KIDS LOVE JUMBO’S SLOPPY JOES

It was the end of February and all through the Dome, people were stirring trying to decide what to do with their home.

The booths were setup, through the concourse with care and the smell of barbecue flowed through the air.

I was overcome with hunger and my feet were like lead, while visions of sloppy Joe’s danced in my head.

When the sound of a crock pot arose with a clatter, I sprung from my chair to see what was the matter.

My stomach was growling as I caught with a glimpse, the samples were ready as I started to wince.

The hot dogs were placed in the freshly cut buns, as Jumbo’s Sloppy Joe Sauce covered them up like the sun.

When what to my wondering eyes should appear, a generous hand held out waiving me near.

I stood and wondered could this really be, saved by Jumbo’s Sloppy Joe’s, built just for me.

A few weeks back I had a booth at the Home and Garden Show in my hometown of Fargo. I was there promoting my little side business and fortunately for me, I was lucky enough to get assigned a booth next to John and Patty Lindquist, who were there promoting their business, Jumbo’s Sloppy Joe Sauce.  In addition to the wonderful aroma coming from their booth, John and Patty were great people!  They even went out of their way to make sure I didn’t go hungry during the show.  It was a big win for me because their sauce is spectacular!  Plus, their booth generated a ton of traffic and instead of people just waiting quietly in line, they often talked to me.

Throughout the weekend, I learned about the rich history behind Jumbo’s Sloppy Joe Sauce and that in addition to tasting great, it is a story about a hard working family that after many years gained success as entrepreneurs.  John and I even discovered that we came from hometowns that were only 30 minutes apart.  Now, like most conversations with me, the topics usually switch to hunting and after having a conversation with John about using the sauce with wild game, it was time to put it to the test.  I have mentioned in previous posts, such as in Authentic Wild Game Fajitas, that I am always looking for new and creative ways to prepare wild game.  So I thought it would be a great idea to make venison sloppy Joe’s using Jumbo’s Sloppy Joe Sauce.  The recipe is really easy and the instructions can be found on the back of the bottle.

Recipe

In a medium skillet, brown 1 to 1.5 lbs of ground venison.  Drain excess fat.  Stir in one jar of Jumbo’s Sloppy Joe Sauce and simmer until heated to the desired temperature.  For extra excitement employ a little helper.

Once the meat was browned, my little helper Reese poured in the Jumbo’s Sloppy Joe Sauce.

The meat and sauce were brought to a simmer.  I was outside with the dog at the time and when I walked in the house smelled like mouth-watering barbecue heaven!  Greta had even prepared me a Sloppy Joe, extra sloppy!

Young kids tend to be kind of picky when it comes to their food, but on this occasion it was easy to get both Reese and Brinley to sit down and enjoy some sloppy Joe’s.

Reese wasted no time getting both hands on his sloppy Joe!

Brinley finished her plate and responded with, “more, more.”  Greta and I were more than happy to dish her up seconds.

That Saturday afternoon Jumbo’s Venison Sloppy Joe’s were a great success!  Even my wife Greta enjoyed them.  Plus, it was such a fast and convenient recipe that we could eat and get back outside.  I can’t wait to do this again and maybe even try it on other types of wild game.  After all, Spring Turkey season is right around the corner.  For a little extra spice, we may even try the Jalapeno version.