This Sloppy Joe Casserole recipe has everything you love about the classic sauce sandwiches, but in the form of a pasta casserole instead! Simple to make, hearty, and filling, this is a warm and cozy meal that everyone will love.
What’s in Sloppy Joes Casserole?
This sloppy joe casserole brings together tons of pantry staples into an easy weeknight dinner. Here’s a rundown of the ingredients:
- Oil: Olive oil helps keep the onions from burning in the pan. You could use vegetable, canola, or avocado oil if you prefer.
- Onion: I like to use white onion in this dish because they’re mild and sweet, but a yellow onion would also work.
- Garlic: Adds a rich depth of flavor to the dish. Feel free to increase or reduce the amount according to your tastes.
- Ground Beef: I used 80% lean ground beef, but you could use leaner ground beef if you prefer. For sloppy janes, swap the beef for ground turkey!
- Ketchup: Ketchup adds the classic tomato flavor to these sloppy joes. I like the balance of sweetness and acidity in this premade ingredient, but you could swap in tomato paste for more control.
- Brown Sugar: Light brown sugar sweetens the sloppy joe sauce the perfect amount. For a richer, more molasses-y taste, you could use dark brown sugar.
- Mustard: Yellow mustard adds tanginess to the sauce. For more texture, you could use a stone ground Dijon or whole-grain mustard.
- Worcestershire Sauce: Worcestershire sauce is a holy grail ingredient for adding umami flavor.
- Broth: You can use chicken, vegetable, or beef broth in this recipe, or you can simply use water. I like chicken broth for a lighter flavor.
- Pasta: Bowtie pasta is the classic choice for this casserole, but any short-shaped pasta (like penne, rigatoni, or macaroni) will work.
- Cheese: Colby jack is a mild-flavored cheese that helps boost the cheesiness of this dish, while Velveeta helps to keep the sauce smooth and creamy. If you’re not a fan, easily swap the Velveeta for American, Swiss, cheddar, or more Colby jack!
Pro Tip: Cooking the pasta in chicken broth adds so much flavor! I don’t recommend skipping it!
Spicy Sloppy Joe Casserole Recipe (Variation)
To make this cheesy sloppy joe casserole spicier, opt for a spicy brown mustard instead of yellow, add some crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper to the ketchup sauce mixture, and swap some of the Colby jack for pepper jack!
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The best beef for sloppy joe casserole is lean ground beef. I used 80% lean, but you could go up to 90% lean if you prefer. Depending on how much fat renders out of the beef when cooking, you can drain the beef before adding it to the casserole.
Nope! Velveeta is a great inexpensive time-saving product, but you can also use American cheese, Swiss cheese, cheddar cheese, or more Colby jack cheese if you prefer.
This sloppy joe casserole can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days, and the leftovers are delicious! Reheat in the oven at 300°F, covered with foil, until warmed through. You can also microwave it for around 4 minutes on high heat.
Yes, this makes for a great freezer meal and will keep for around 3 months. You can freeze it baked or unbaked. Make sure it is cooled fully before placing in a freezer bag. If unbaked, thaw in the fridge overnight before cooking as per instructions. If already baked, thaw and reheat in the oven.
Yes! Assemble the casserole through step 11, then cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Once ready to bake, let it come to room temperature for 30 minutes, then cover and bake according to the recipe.
How to Store and Reheat Easy Sloppy Joe Casserole
Store leftover sloppy joe casserole in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in a 300°F oven covered with foil until warmed through or microwave it for around 4 minutes on high heat.
How to Freeze Sloppy Joe Pasta Casserole
Freeze sloppy joe casserole baked or unbaked in an airtight container for up to 3 months. If unbaked, let thaw in the refrigerator overnight before baking according to the recipe. If baked, let thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat in the oven.
Serving Suggestions
This pasta and beef casserole is perfect to serve by itself or with a side of veggies. It also works great with some garlic bread. Try it with sauteed green beans, glazed carrots, roasted broccoli, or baked tomatoes.
Sloppy Joe Casserole Recipe
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup diced white onion
- 3 cloves garlic finely minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 3½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 8 ounces dry bowtie pasta (½ box)
- 16 ounces Velveeta cheese cut into small pieces and divided (1 block)
- 8 ounces Colby jack cheese freshly grated and divided
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F and set aside a 9×13-inch baking dish.
- Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat then add the onion and cook until it becomes translucent.1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ cup diced white onion
- Add the garlic and cook for another minute or until it becomes fragrant.3 cloves garlic
- Add the ground beef and crumble it as you cook it until it turns a dark brown color and has cooked all the way through.1 pound ground beef
- While it’s cooking, stir the ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce together in a small bowl, then add it to the cooked beef and stir to combine.½ cup ketchup, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon yellow mustard, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- Let it simmer for a few minutes before spooning it into a bowl and setting aside for later.
- Wipe out the pan and pour in the chicken broth.3½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat, then add the pasta and cook it according to the instructions on the package.8 ounces dry bowtie pasta
- Add the beef back to the pan along with 12 ounces of the Velveeta cheese and half of the Colby jack cheese and stir as it melts to combine.16 ounces Velveeta cheese, 8 ounces Colby jack cheese
- Once it has melted fully, spread it out evenly in the casserole dish.
- Cut the remaining Velveeta cheese into tiny pieces then sprinkle it around the top of the casserole along with the remaining Colby jack cheese.
- Cover with non-stick foil and bake for 20 minutes, then again for 10 more minutes uncovered or until the edges start to crisp up and turn a dark brown color.
- Let it cool for 5 minutes before serving with freshly chopped green onions or chives.
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Becky’s tips
- Cook the pasta just less than al dente as it will continue to cook in the oven.
- Feel free to add in extra veggies, mushrooms and bell peppers are great additions!
- To make ahead, assemble the casserole through step 11, then cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Once ready to bake, let it come to room temperature for 30 minutes, then cover and bake according to the recipe.
Nutrition Information
Drain or leave the broth ?
Leave the broth!
I’m making this now and I ran into the same question. I’m going to drain I think.