A sloppy joe that brings the heat.
This southwestern sloppy joe spices up a traditional sloppy joe with jalapeno, spicy chorizo, and green chilies. It’s then drenched in a signature tri-chile queso over some buns for a messy, sloppy joe recipe that truly lives up to the name.
The meat itself is made from a mix of ground sirloin and chorizo, for a delicious base that gets added onto with taco seasoning, and the usual southwestern flavors of diced onions, fire-roasted tomatoes, and jalapeno.
As the queso – the recipe ends up with a whole lot extra. Which is perfect because you’ll be craving a whole lot more. Just make sure to have tortilla chips on hand. It starts out with a blend of habanero jack and a classic Mexican-blend of shredded cheese. But the real star of the show is the broil-roasted triple chile blend, consisting of hatch, Anaheim, and serrano chile peppers.
If you’ve never roasted peppers before, it’s pretty easy – especially with the broiler setting in the oven. Start by preheating the broiler to high – or around 450. Then give them a good wash and pat them dry, then toss them on a foil-lined baking sheet. Before throwing them in, I like to give the peppers a good rub of olive oil and sea salt. Then once the oven is up to heat, let them broil for about 10 minutes before flipping. You’ll notice some nice black spots and blistering in the skin – this is ideal.
Flip and broil for about ten more minutes, then remove from the oven and toss in a covered bowl or in a ziplock bag and seal. This allows the peppers to steam and make them easier to peel the skin. Let them sit for about 10 more minutes, or until they are cool to the touch. Then you should be able to grab a blistered spot and slide the skin off – it should slip right off like snake skin! Then de-stem, halve, and remove the seeds. Repeat for the rest and you’ve got a delicious batch of oven-roasted peppers!
Time You Need
- Prep ~50 minutes
- Cooking (Queso + Sloppy Joes) ~40 minutes
- Yields: ~10 servings
What You Need
- ½ pound of ground chorizo
- ~1 pound of ground chuck or sirloin
- 1 packet of taco seasoning
- 4 oz green chilies
- ½ large yellow onion, diced
- 1/2 cup of mild diced jalapeno
- 1 can of fire roasted tomatoes, drained
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Slider or hamburger buns
- Optional Toppings: sliced red onions, avocado slices, guacamole
- For the queso:
- 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 4 hatch chiles, roasted, stemmed, seeded, and minced
- 1-2 serrano peppers, roasted, stemmed, seeded, and minced
- 1 Anaheim pepper, roasted, stemmed, seeded, and minced
- ½ cup of whole milk or half/half
- 1/2 cup of evaporated milk
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp of chicken bouillon powder
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- Salt, to taste
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 ½ cups of shredded habanero jack
- 1 ½ cups of Mexican-blend shredded cheese
What You Do
- In a saucepan add your olive oil and heat over medium-low heat. Then add in onion and roasted peppers. Cook for around 5 minutes, until onions are soft. Toss in corn starch and stir over ingredients, cooking for about two more minutes.
- Next, add in the evaporated milk and continue to cook for around 5 more minutes.
- Then, stir in your seasonings: Bouillon, salt, cayenne, ground pepper.
- Say CHEESE: Now we’re tossing in the shredded cheese, working one handful at a time. Stir in the cheese until it fully melts and incorporates, and then repeat for the next handful, etc. until finished.
- To finish, add in the half & half – at about 1 tbsp. at a time – until you reach the desired consistency for your queso.
- Turn to a low simmer, and set to the side, occasionally stirring while we go to work on the sloppy joes.
- For the sloppy joes:
- In a large skillet, add olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Then toss in onions, green chilies, jalapeno, and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Then toss in the chorizo and ground sirloin. Cook until browned through. And then drain.
- Next, toss in the fire-roasted tomatoes, along with taco seasoning and ½ cup of water.
- Let it simmer over low heat with a lid for about 10 minutes.
- Then drain the excess liquid and return to the stove. Add a heaping spoonful or two of the queso over the meat and stir.
- Serve over buns with extra queso, and any desired toppings.