Hot from the oven with bubbling cheese, saucy ground beef,
and golden biscuit pieces on top, this Sloppy Joe Biscuit Casserole is
the kind of cozy dinner that makes everyone ready to come to the table.
There’s something especially satisfying about turning familiar sloppy joe flavors into a warm, cheesy casserole.
The beef is coated in a sweet and savory sauce, crispy fried onions add a little crunch,
and a generous layer of mozzarella and cheddar melts underneath tender pieces of biscuit dough.
By the time the baking dish comes out of the oven, those biscuits are beautifully browned
and the filling underneath is hot and cheesy.
I love this recipe for nights when a simple ground beef dinner sounds good,
but regular sloppy joe sandwiches feel a little too predictable.
Everything comes together in one baking dish, and the whole recipe takes about 45 minutes
from start to finish. It’s hearty, uncomplicated comfort food that serves six.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
It has all the cozy textures. You get saucy ground beef, crispy fried onions, melted cheese, and soft biscuits with golden tops in every serving.
It’s an easy way to change up sloppy joe night. Instead of spooning the beef onto buns, you turn those familiar sweet and savory flavors into a warm casserole.
The biscuit topping makes it extra comforting. Refrigerated biscuits keep things simple, but after baking they create a fluffy, browned topping that feels right at home over the cheesy beef.
It’s made for hungry evenings. With two pounds of ground beef plus cheese and biscuits, this is a substantial dinner that serves six.
It doesn’t take all night. Give yourself about 20 minutes to prepare everything and 25 minutes for baking, and dinner is ready in roughly 45 minutes.
Ingredients for Sloppy Joe Biscuit Casserole
- Lean Ground Beef – The hearty base of the casserole. Lean ground beef works especially well here because you get plenty of rich, beefy flavor without making the finished dish overly greasy.
- Yellow Onion – Diced onion cooks right along with the ground beef, adding a little sweetness and savory flavor to the sloppy joe filling.
- Ketchup – This makes up the base of the sloppy joe sauce, giving the beef its familiar tomato flavor along with plenty of sweetness and tang.
- Worcestershire Sauce – Just a little adds savory depth and helps balance the sweeter ingredients in the sauce.
- Brown Sugar – This brings the signature sweetness to the sloppy joe mixture and rounds out the tanginess of the ketchup.
- Onion Powder – Adds another layer of onion flavor throughout the sauce and makes the beef mixture extra savory.
- French’s Fried Onions – I love the crispy texture these bring to the casserole. They’re stirred right into the sloppy joe mixture, adding crunch and plenty of savory onion flavor.
- Shredded Mozzarella and Cheddar Cheese Blend – This is the cheesy layer between the sloppy joe filling and biscuits. Mozzarella gives you that wonderful melt, while cheddar adds a little more flavor.
- Pillsbury Refrigerated Biscuits – These make the topping incredibly easy. Cut each biscuit into smaller pieces and scatter them over the cheese, and they’ll puff up and turn beautifully golden as the casserole bakes.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Let’s make it!
Start by preheating the oven to 375F. Dump the ground beef into a large saute pan over medium-high heat, along with a dab of butter or margarine. Add the diced onion and crumble the beef well as it cooks.
Once the ground beef is completely cooked, turn off the heat and drain the excess grease from the pan.
Now for the sloppy joe sauce. Dump the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar and onion powder into a medium mixing bowl and stir well. Add the sauce mixture to the pan with the ground beef, stirring until all of the meat is coated.
Add the French’s fried onions and stir well again.
Dump the sloppy joe mixture into a greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish and spread it out evenly. Sprinkle the shredded cheese over the top.
Open the package of biscuits and cut each one into 6 pieces. Arrange the biscuit pieces over the cheese, spacing them out as evenly as possible.
Place the casserole in the oven and bake until the biscuits are nicely browned, 22-25 minutes.
Serve and enjoy!
Expert Tips
Drain the beef well. Once the ground beef has finished cooking, remove the excess grease before adding the sauce. This helps the finished casserole stay rich and saucy without becoming unnecessarily greasy.
Break up the beef as it cooks. Smaller crumbles mix more evenly with the sloppy joe sauce and make the casserole easier to scoop and serve.
Give the casserole an even base. Once the sloppy joe mixture goes into the baking dish, spread it all the way to the edges before adding the cheese. This gives you a more consistent layer of beef, cheese, and biscuits in each portion.
Space out the biscuits. Cut every biscuit into six pieces as directed and distribute the pieces as evenly as you can. The dough needs a little room to puff and brown in the oven.
Watch the biscuit topping near the end. The casserole bakes for 22-25 minutes, and you’re looking for biscuits that are nicely browned on top.
Recipe Variations
The combination of sloppy joe beef, French’s fried onions, mozzarella and cheddar, and Pillsbury biscuits is what gives this particular casserole its character, so I recommend making the recipe as written the first time.
