Lentil Sloppy Joes

I love the Food Network magazine and can usually find a recipe I want to make right away after I am done reading it. This sloppy joe recipe looked so perfect, and it was even low calorie because I swapped out the ground beef for ground chicken. I love comfort food and foods that remind me of being a kid, and I loved these sandwiches growing up.




You probably already have a lot of these ingredients, you need some ground chicken or turkey, garlic, lentils, ketchup, worcestershire sauce, oregano, green pepper, carrot, buns, cheese and some pickles. I loved the idea of a pickle on the sandwich to add a little sour to the sweetness.


There is a lot of chopping involved, but I enjoy chopping veggies. Get everything cut up and measured.


Heat up some oil and get everything staged near the stove.


Add in the onion, carrot, pepper and 2 tbs of ketchup. Let this cook about 3 minutes while stirring. This combo smelled so good!


Add in the garlic and let that cook for about 30 seconds.


Add in the lentils and 4 cups of water, bring this to a boil. Don't worry if this seems like a lot of water, it will all be absorbed and cooked down. Reduce the heat and let this simmer for about 40-50 minutes.


Everything reduced and thickened and got deliciously combined. Taste it here and add in some salt and pepper if needed.


Brown up your ground meat for a few minutes.


Add in the worcestershire and the rest of the ketchup.


Stir in the lentil mixture and one more cup of water and let this cook for about 10 minutes.


Everything reduces and thickens and becomes super tasty.


I put a little grated cheese on the bottom of the bun and topped with the sloppy joe and finished with the pickle. If the pickle seems like it might be weird, trust me, it really was delicious and added a little bit of sour and crunch to balance out the sweetness of the lentil mixture. You couldn't even tell the lentils were there so this would be a great way to hide these high fiber and protein packed morels from someone who is not a fan of beans.