My husband has a handful of recipes that he can cook: sloppy joes, goulash, chicken fried rice and scrambled eggs. Last week, I tried to make his sloppy joes, but with turkey instead of hamburger. And I have to tell you, he sabotaged me.

He denies it, but there was some very critical information missing the first time I made these. Omitting the water makes for an outrageously sloppy joe. I do not recommend doing this. Lucky for you, I persevered and tried them again last night, which meant he got to eat them twice in two weeks. I think this was his plan all along. I mean, take a look at that photo. It inspires some trickery, doesn’t it?

The good news is these sloppy joes come together really quickly, leaving you time to enjoy your evening. We had ours with some green beans tossed with butter and almonds, but they would also be delicious with sweet potato fries, fruit or a small salad. Or, if you’d like to have them the way my husband serves them, add a side of  macaroni and cheese.

Now, here’s the thing about this recipe. There really isn’t one. My husband learned how to make sloppy joes from my mother-in-law, so there’s a lot of “add a little of this or that until it tastes and looks right.” I did my best to measure/eyeball the ingredients, but I’d suggest starting with my suggested amounts and then adjusting the recipe to suit your tastes.

Turkey Sloppy Joes

Serves 2

1/2 lb. ground turkey

A couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce

1/2 c. ketchup

1/2 c. water

A splash of vinegar

1 tbsp. dark brown sugar

1 tsp. yellow mustard

1/2 tbsp of butter (a sliver is fine)

In a non-stick pan, brown the ground turkey. Season it with salt and pepper. When the turkey is cooked, add the ketchup and water. Stir to combine. Add the Worcestershire, yellow mustard, dark brown sugar and vinegar. Stir again. Give it a taste. See if it needs more of any of the ingredients. Adjust accordingly. Season with salt and pepper. When the flavors taste good to you, add a pat of butter, swirling it into the mixture.

Serve on a hamburger bun. I added few shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano to ours. It really brings the flavor home.