Once you know how you like it, you can use the same casserole idea as inspiration for future dinners. A different shredded cheese blend could change the flavor, while another refrigerated biscuit dough could give the topping a slightly different texture. Just remember that changing the ingredients can also affect the final texture and baking time, so those versions won’t be quite the same as the original recipe.
Storage & Reheating
This casserole is best when the biscuits are fresh and warm from the oven, but leftovers are easy to save. Transfer them to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
For longer storage, the casserole can be frozen for up to 3 months. Individual portions are especially convenient to freeze because you can pull out exactly what you need for another meal.
When you’re ready to eat the leftovers, reheat them thoroughly before serving. The microwave is convenient for a quick individual portion, while reheating in the oven can help the biscuit topping regain some of its texture.
Serving Suggestions
This Sloppy Joe Biscuit Casserole is hearty enough to be dinner all on its own, so I like the idea of keeping anything served alongside it fairly simple.
For something fresh, pair it with a crisp green salad filled with lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers and finished with vinaigrette. Roasted zucchini, bell peppers, or onions are another easy way to bring some vegetables to the table.
If you’re in the mood for an all-out comfort-food dinner, go with crispy French fries or seasoned potato wedges. Macaroni and cheese makes the meal even more indulgent and is an especially fun pairing for a family dinner.
However you serve it, bring the casserole to the table while the filling is hot, the cheese is melted, and those biscuit pieces are still beautifully golden on top.
Recipe FAQs
1. Can I make Sloppy Joe Biscuit Casserole ahead of time?
Yes, you can easily get part of this casserole ready ahead of time. Prepare the sloppy joe beef mixture, let it cool, and store it covered in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to bake, add it to the baking dish, sprinkle on the cheese, and top with the biscuit pieces. I recommend waiting to add the biscuits until right before baking so they stay fresh and bake up nicely.
2. How do I know when the casserole is done?
The biscuits are the best thing to watch. Bake the casserole at 375F for 22-25 minutes, until the biscuit pieces are nicely browned. Since the ground beef is already fully cooked before the casserole goes into the oven, the baking time is mainly about getting everything hot, melting the cheese, and cooking those biscuits.
3. How can I keep the casserole from getting greasy?
Make sure to drain the excess grease from the ground beef after it is completely cooked. This keeps the sloppy joe filling saucy without leaving extra grease at the bottom of the casserole. Using lean ground beef helps as well.
4. What’s the best way to arrange the biscuits?
Cut each biscuit into 6 pieces and spread them as evenly as possible over the cheese. Try not to pile the pieces together. Giving them some room helps the biscuits puff up and brown more evenly while they bake.
5. How do I store and reheat leftovers?
Store leftover Sloppy Joe Biscuit Casserole in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze it for up to 3 months. Reheat thoroughly before serving. The microwave works well when you just need a quick serving, but I prefer the oven when possible because it does a better job of bringing back some of that freshly baked biscuit texture.
Sloppy Joe Biscuit Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 lbs lean ground beef
- 1 cup yellow onion, diced
- 2 cups ketchup
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 tbsp onion powder
- 2 cups French's fried onions
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheese blend
- 12 oz Pillsbury refrigerated biscuits
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 375F.
- Place the ground beef in a large saute pan over medium-high heat with a dab of butter or margarine.
- Add the diced yellow onion to the beef.
- Cook the mixture, breaking the beef into crumbles as it browns.
- Once the beef is completely cooked, remove the pan from the heat and drain away the excess grease.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and onion powder. Stir until thoroughly mixed.
- Pour the prepared sauce into the pan with the cooked ground beef.
- Stir until the beef is evenly covered with the sauce.
- Add the French's fried onions and mix them into the beef mixture.
- Transfer the sloppy joe mixture to a greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish, spreading it into an even layer.
- Scatter the shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheese blend evenly over the meat.
- Open the refrigerated biscuits and cut each biscuit into 6 pieces.
- Arrange the biscuit pieces over the cheese, distributing them as evenly as possible.
- Bake until the biscuits are nicely browned, about 22–25 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Per serving (1/6 of casserole), estimated:Calories: 964kcal | Carbohydrates: 102g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 43g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 121mg | Sodium: 2,297mg | Potassium: 871mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 51g | Vitamin A: 411IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 327mg | Iron: 6mg Nutrition is an estimate and can vary depending on the specific brands of ground beef, fried onions, cheese, ketchup, and refrigerated biscuits used.
More Dinner Recipes You’ll Love
If you enjoyed this creamy casserole, be sure to try these other comforting family favorites:
- Dump-and-Bake Chicken Parmesan Casserole
- Chicken Parmesan
- Easy One-Pot Chicken Sausage Orzo
- Marry Me Chicken Soup
