Make one-pot lentil sloppy joes in 30 minutes for an easy weeknight vegan meal. Homemade sloppy joe sauce is extra flavorful and veggie-forward with the addition of onion, garlic, bell pepper, and carrots.
Growing up sloppy joes were a staple in my family. When I went vegan, that didn't change! My go-to substitution is lentils because they're tiny and cook quickly.
If I'm being honest though, my favorite part about sloppy joes is the sauce. Has been and always will be! Tomato combined with red wine vinegar, soy sauce, and brown sugar is oh so flavorful.
Because of this, I usually cook an entire package of dry lentils and then add them to the sauce. This way, I can add fewer lentils if I want a saucier (and I daresay sloppier) sloppy joe.
The second best part is the bread! To make this simple meal a little fancier we would serve it on a French baguette. The combination of that sauce with warm, fresh-out-of-the oven bread guarantees this is a meal you will look forward to time and time again.
Ingredient Notes
You will need these simple ingredients to make vegan sloppy joes:
Lentils are key to making plant-based sloppy joes! I tested this recipe with red and brown lentils; both taste great! Green lentils take a bit longer to cook but should also work.
Sloppy Joe sauce brings together the entire recipe! It consists of tomato sauce, tomato paste, red wine vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, chili powder, and ground cumin.
The recipe card below includes the full list of ingredients + instructions.
How to Make Lentil Sloppy Joes
- Cook lentils until tender and then drain.
- Sauté onion, garlic, carrot, and bell pepper.
- Add sloppy joe sauce and simmer.
- Add lentils and finish cooking!
Ways to Serve
For an extra special meal, I like to serve these vegan sloppy joes on French bread. Vegan coleslaw and smashed broccoli are both easy sides to serve it with.
When I have leftovers they are also a great topping for loaded potato nachos.
Want more tasty vegan recipes sent to your inbox?
Lentil Sloppy Joes
Ingredients
Lentils
- 1 ½ cups dry brown or red lentils see notes
- 3 ⅓ cups vegetable broth
Sloppy Joe Sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small white onion finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 red bell pepper finely chopped
- 1 carrot finely chopped
- 16 ounces tomato sauce
- 6 ounces tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce or tamari for gluten-free
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
For Serving
- hamburger bun or baguette, lettuce wrap
Instructions
Cook the Lentils
- Rinse 1 ½ cups dry brown or red lentils with cold water and sort through them to remove any bad pieces.
- Bring 3 ⅓ cups vegetable broth to a boil.
- Add the lentils and bring them to a boil.
- Reduce the heat and simmer the lentils uncovered for 7 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. The lentils should be tender.
- Drain the lentils and place them in the bowl where you plan to store leftover sloppy joes.
Prepare the Sloppy Joes
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat in the same pot you cooked the lentils in.
- Add 1 small white onion, 3 garlic cloves, 1 red bell pepper, and 1 carrot, and sauté for 5 minutes or until vegetables are softened and starting to brown.
- Add 16 ounces tomato sauce, 6 ounces tomato paste, 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1 teaspoon chili powder, and 1 teaspoon ground cumin to the pan and stir to combine.
- Simmer the sloppy joe sauce for about 5 minutes.
- Stir in lentils and simmer for an additional 5 minutes.
- Spoon over bread choice and enjoy!
Notes
Email me the recipe!
I'll send you a link so you can come back to this later.
Plus more tasty vegan recipes every week. Unsubscribe at any time.
* The provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Accuracy will vary on specific ingredients and brands used.
Jean says
Can I omit the soy sauce to make this low sodium?
Sarah Pilley says
Hi Jean! Yes, that should work! The soy sauce is really just for extra flavor.