Bulgogi Sloppy Joes with Broccoli Slaw and Asian Pickles

This is like the sandwich of your childhood, but grown up with you and now enjoying adulthood.

Two things:

First, how amazing are sloppy joe sandwiches? Although I remember eating way more tomato sandwiches and roast beef and mustard sandwiches than sloppy joe, but isn’t a sloppy joe so reminiscent of childhood anyway? It’s just a saucy ground meat sandwich that allows you to get messy.

Second, I really really love bulgogi (Korean BBQ). There is a sushi place in Tampa I would get bulgogi at and now here in North Carolina, there’s a restaurant in Chapel Hill with bulgogi nachos that are pretty great. I can’t stop myself from ordering them every time.

So, with this recipe, why not combine the two? Bulgogi sloppy joes sound good to me! Topped with a broccoli slaw and homemade Asian pickles, it’s the sloppy joe of your childhood all grown up and experiencing adulthood as a responsible individual.

Bulgogi is usually really thin slices of beef made in a sauce, but for this sandwich, I used ground turkey instead. So yeah, I’m breaking the bulgogi rules somewhat, but at least the flavor is still there – a nice mixture of salty soy sauce, sugar and honey, tangy rice vinegar. It all comes together super fast which is a major bonus.

I believe that any good meaty sandwich should be topped with some kind of slaw (and that’s before I moved to North Carolina where burgers and hot dogs at Cook Out are frequently topped with chili and coleslaw). I love the crunch that slaw brings to any dish, plus with my homemade Asian pickles, this is the complete sandwich. Trust.

Print Recipe

Bulgogi Sloppy Joes with Broccoli Slaw and Pickles

This is like the sandwich of your childhood, but grown up with you and now enjoying adulthood.  

Ingredients:

Bulgogi-Style Ground Turkey

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 tablespoon avocado oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• Pinch red pepper flakes (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Broccoli Slaw

• 1 (12-ounce) bag broccoli slaw (I purchased mine from my local grocery store)
• 2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• Salt and pepper to taste

Asian Pickles

• 1/2 large cucumber (cut into about 20 slices)
• 10 peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• Pinch red pepper flakes
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half
• 1 bay leaf
• Medium pinch salt

Directions:

Bulgogi-Style Ground Turkey

1. In a large pan, heat avocado oil over medium heat; add turkey. When turkey is almost cooked through, add onions and garlic and cook until onions are translucent.
2. While turkey is cooking, add the rest of the ingredients to a bowl (I actually used a mason jar.) Whisk together (or shake) until combined, then pour over the ground turkey once the onions are cooked.
3. Stir and allow the turkey mixture to absorb the bulgogi marinade.

Broccoli Slaw

1. In a large bowl, combine ingredients and stir. Let sit for 10 minutes before topped on sloppy joe sandwiches.

Asian Pickles

1. In a container that's mason jar size or larger with a lid, combine all ingredients except for the cucumber slices. Shake vigorously until the sugar is dissolved in the mixture.
2. The cucumbers should go into whatever jar you're going to store them in first to allow for the displacement of liquid. I ended up using a second mason jar to fill with cucumber slices, then poured my first mason jar of liquid onto and over the cucumbers.
3. Refrigerate for 12 hours.