The amazing restaurant Chai Pani in Asheville, NC serves Indian street food. One of my favorite things to get is their Sloppy Jai. This is an Indian version of a sloppy Joe – made with ground lamb and Indian spices.
I tried to recreate this recipe at home! It’s not exactly the same, but we feel it is a pretty good rendition. I added pickled red onion to add a bit of tang and cut through the richness of the lamb. Adding a little cayenne pepper or replacing the curry powder with Madras curry powder will add a little heat. I serve these on brioche buns, but any buns will be fine. This recipe is also super quick – it can be made in under 30 minutes for a great weeknight meal.
Ingredients
Sloppy Jai
- 1 lb ground lamb
- 1 med onion, diced
- ½ tsp Curry Powder
- ½ tsp turmeric
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ¼ tsp powdered ginger
- ¼ tsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 8oz can tomato sauce
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp white vinegar
Pickled Onion
- ¾ cup white vinegar
- 3 Tbsp Sugar
- Pinch of salt ( I use Kosher)
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 whole cloves
- Pinch of allspice
- Red pepper flakes, to taste
- 1 large red onion, slice into thinly sliced ring
For serving
- Plain Yogurt
- Cilantro (optional)
- Brioche buns
Instructions
Pickled Onions
Make these first (if using), and while they cool, make the filling.
- In a small non-reactive saucepan add vinegar, sugar, salt, bay leaf, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Add the onion slices and lower the heat and simmer gently for 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. When cool, transfer onions and the liquid into a tightly sealed container.
- The pickled onions will keep for a month if kept sealed and refrigerated.
Sloppy Jai
- Brown the lamb and the onion together, breaking up the lamb until both are cooked.
- Add all of the spices, and stir to coat. Cook for one minute, or until fragrant.
- Add the tomato paste, and stir into the mixture.
- Add all remaining ingredients, simmer for at least 10 minutes.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Serve on brioche buns. Top with yogurt, pickled onion and cilantro.
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