Garlic Bread Sloppy Joes

Name: Garlic Bread Sloppy Joes
Prep time: 7 min
Cook time: 13 min
Total time: 20 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 16 ounces (454 g) lean ground beef (see note 1); one 10-ounce frozen garlic bread (or one 11.25-ounce box garlic Texas toast); ¾ cup (204 g) ketchup; 2 tablespoons (30 ml) Worcestershire sauce; 1 tablespoon (15 g) yellow mustard; ½ tsp garlic powder; 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste; 1/3 cup (79 ml) water; 1 cup (112 g) shredded cheddar cheese blend

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This recipe for garlic bread sloppy joes is comfort food at its most effortless. With only a handful of basic ingredients (most are pantry items!) and a box of frozen garlic bread, you can make this hearty dinner in only about 20 minutes.

slices of garlic bread on cutting board topped with sloppy joe meat and melted cheese.

How can one improve upon the nostalgic, hearty goodness of sloppy joes? By combining them with another delicious comfort food - garlic bread, of course!

Garlic bread sloppy joes are just what they sound like: tangy and sweet sloppy joes, but instead of plain old hamburger buns, we're using crispy and buttery garlic bread. And, let's add some melted cheese on top for good measure 🙂

This easy dinner recipe comes together in only 20 minutes, and, with only a handful of mostly frozen and pantry items. So if you are craving comfort food and are about to order Door Dash, put down your phone and make this instead (you won't regret it!).

Need more quick and easy comfort recipes using ground beef? Try my recipes for cheesy chili cornbread casserole or creamy hamburger potato soup.

Jump to:

Recipe ingredients
Step by step photos
Tips and tricks
Make it ahead!
Storage and reheating
Recipe FAQs
Related recipes
📖 Recipe

Recipe ingredients

Here are the ingredients you will need to make this easy sloppy joe garlic bread:

ingredients for garlic read sloppy joes.

Ingredient notes

Frozen garlic bread: you can either use a loaf of garlic bread, or Texas toast-style pieces of frozen garlic bread.
Lean ground beef: I like to use lean ground beef (around 90 - 93% lean) because I am too lazy to drain the excess grease from the browned beef. But any kind of ground beef will work (you will just have to drain any excess grease after browning).
Shredded cheese: you can use any type of shredded melting cheese that you like; I used a cheddar blend. Colby Jack, Monterey Jack, or mozzarella will all work well.

Step by step photos

Here is a step by step breakdown on how to make the sloppy joe garlic bread recipe:

uncooked garlic bread on pan covered in tin foil.

(1) Place the frozen garlic bread on a tray. Cook the garlic bread as directed on the package.

(2) Brown the ground beef in a pan.

Top Tip

While optional, lining the baking tray with aluminum foil will make for easier cleanup. (I would avoid parchment paper however, because it will get burned in the broiler).

ground beef in pan with ketchup mustard and seasonings.

(3) Add the remaining sloppy joe ingredients (minus the cheese).

(4) Turn the heat down and simmer the sloppy joe mixture for about 4 - 5 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened.

(5) Remove the cooked garlic bread from the oven. Move the oven rack up, and start the broiler.

two pieces of garlic bread covered with sloppy joe meat.

(6) Top the cooked garlic bread with the sloppy joe mixture.

hand sprinkling shredded cheese on garlic bread topped with sloppy joe meat.

(7) Then top with the shredded cheese.

two halves of a loaf of garlic bread on pan covered with sloppy joe meat and melted cheese.

(8) Broil the sloppy joe garlic bread for about 2 - 3 minutes, or until the cheese is browned and bubbly.

Tips and tricks

If you have one, use your toaster oven to cook the garlic bread and broil the cheese. A toaster oven will preheat much more quickly than a regular oven, and will keep your kitchen from heating up as well!

If you want the sloppy joe to be a little saucier, you can add in more water as needed.

This recipe doesn't call for salt, because most of the other ingredients are already quite salty. So, if you want to add additional salt to taste, go easy at first.

Make it ahead!

To save even more time, you can make the sloppy joe mixture up to 2 days in advance. Store it covered in the fridge until ready to use. Then heat it up in a skillet until bubbling. (Add a bit more water if the mixture looks a little dry.)

Storage and reheating

Wrap any leftovers in aluminum foil, or place them in an airtight food storage container. Store the leftover garlic bread sloppy joes in the fridge, up to 2 - 3 days.

To reheat the leftovers, place on a baking tray and loosely tent the tray with foil. (This prevents the bread from getting too browned.) Bake in a 350 degree F (177 C) preheated oven for 12 - 15 minutes, or until warmed through. Remove the foil for the last 2 - 3 minutes in the oven.

Optional step: to "freshen up" the sloppy joes a bit more, add some more shredded cheese on top before reheating.

Recipe FAQs

What kind of garlic bread should I use?

Any type of garlic bread will work for garlic bread sloppy joes. You can use either a loaf of garlic bread, or individual Texas toast garlic breads. You can even make homemade garlic bread if you want! If making your own, just be mindful of the size of garlic bread you need to make sure you will have the correct ratio of bread to filling. About 10 - 12 ounces of garlic bread will work well here.

What kind of ground beef should I use for sloppy joes?

As I mentioned above, I prefer to use lean ground beef (around 90 - 93% lean). This is because lean ground beef won't release a ton of excess grease that you need to drain off. But, you can use any type of ground beef you want, just be sure to drain off any excess grease before adding the other ingredients to the pan.

Additionally, you could also try making these garlic bread sloppy joes with ground pork, turkey or chicken!

What are good sides for sloppy joes?

Sloppy joes go well with most vegetable or potato side dishes. Try roasted or grilled mixed veggies, a green salad, and/or oven baked fries or sweet potato fries. Sloppy joes also pair perfectly with baked beans and/or coleslaw.

If you're looking for some side dish ideas, try my recipes for air fryer frozen green beans, honey orange glazed carrots, cottage fries, or lemon herb roasted asparagus.

hand pulling slice of garlic bread from cut loaf covered with sloppy joe meat and cheese.

If you’ve tried this recipe, please leave a star rating and/or review in the comments section below, I would love to hear from you! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. And sign up for my weekly newsletter to get recipes delivered straight to you!