Hi OP,

I know you found a good recipe but thought I would post this one, too, which is the one I use:

Sloppy Joes (Slow cooker and Stove Top Recipe)
Ingredients
2-1/2 pounds Ground Beef
1/2 whole Large Onion, Diced
1 whole Large Green Bell Pepper, Diced
5 cloves Garlic, Minced
1-1/2 cup Ketchup (13 oz bottle)
1 cup Water (rinse out ¾ of the ketchup bottle)
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
2 tsp Chili Powder
1 tsp Dry Mustard
1/4 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
1-1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Black Pepper
Directions for Stove Top
Brown and drain ground beef, add in Bell Peppers, Onions and Minced Garlic. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add Ketchup, Water, Brown Sugar, Red Pepper Flakes, Tomato Paste, Salt, and Black Pepper. Cook over medium/low heat for 10 minutes or until warmed through. Serve on sandwich buns, toasted if desired.
Directions for Slow Cooker
Brown and drain Ground beef. Add cooked Ground Beef, Bell Peppers, Onions, Minced Garlic, Ketchup, Water, Brown Sugar, Red Pepper Flakes, Tomato Paste, Salt, and Black Pepper to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 4 - 6 hours. Serve on Sandwich Buns, Toasted if desired.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks again, everyone! I made a hybrid of the Cooks Illustrated and the Pioneer Woman recipes, plus I replaced a lot of the ketchup with barbecue sauce, per the comments on Pioneer Woman. I was actually surprised at how good it turned out! In between bites, my 5yo would shout "I love this! I love this so much!" so I guess we'll be having sloppy joes again soon.

I posted the Cook's Illustrated recipe and it's one of my kids' favorites. My 10 year old has requested it as his birthday dinner for 3 years in a row!

OP here. Thanks again, everyone! I made a hybrid of the Cooks Illustrated and the Pioneer Woman recipes, plus I replaced a lot of the ketchup with barbecue sauce, per the comments on Pioneer Woman. I was actually surprised at how good it turned out! In between bites, my 5yo would shout "I love this! I love this so much!" so I guess we'll be having sloppy joes again soon.

I make this one and it is always a hit:

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/sloppy-joes-sandwiches

^10x more difficult

Manwich lover here. I made some myself and it was 10x and not nearly as good. We only eat them one every few years, so it's not worth the headache to cook from scratch.

It is so easy OP -- you can make it in a crockpot -
http://crockpotladies.com/crockpot-sloppy-joes-2/

I am super lame but I would never use Manwich. Gross. Make it yourself. It's simple.

I use the pioneer woman recipe.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/sloppy-joes/