Homemade venison sloppy joes (aka sloppy does) are weeknight comfort food at its best. This version trades the canned mystery sauce for real spices, red wine, and crushed tomatoes. So you get big flavor without a lot of work or losing the taste of the deer meat.
You can make these sloppy joes with ground venison or with stew meat if you braise it (see recipe card notes). Either way, you end up with a hearty, saucy sandwich that makes a great meal for the whole family or dinner at deer camp.
Looking for more ways to use up all of that ground deer meat in your freezer from this year’s hunting season?
Try some of my family favorites, like venison burgers, venison tacos, and venison bolognese. For more options, browse all of my ground venison recipes.
Why Make Sloppy Joes With Venison?
Traditional sloppy joe recipes are usually made with ground beef. But that doesn’t mean you can’t use ground deer meat. The tangy, sweet tomato sauce lets you use ground venison with little to no added fat. It acts as a richness buffer so that you won’t miss the fatty beef at all. Because venison is naturally low in fat, this recipe uses olive oil, which also limits saturated fat. So you get the same classic sloppy joe feel, but made from scratch in a healthier form.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Ground venison:
- Lean ground venison works great. If you still need to grind it, see my guide on how to grind venison.
- Optional: For a juicier sandwich, venison mixed with pork or beef fat if you prefer a slightly higher fat content
Vegetables
- Onions and garlic
- Optional: Green or red bell peppers sautéed with the onions.
Tomato base & sweetness
- Crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce
- Ketchup
Sweetness & Acidity
- Dry red wine
- Apple cider vinegar
- Dijon or yellow mustard
- Light brown sugar
- Optional: A drizzle of worcestershire sauce
Spices & seasoning
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- Dried thyme
- Ground coriander
- Ground cumin
- Chile powder (I prefer chipotle)
- Smoked paprika
- Ground allspice
- Ground cinnamon
Cooking fat
- Olive oil to keep things healthy
- Optional: Use bacon fat to add smokiness and richness
Buns & toppings
- Bread: Soft sandwich bread, slider or hamburger buns. For extra richness try brioche buns
- Optional Toppings: shredded cheddar cheese, coleslaw, sliced red onion, pickles, or a drizzle of your favorite BBQ sauce.
Sloppy Joe Serving Ideas:
Loose Meat Sandwiches: You can never go wrong with serving them between two slices of soft white bread. Maybe topped off with slaw, chopped red onion, melted cheese, and a few dashes of hot sauce? This is what I call the almost near-perfect sloppy joe.
As a filling: If you’re not in the mood for a traditional sandwich, you can use this as a filling to make venison empanadas.
Recipe Tips for a better sauce
If you like a thicker, sloppy Joe mixture that really piles up on the bun, try this simple reduction step.
- Cook the recipe as written until the venison is tender and the flavors have come together.
- Use a slotted spoon to remove the meat to a bowl.
- Simmer the sauce on medium-low heat, stirring often, until it’s reduced to a thicker consistency.
- Stir the venison back into the pan and taste for salt, vinegar, and heat.
Slow Cooker Variation
If you want a more hands-off approach, sloppy joes with venison: This crockpot method is a good choice when you need one less thing to worry about after a long day.
- Brown the meat and cook the onions and garlic on the stovetop.
- Transfer everything to the crock pot, add the remaining ingredients, and stir the meat mixture well. Cover and cook on LOW for about 3 to 4 hours, or until the sauce has thickened and the flavors have developed.
Leftovers Storage and Freezing
Refrigerate: Store leftovers in a container with a tight-fitting lid. Sloppy Joes will last 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator.
Freezing: Once the mixture has cooled, you can freeze it in freezer bags or another airtight container for 2 to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
More Ground Venison Recipes
Below are a few of my other favorite comfort food dishes. For more ideas using other cuts, browse my entire collection of venison recipes.
If you make these venison sloppy joes, drop a comment or leave a review. And if you have any cooking questions or want to share your latest creations from the kitchen, give me a shout on Instagram @larry__white.
Venison Sloppy Joes
Ingredients
- 3 pounds ground venison
- ¼ cup olive oil
- Kosher salt
- 1 large onion, sliced
- 5 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, (I like Mexican cinnamon)
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon chile powder (Chipotle for heat)
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 750 ml dry red wine (one standard bottle)
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard (can sub yellow mustard)
- 2 cups crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a heavy-bottomed pot or deep-sided large skillet. Heat over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers and starts to smoke lightly, add the venison.
- Season the venison with salt and black pepper. Cook until the meat is nicely browned. Stir often for even browning.
- Reduce the heat to medium. If the pan looks dry, add more olive oil as needed. Add the onions and garlic for around 2 minutes while stirring.
- Add the chili powder, cinnamon, cumin, coriander, allspice, paprika, dried thyme, and tomato paste. Cook while stirring for 1 minute.
- Add about one cup of the red wine to deglaze the pot. Stir with a sturdy wooden spoon or spatula, scraping up any brown bits from the pot.
- Add the remaining red wine, tomatoes, vinegar, mustard, ketchup, and sugar. Stir to combine.
- Partially cover with a lid. Adjust the heat until you achieve a gentle simmer. Cook until the mixture has slightly thickened. This can take up to one hour.
NOTES
- Brown the meat and cook the onions and garlic on the stovetop.
- Transfer everything to the crock pot, add the remaining ingredients, and stir well. Cover and cook on LOW for about 3 to 4 hours, or until the sauce has thickened and the flavors have developed.
Shredded Sloppy Joes:
- Follow the steps above. Use 4 pounds of boneless venison stew meat instead of the ground meat. Work in batches if necessary to achieve a golden brown crust on the meat.
- Cover the cooking vessel completely with a lid. Cook at a slow simmer until the venison is fork-tender. This can take up to 4 hours. Add water, beef, or venison stock if the mixture becomes dry. Stir often to prevent burning.
3 thoughts on “Venison Sloppy Joes”
First time having shredded joes. We’re gonna make a these on the Regular from here on out.
We ate the whole pot in 10 minutes!
Even better than beef. My son asked for seconds and he never ever does that.