Soooo Late! But Soooo Worth It!

First of all...I am so sorry for not posting anything on here for, um, two years!!  I don't know if anyone even reads this thing, but I still feel guilty about it.

Lots has happened over the past two years I tell ya!  Dale has officially retired from the Army after 26 glorious years.  Congratulations, Babe!  However, you would think with him being home (finishing up his Master's Degree) that he would be whipping up all sorts of tasty meals, but no, I get home from work and I still hear the "What's for dinner?" question.

Well, we are cheating a bit and have enrolled in Dream Dinners.  It's a bit like Blue Apron or Hello Fresh, but it's way, way easier!  I'll blog more on that another time.  When I do cook, I love using my Instant Pot!

I'm here to give you this great and easy recipe (adapted it from this recipe) for a mega-load of super-delicious Sloppy Joes!  I've made them in my Instant Pot (my latest favorite gastronomical gadget!), but you could just mix up the ingredients and put it all in a good ol' slow cooker and cook on low all day.  But who wants to do that any more??  Not me!

Sloppy Joes were always a favorite of ours when we were kids.  However, my mother had a very basic recipe (ketchup and mustard with a little sugar) and she just always threw it together with no measuring at all.  But, she's never made 5 pounds of Joes at one time.  That's a lot of guess work!

Here is a good recipe that I've tried and tested at work at the U.S. Air Force Academy, on my coworkers.  They are always ready and willing tasters when it comes to my food!

Sloppy Joes for a Crowd - Instant Pot Recipe (6qt or 8qt)

(Served 12 adults with no problems at all)

5 pounds lean ground beef (I used 93%)
2 large onions, diced fine (a food processor would make all your veggie chopping much easier, I'm just sayin'!)
1 large green bell pepper, diced fine
1 large red bell pepper, diced fine
1/4 cup garlic, minced (yeah, that's a lot, but worth it, but use less if you want)
2 1/2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup tomato paste (you can use a little more if you'd like to help thicken more)
1/4 cup soy sauce (not low sodium soy sauce)
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 heaping tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 1/4 cup water 
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt & ground black pepper to taste

Using a 6 quart Instant Pot, press "SAUTE" on the highest setting and add the olive oil.  Then crumbled all of the raw hamburger meat into the pot and season to your taste with salt and pepper.  Yes, all!  I guess you could do this in small batches or in a large pan on your stove. Use a wooden spoon or a handy meat thingie like this, and start browning the meat.  This may take some time, but it works and you'll get all of the meat cooked.  You will have to either drain off the juice/fat at the end, or ladle it out.  Either way, you want your meat as dry as you can get it.  Do not turn off your Instant Pot.

Add the onion and saute that while mixing into the cooked ground beef.  Do this for about 2 minutes.  Add the bell peppers and garlic, and again, saute while mixing into the ground beef.  Saute for about 2 minutes more.  Don't worry about making the veggies soft, because the pressure cooking will take care of that!  Add the brown sugar, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and water and mix with the mixture, making sure to scrape the bottom of your pan.

Turn off your Instant Pot and layer the mustard, tomato paste, and ketchup onto the top of your beef mixture.  Put on lid and "PRESSURE COOK" on highest setting for 10 minutes.  Naturally release the pressure for 10 minutes and then rapid release the remaining pressure.  Open the lid and stir well.

If your mixture is looser than you would like it, turn on "SAUTE" on the lowest setting and simmer for 30 minutes, or until you get the right consistency.  If your mixture is too dry, add a little water.

Place your Instant Pot on "SLOW COOK" on the lowest setting and call up the crowd!  I served these with the little Savory Butter Rolls by King's Hawaiian.  Yumo, Sloppy Joe Sliders!

This large and satisfying recipe is great for potlucks, family get-togethers, kid's parties, etc.  There were 12 of us and we I had leftovers to take home to the husband.  Who didn't have dinner ready on the table, of course!  Hope you enjoy this!