Ground Turkey Sloppy Joes with Hoisin and Cilantro

Sloppy Joes. They totally bring you back to your elementary school days, right? I can’t think about sloppy joes without Adam Sandler’s Lunch Lady song popping into my head. And once it’s in your head, good luck getting it out! I constantly found myself humming the song as I prepped this recipe 🙂

I feel like I’ve been trying to work through the stash of ground turkey in our freezer all winter. Every time I think I’ve cooked the last of it, I find another pound lurking on the back of a shelf. We have a handful of go-to recipes like meatloaf, chili, and meatballs, but we were long overdue for a change of pace. A recipe for sloppy joes wouldn’t normally have caught my eye but this one calls for hoisin sauce, one of my all-time favorite ingredients, so I just had to give it a try.

This is a perfect weeknight dinner idea – it’s super low maintenance and comes together in less than 20 minutes. You could even make it in advance and reheat it before serving. I microwaved leftovers for lunch one day and thought they were just as good as the first night I made the recipe. The ginger, hoisin and cilantro give the sauce a flavor that’s deeper and more unique than your typical sloppy joe, but it’s not so out there as to scare off any picky eaters. If only the school cafeteria had served these sloppy joes, I would have looked forward to them a whole lot more! 🙂

Ground Turkey Sloppy Joes with Hoisin and Cilantro
barely adapted from Fine Cooking

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 medium red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, mashed to a paste with 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 lb ground turkey
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
4 sandwich rolls, toasted

Add the oil to a large nonstick skillet and set the pan over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the onion and cook until softened, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic paste, ginger and cayenne and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute, just until fragrant. Add the ground turkey to the pan and brown, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Once the turkey is browned, stir in the tomato sauce and the hoisin. Continue cooking for 5-7 more minutes, or until the sauce has thickened. Turn off the heat under the pan and stir in the cilantro and lime juice. Divide the mixture evenly among the rolls and serve.