Vegan Sloppy Joe Bake with Biscuits
An easy and fun recipe for a delicious snack or appetizer using your leftover sloppy joe.
This recipe combines two of my favorite things: vegan sloppy joes and flaky biscuits. The vegan sloppy joe recipe is made with lentils and is a fun way to get the same flavors in a different vehicle: biscuit cups! If you enjoy using lentils as a meatless option for your favorite comfort meals, check out my lentil bolognese recipe.
How to make vegan sloppy joe bake in biscuits
I prefer to either make the sloppy joe fresh or use leftover sloppy joes for the filling. This recipe uses pre-made canned biscuits but you can also make the biscuit dough fresh. Baking in the muffin tins creates the perfect cup shape to hold the vegan sloppy joe filling.
Key ingredients & substitutions for sloppy joe biscuit cups
- lentils – I like to use lentils as my protein in most of my tomato based sauces but you can also sub for mushrooms or plant-based ground meat such as impossible meat. I use either green or brown lentils but you can also use red lentils.
- biscuits – my preference is vegan friendly store-bought canned biscuits such as Trader Joe’s Organic Biscuits or Pillsbury Grandes! Flaky Layers Original Biscuits
Vegan Sloppy Joe Bake with Biscuits
Pin this RecipeVegan lentil sloppy joes baked in flaky biscuits
Equipment
- 1 muffin baking pan
Ingredients
- 1 package canned biscuits see notes above for suggestions
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup lentils
- ½ medium onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 cups water
- fresh parsley optional
- vegan cheese optional
Instructions
Vegan Sloppy Joe
- Prep the vegetables. Dice the onions and mince the garlic. If using dry lentils, Bring a small pot of water to boil and cook the dry lentils. Cook the lentils for 20 minutes, swapping out the water at the 10 minute mark.
- Cook the sauce. In a medium size pot or dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, cook the onions until translucent, around 3 minutes. Mix in the minced garlic and tomato paste. Add a little bit of water or deglaze with some dry red wine if the bottom is starting to stick to the pan. Cook for around 2 minutes. Add in the rest of the spices: cumin, chile powder, smoked paprika, and sugar. Stir the mixture together so the spices are mixed well.
- Simmer the lentils. Add the water to the sauce mixture and bring to a boil. Add in the cooked lentils and bring the heat down to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in a tsp of balsamic vinegar at the end to boost the flavor.
Biscuit Bake
- Mold the biscuits. Preheat the oven to 350℉. Remove each biscuit from the can and gently stretch the biscuits out. Spray the muffin tin with nonstick spray and place one biscuit in each muffin tin, creating a bowl in the center. The biscuits should form a shape of a cup in the muffin tin.
- Add the sloppy joe. Place a spoonful of sloppy joe into the center of the biscuit cup. I use around 1.5 – 2 tbsp of sloppy joe. Note: you want the biscuit cup to have a decent amount of sloppy joe without the sloppy joe spilling over the sides.
- Bake the sloppy joe biscuit cups. Bake the biscuit cups in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Top with shredded vegan cheese and fresh parsley!
