Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes

Who doesn’t love a Philly Cheese Steak?

Juicy beef in a tangy cheese sauce, piled into a toasted brioche bun and topped with melted cheese? Amazing.

When going on our wild Sloppy Joes recipe designing binge, we decided using the flavors of a Philly Cheesesteak would be a fun twist on classic Sloppy Joes!

Now, I know that the use of Cheez Whiz isn’t universal, but when it comes to designing a sloppy joe recipe... a binder / sauce is needed. So, Cheez Whiz, it is!

Rather than sliced beef, these Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes use ground beef - as is traditional for the loose meat sandwich.

The green peppers and onion common to cheesesteaks are chopped and incorporated into the sauce - the flavours of a cheesesteak, in the format of a sloppy joe.

Sliced cheese is added on top, for an extra hit of melty cheese. It’s a fantastic, easy dinner that’s perfect for busy weeknights... or breaking out of a dinner rut, when planning campfire meals.

The prep work I do to make it camping trip-friendly ALSO makes it even quicker for those easy weeknight dinners, should you choose to do the freezer packs like we do.

Either way you do it - prepped as you go, or ahead of time - this is sure to become a family favorite!

Let’s look at what you’ll need to have on hand...

Ingredients

This recipe uses fairly simple ingredients - you won’t have any trouble finding everything you need in pretty much any grocery store.

As always, I have a few ingredient notes for you:

Lean Ground Beef

IMHO, it’s a cheeseSTEAK... so I use ground beef, for maximum flavor.

That said, feel free to use ground turkey, ground chicken, or even Beyond Beef (A pack and a half!), based on your dietary needs and restrictions.

Provolone Cheese

When we can find it (Which is not always the case, when camping way up north!), we like to use sliced provolone cheese for these Philly Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes.

When we can’t, sliced mozzarella cheese is what we’re most likely to find, so we use that.

Apparently white American cheese is also a popular choice... but I am vehemently opposed to American “cheese”, LOL!

Fresh Produce

It’s wild how passionate people get about the selection of veggies used in traditional Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches.

Onions, bell peppers, sometimes mushrooms... Everyone has opinions!

For us, we tend to think green bell pepper and onions when it comes to cheesesteaks, so that’s what I used in this recipe.

If you’d rather swap mushrooms in, though... go for it!

Brioche Hamburger Buns

Of course, you’ll need some sort of toasted buns to serve your messy sandwiches in - we tend to use brioche buns.

That said, other buns would work just fine for these Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes. Try a hoagie roll, your favourite sandwich rolls, or even hot dog buns, in a pinch.

Everything Else

Cheez Whiz
Garlic Powder
Ground Black Pepper
Olive Oil
Salt

... I just don’t have anything to add, as far as these last few ingredients go!

How to Make Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes

The full recipe is in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post, here is the pictorial walk through:

Optional Food Prep

We like to make up freezer packets of prepped ingredients for our sloppy joes recipes, in advance of our camping trips. This is not only great for camping, but can be a great way to have easy weeknight dinners available, with little work.

For this one, we simply chop the green pepper and onions, and vacuum seal them - a regular freezer baggie works fine though.

Label it and freeze until you’re ready to use it.

Cheesesteak Sloppy Joe Filling

Get a medium campfire going, or get your charcoal on the go. (If you’re making this on a stove, use medium-high heat and a nonstick pan.)

Add the green peppers, onion, and olive oil to a large skillet - or a dutch oven, and set over the fire or hot coals.

Cook until the veggies are tender and JUST starting to caramelize a little - look for a light golden brown colour.

Note: You can thaw them first, or just add them in frozen. They’ll take a bit longer to cook if frozen, but it works just fine!)

Add the ground beef to the pan, using a spatula to break it up a bit. Cook - breaking up the meat into little bits as it cooks - just until it’s cooked though.

Add the remaining ingredients to the pan, stir well to combine. Allow beef mixture to simmer for about 15 minutes, or until thickened to the texture you like.

Season the sloppy joes mixture with salt and pepper, to taste.

Assembly

Toast the buns, then divide sloppy joe between the 4 bottom buns.

Place a slice of the cheese on top of the meat, before finishing off with the top half of the rolls.

Serve immediately, with a dash of hot sauce if desired, and your choice of sides - french fries, potato salad, potato chips, etc.

Don’t forget to have plenty of napkins on hand!

Leftovers

Leftover sloppy joe mix can be cooled to room temperature, then stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Alternatively, you can transfer to a freezer bag, press the air out, and freeze it for up to 3 months.

Thaw (if applicable), and reheat before serving.

More One-Pot Camping Recipes

Looking for more easy - but satisfying! - one pot meals to cook over your campfire? Here are some of my favourites!

Bacon Cheeseburger Soup
Beef & Root Vegetable Stew
Big Mac Sloppy Joes
Cabbage Roll in a Bowl
Cajun Chicken Sloppy Joes
Campfire Chicken Curry
Campfire Chili
Chicken Marbella
Dutch Oven Jambalaya
Easy Chicken Curry
Egg Roll in a Bowl
Hearty Campfire Beef Stew
Indian Sloppy Joes
Mexican Sloppy Joes
Puttanesca Sloppy Joes
Sloppy Giuseppes
Southwest Chicken Chili
Thankgiving Sloppy Joes
Traditional Sloppy Joes
Venison Chili
Venison Stew

Be sure to check out our other Camping Recipes, including Camping Desserts, Camping Snacks, Make-Ahead Camping Mix Recipes, and a ton of delicious Camping Main Dish Recipes.

Also, we had SO much fun designing gourmet jerky recipes for our camping trips, we started a whole new blog for them! Check out Dried & Tasty for all kinds of fun recipes to make in your food dehydrator!