Cooking Dinner with Dad

This tip brought to you by our Dad Guru John Valadez on Aug 13, 2009

When dad cooks dinner most people think – take out. Well, get away from that stereotype by whipping up some great, easy dinners. One of my children’s favorites is Sloppy Joes. What kid doesn’t like Sloppy Joe? Kids love it. Below is a quick and easy recipe I got from Rachel Ray and her 30 minute meals show. This recipe is simple enough for any dad to pull off in a hurry.

Super Sloppy Joes
· 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, to coat the bottom of the pan
· 1 ¼ pounds ground beef sirloin, we use Buffalo meat because it has less saturated fat and calories than cow meat.
· ¼ cup brown sugar
· 2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon steak seasoning blend
· 1 medium onion, chopped
· 1 small red bell pepper, chopped
· 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
· 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
· 2 cups tomato sauce
· 2 tablespoons tomato paste
· 4 crusty rolls, split, toasted, and lightly buttered. I serve mine open-faced on toasted, lightly buttered sourdough bread – kids love it.
· Garnish: sliced ripe tomatoes and pickles. I set the pickles on the side but add organic macaroni and cheese.
Directions
Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil and meat to a frying pan. Spread the meat around and break it all up so it lies even. Combine brown sugar and steak seasoning. Add sugar and spice mixture to the skillet and combine. When the meat is browned, add onion and red peppers to the skillet. Reduce heat to medium and cook onions, peppers, red wine vinegar and Worcestershire sauce with the meat for 5 minutes. I move the meat over and cook the ingredients on the side in the fat. Add tomato sauce and paste to pan. Stir to combine. Reduce heat to simmer and cook Sloppy Joe mixture 5 minutes longer. If you want to some tanginess you can add a tablespoon of barbeque sauce to the mix – it’s up to you. After cooking place the skillet to the side and let cool for a few minutes. Place your Sloppy Joes on the sourdough bread and add your favorite sides.

Enjoy!