes like a real hamburger. That said, I still prefer my jalapeno cheeseburger. When I go to White Castle, I want a White Castle, not something that tastes like a normal (but good) hamburger.
Back in the 60s Maid Rite tried to expand cross-country. It didn’t take, but for a few years there was one in my neighborhood in San Bernardino. I remember my father correcting me when I ordered a “hamburger.” That was my first exposure to a loose meat sandwich. I’ve loved them ever since.
Sloppy Joe night.
Hence the name Sloppy. Joe was a guy who just came once in awhile
I’ve been enjoying reading so many comments about the simple Sloppy Joe! This is great.
I’ve made them with the canned Manwich sauce for years (though I do have a recipe for the sauce if I don’t happen to have any of that in the pantry). I don’t use the whole can at once since I only do about a pound of meat at a time.
I work what is essentially a swing shift from home two days a week and as the only cook in the family, have to come up with something quick n easy that we both like on those days. Joes fit the bill perfectly. I usually have mine open face and eat with knife and fork, and the hub has his like a burger.
I prefer Kaiser rolls for these, but we’re flexible since we can’t always get what we want in Covid Times.
Beans are often a side, or mixed veg, plus fruit. Reasonably healthy if you use a lower-fat ground beef, and fast.
That’s what I came here to say! Brown burger with onions, mix ketchup, mustard, brown sugar, and apple cider vinegar. Yum!
Thank you so much!
I made the “middle” recipe for Sloppy Joes two nights ago, sans scratch potato buns. I did buy some quality potato buns, however.
This was WAY too much work! 20+ ingredients is rough.They were delicious, however. I like Manwich well enough, but there are many scratch recipes that are better, and not so much prep as this fancy recipe.
Just finished the last container of SJs on a toasted (buttered!) sesame seed bun. I looked in the fridge for a thick slice of American cheese to top it with, and saw that I was out. So I used a couple of slices of XO white cheddar instead. Even better!
Washed everything down with a tall root beer on the rocks. Yum-O! 
I’m late to this thread! DH was from the mid-west and he really liked loose meat sandwiches. We couldn’t get them here so I experimented with making them. They’re basically cooked ground beef simmered in au jus. We never dipped the buns in grease (GROSS). They were a little bland, but pretty good with decent mustard which was traditional, according to him. Super messy, worse than Sloppy Joes which have a sauce to hold them together.
I am making Sloppy Joes tonight for dinner, inspired by this thread.
This thread is wild to me. Like you, sloppy joes were The Worst Food to me as a kid, and I haven’t thought about them in over 2 decades. I honestly didn’t even know they were a thing outside of cafeterias and camps.
I’m not sure if I could get over the texture as an adult, but I believe all of you when you say you can make them taste nice.
Not at Maid Rite they aren’t. The key to a superior loose meat sandwich is to cook the meat dry, I mean really dry. The sizzle at the end should be what little fat is left in the pan. There should be zero other liquid left. The meat needs to form little pebbles, not big clods. That’s why they are so messy. There is a trick to eating a Maid Rite - don’t unwrap it all the way. Just like eating a Mission-style burrito.
My gf was so very happy the night I made sloppy joes. She similarly was all nostalgic the night I made ham barbecues (a Pittsburgh thing, Isaly’s chipped-chopped ham and barbecue sauce). She is going to flip when I make spaghetti-chicken, a recipe her mom gave me, (basically a spaghetti casserole with shredded chicken).
If I introduced sloppy joes and ham barbecues to our rotation she’d probably kill me, though. 