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National Sloppy Joe Day

Food · March 18

A day for the Sloppy Joe, the loose, saucy ground beef sandwich on a soft bun that tends to end up on your hands as much as in your mouth.

National Sloppy Joe Day falls on Thursday, March 18, 2027. That is 142 days away.

A Sloppy Joe is ground beef cooked down in a sweet, tangy tomato sauce and spooned onto a soft hamburger bun. It is not shaped into a patty, so the filling stays loose. That looseness is the whole point, and also the reason for the name.

The sauce usually leans on ketchup or tomato sauce, with onion, a little brown sugar, mustard and sometimes Worcestershire sauce. Some cooks add green pepper. The result is somewhere between a burger and a chili, rich and a bit messy, and it soaks into the bun in a way people either love or carefully plan around.

It is a familiar weeknight dinner in many American homes, partly because it comes together in one pan with ingredients most kitchens already have. School cafeterias and church suppers have served it for a long time, which gives it a nostalgic pull for a lot of people.

Marking the day mostly means making a batch. Toasting the bun helps it hold up against the sauce. Plenty of people swap the beef for turkey, lentils or crumbled plant protein, and the sauce still does its job. A fork on the side is not cheating.

Leftover filling keeps well in the fridge and is good the next day over rice, baked potatoes or plain toast.

Ways to celebrate

• Cook a pan of Sloppy Joe filling from scratch for dinner.
• Toast the buns first so they hold the sauce better.
• Try a version with lentils or ground turkey instead of beef.
• Ask an older relative how they made Sloppy Joes growing up.

Dates

All national days on March 18

Also on March 18

• National Lacy Oatmeal Cookie Day
• Awkward Moments Day
• Absolutely Incredible Kid Day
• Forgive Mom and Dad Day

Categories: Food days