Sloppy Josés

I have a special place in my heart for Sloppy Joes. I first discovered them in the lunchroom of Wooddale Elementary School in Edina in 1960. While I loved getting them for lunch back then, I have now come to realize that they were little more than ground beef and ketchup. One must not get too nostalgic for the Eisenhower-era Federal Lunch Program.

In my eight years of writing this blog, I have featured three different Sloppy Joe recipes: Homemade Sloppy Joes (an all-time fave of mine); Sloppy Giuseppes (an Italian version) and Banh Minh Sloppy Joes (a Vietnamese version). Today I'm adding a Mexican version to my body of work.


Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup finely diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound ground beef
1 pound chorizo sausage
6 ounces tomato paste
2-3/4 cups tomato puree
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon hot sauce
3-1/2 ounces chipotle in adobo, pureed
6 egg roll buns, toasted
6 slices pepper jack cheese (optional)


Directions

1. In a large skillet over medium heat, warm oil and sauté onions until translucent, 5 to 6 minutes. Add garlic and sauté, for 30 seconds. Add ground beef and sausage and sauté until well browned, about 10 minutes. Break up the beef and sausage as you cook.
2. Add tomato paste, tomato puree, chili powder, paprika, hot sauce and chipotle. Stir until blended. Raise heat to bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer mixture, stirring occasionally, until thick enough to spread on a sandwich, about 30 minutes.
3. Place a big, heaping mound of the Sloppy José mixture on the bottom half of the bun. If you are going to add the pepper jack cheese, heat a broiler. Put cheese on top of the Sloppy José mixture and place under broiler until cheese melts. Serve.  

Pairing: If we are talking Mexican food, Pacifico would be magnifico!

Grogs and Goldie, 1956