Not Your Average Sloppy Joes: A Sweet & Spicy Chicken Twist

I have a habit of picking up recipes in our travels and modifying them when I get home. I grabbed this one because the picture looked amazing. But once I got home, I realized it called for several of the store’s specialty ingredients. Ingredients unfortunately I hadn’t picked up.

Challenge accepted.

I wanted all that sweet, spicy flavor without requiring you to track down a specific seasoning blend or sauce. The result? These Spicy Chicken Sloppy Joes: easy enough for a weeknight, with just the right amount of heat.

Spicy Chicken Sloppy Joes

Spicy Chicken Sloppy Joes are an easy weeknight dinner made with ground chicken, a homemade spice blend and honey habanero BBQ sauce. Easy to prepare and perfect for busy nights!

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Course Main Course

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

  

• 1 lb ground chicken
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• ½ yellow onion diced
• ½ green bell pepper finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• ¼ cup Honey Habanero Barbecue Sauce or your favorite sauce
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• ¼ cup water
• 4 Brioche rolls toasted

Spice Blend

• 1 tsp brown sugar
• ¾ tsp paprika
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ¼ tsp mustard powder
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• ⅛ tsp ground coriander
• ⅛ tsp cumin
• Pinch cayenne

Let’s Cook!

 

• Prepare the spice blend and set aside
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper and cook for 3–4 minutes, until softened. Add garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.
• Add ground chicken. Break it up and cook until no longer pink, about 5–6 minutes.
• Sprinkle the spice blend over the chicken mixture and stir to coat evenly.
• Stir in tomato paste, BBQ sauce and water until everything is well combined.
• Reduce heat to low and simmer for 8–10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thick and the mixture is properly sloppy (but not soupy).
• Spoon onto toasted brioche buns and add provolone and/or coleslaw if desired.

Notes From My Kitchen

• This is a great make-ahead dish, just reheat while you’re toasting the rolls for serving
• You can adjust the spices and the sauce to your comfort level 
• We love topping them with provolone cheese and coleslaw (especially if you’ve gone a little wild with the spices!) 

Keyword chicken, Easy, make ahead, spicy

Need a quick side? Toss your favorite frozen fries with olive oil, ranch seasoning, and pepper and air fry them for 12-15 minutes. Refrigerator pickles are also the perfect cool, crunchy side.

Eat well friends!

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