Pizza Smash Tacos

If you love a good smash taco, you're going to be obsessed with this one. We took the same technique from our viral smash burger tacos and turned it into a full-blown pizza - crispy griddled meat, a soft tortilla, melty mozzarella, and all your favorite pizza toppings. It's ready in minutes, no oven required, and it might just be the easiest "pizza" you ever make.

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Total Time25

Course: Appetizers, Main Course

Cuisine: American, Italian

Keyword: pizza smash tacos, pizza smashed tacos, pizza tacos, smash pizza tacos

Servings: tacos

Calories: 468kcal

Author: Neal Williams

Ingredients

8 oz ground beef see notes
8 oz ground Italian sausage
6 soft taco-sized flour tortillas about 6" in diameter
24-30 pepperoni slices
1¼-1½ cup pizza sauce or marinara sauce
1½ cup shredded mozzarella
½ cup bell peppers finely diced
¼ cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese for topping
¼ cup banana peppers for topping
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional

Instructions

Preheat your griddle to medium heat, about 400-425°F.
Sauté the bell peppers and any other veggies you're using (onion, mushrooms, black olives, etc.) until done to your liking. In a separate area of the griddle, place the pepperoni slices directly on the hot griddle to crisp up. Move the cooked toppings to the side of the griddle to keep warm.
While the veggies are cooking, mix the ground beef and Italian sausage together until well combined. Then divide into 6 equal-sized balls, about 2.5 to 3 ounces each. Be careful not to overwork the meat.
Place one ball of meat directly on the hot griddle. Lay a tortilla on top of the meat ball. Using a burger press or stiff spatula, press down firmly until the meat spreads out to the edges of the tortilla. Repeat with the remaining meat balls and tortillas.
Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the meat is browned and almost completely cooked through. An instant read meat thermometer should read about 160℉.
Using a spatula, flip the smash tacos over onto the tortilla side, being careful to scrape under the meat to remove the crust from the griddle. Then move the pizza tacos to a cooler section of the griddle, tortilla side down. Sprinkle a pinch of red pepper flakes over the top (optional).
Spread about 2-3 tablespoons of pizza sauce over the meat, then top with a sprinkle of mozzarella cheeses. Add the sautéed vegetables and crispy pepperoni slices on top.
Cover the taco with a melting dome for 1-2 minutes, until the cheese is fully melted. *You can move the pizza tacos to a hotter area of the griddle if needed to finish cooking, but make sure the tortilla doesn't burn.
Remove the dome and top with banana peppers (optional). Finish with a sprinkle of fresh grated Parmesan.
Transfer the pizza smash tacos to a plate to cool slightly. Then serve warm.

Video

Notes

For the ground beef: Since your mixing the beef with ground sausage, you can get by with a slightly leaner ground beef, like 85/15 or 90/10.
Don't skip the melting dome: It helps the cheese melt all the way through before the tortilla side gets too crispy or starts to burn.
Keep portions in check: Stick to 2.5-3 ounces of meat per taco - this keeps the smash taco method working the way it should.
Make it your own: Swap in different meats, cheeses, or toppings. This method works with just about any pizza flavor combo you love.
Ground Italian sausage temperature: Because these pizza tacos use ground pork sausage, you need to make sure the meat is fully cooked. Use an instant read probe thermometer to check the internal temperature - it should be 165°F.

Nutrition