My mind was blown when my sister, Julie, introduced me to these Kung Pao Sloppy Joes earlier this week. Made with ground beef, red bell pepper, green onions, fresh garlic and ginger root, topped with a sweet and spicy sauce, this Asian twist on sloppy joes are “next level.” The idea sounded incredible and since I had most everything on hand, I immediately tried the recipe for myself. The results were astounding — the mixture of flavors hit my tastebuds and I fell in love. They remind me of lettuce wraps, but with a bun. I’m such a fan, I have made Kung Pao Sloppy Joes twice in one week. They’re amazing!

Kung Pao Sloppy Joes

• 1 package Sweet Hawaiian sandwich buns, toasted in oven at 400° F for 10 minutes to lightly brown
• beef mixture
• slaw mixture

Beef Mixture

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger root
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 green onions, sliced

• 7 tablespoons soy sauce

• 2 teaspoons Sriracha chili sauce
• 4 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons corn starch
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/3 head of red cabbage, thinly sliced

2 green onions, sliced

2 tablespoons sesame oil

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1/2 cup spicy peanuts, chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 ° F. Brown ground beef on medium high heat in a skillet with the green onions, bell pepper, fresh garlic and ginger root until beef is done.

Whisk together soy sauce, chili sauce, vinegar, oil, brown sugar and water. Pour over cooked beef mixture and simmer a few minutes.

Stir slaw ingredients together. Set aside until ready to top sloppy joes meat mixture.

Open buns and place on baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven for ten minutes or until golden and toasted.

Assemble sloppy joes with mix mixture then slaw.

Instead of full sized buns, they also make handy little sliders with King’s Hawaiian sweet rolls.