It’s nice to switch things up and use the pressure cooker instead of the air fryer. Tis’ the season to enjoy a weekend of watching sports and eating great food. Sloppy Joe’s are always perfect for the occasion cause who doesn’t love a juicy, tender and flavorful sloppy joe sandwich? This recipe is shared from our sister site BestRecipeBox.com. If you’re needing an easy every day recipe, check that website for non air fryer foods!

Instant Pot Sloppy Joes Recipe in Pressure Cooker or Slow Cooker | @bestreciepbox

Why You Should Make Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Sloppy Joe

If you love a good messy, juicy sandwich then you’re probably a fan of a great sloppy joe. This is one of the best sloppy joe recipes we’ve been able to finalize over the past few weeks. After much testing and tasting, we’ve found the right balance of sweet, tangy and juicy ground beef sloppy joes. Best of all, we’re making it all in our favorite pressure cooker, the Instant Pot. But it’s also great in a slow cooker as well if you’re wanting to make a slow cooker sloppy joe. There’s a lot of flexibility with this sloppy joe recipe and how you cook it.

Video: Instant Pot (Pressure Cooker) Sloppy Joes

Instant Pot Sloppy Joes Recipe in Pressure Cooker or Slow Cooker | @bestreciepbox

Beyond the Bun: Different Ways to Serve Soppy Joes

We love serving them with a warm hamburger bun but this isn’t the only option! If you want to mix it up and have some delicious fun, here’s some great ideas:

  • Use hot dog buns if that’s all you have! These sloppy joe “dogs” are amazing.
  • Add a spoonful of this to mashed potatoes, pasta or rice. It’s a great comfort food.
  • Oh wow, a sloppy joe grilled cheese sandwich is to die for. Tender, melty and cheesy bites of grilled cheese and sloppy joe meat mix is outstanding.
  • Taco, quesadillas or burritos are great.
  • Nachos for sure! The crumbled meat with some queso cheese on top is the perfect sloppy joe nacho dish.
Instant Pot Sloppy Joes Recipe in Pressure Cooker or Slow Cooker | @bestreciepbox

Instant Pot Sloppy Joe

Yield: 8 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Add extra seasonings if you want for a burst of extra flavor! When the meat cools down a bit it’ll be less saucy. So if you like saucy sloppy joes, then eat it while it’s still warm!
Using a leaner meat will reduce the amount of fat in the final sloppy joes. Pressure cookers keep everything contained so the fat liquids don't get cooked off at all.
5 from 11 votes

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Ingredients

  • 2 pounds (907 g) ground beef (preferably about a a 90% or 85% lean meat)
  • 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil
  • 1 medium onion , diced
  • 3-4 cloves fresh garlic , minced
  • 1 cup (240 g) ketchup
  • 1/2 cup (123 g) tomato sauce
  • 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) yellow mustard or dijon mustard
  • 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon (5 ml) chili powder
  • Kosher salt , to taste
  • black pepper , to taste

For the sandwich:

  • 8 burger buns , warmed or toasted
  • 2 cups (226 g) shredded cheddar cheese , optional
  • Pickles , optional

Equipment

  • Instant Pot (Pressure Cooker)

Instructions 

For Instant Pot

  • Turn Instant Pot on "Sauté”.  Add 1 Tablespoon of olive oil. Sauté diced onions and minced garlic until soft and fragrant. Add 2 pounds of ground beef. Cook beef mixture for about 3 minutes, or until lightly browned.
    Browning beef in Instant pot
  • Add 1 cup of ketchup, 1/2 cup tomato sauce, 2 Tablespoons mustard, 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon chili powder, and salt & pepper to taste (we usually do about 1/2 teaspoon of each). Give the mixture a good stir.
    Sauce ingredients added to beef
  • Close the lid and pressure cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. (These are the steps we did for our Instant Pot: Close lid and close pressure release valve. Press "Cancel" to stop the "Sauté" setting.  Press the "Manual" button. Set the time to 10 minutes.)
    Instant Pot panel
  • After the cooking time is complete, press “Cancel” and carefully release the pressure.
    Releasing pressure on Instant Pot
  • Serve the beef mixture between the bread and add your optional favorite toppings like cheese or pickles.
    Sloppy joe sandwich

For Slow Cooker

  • In slow cooker add all the sloppy joe ingredients except for the olive oil (2 lbs. ground beef, diced onion, minced garlic, 1 cup ketchup, 1/2 cup tomato sauce, 2 Tablespoons mustard, 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon chili powder, and salt & pepper to taste (we usually do about 1/2 teaspoon of each). Gently mix together all the ingredients to make everything combine well.
  • Cover and cook the mixture on low for 7 hours or about 4 hours on high. After cooked, give the sloppy joe mixture a good stir. Serve the sloppy joe mixture between the bread and add your optional favorite toppings like cheese or pickles.

If your air fryer is preheated or if you are cooking multiple batches, you may need to reduce timing by a few minutes (unless preheating is called for in the recipe).

Video

YouTube video

Nutrition Information per Serving

Calories: 522kcal, Carbohydrates: 33g, Protein: 31g, Fat: 28g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Cholesterol: 86mg, Sodium: 905mg, Potassium: 593mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 11g, Vitamin A: 355IU, Vitamin C: 4.8mg, Calcium: 231mg, Iron: 4.4mg
Course: Main Course, Sandwiches
Cuisine: American
Calories: 522

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This recipe was originally published in 2019.