Love pizza? Us too! Love trying out new toppings, sauces and crusts? Yup, us too! If you’re eager to experiment beyond a basic pizza crust, deep-dish crust or thin crust pizza dough, try this recipe for portobello pizza crust.
There’s no limit to the ways you can make a pizza your own. You can switch up the pizza toppings, make a homemade marinara or pesto sauce, and swap out traditional dough for an alternative crust. If you’re ready to ditch the dough, portobello mushrooms are a surprisingly great alternative to pizza crust. They serve as a meaty, hearty base for any of your favorite pizza toppings. For all the mushroom lovers, veggie lovers, and curious cooks out there, here’s our recipe for portobello mushroom pizza.
How to Prep the Mushrooms for Pizza
It may be tempting to rinse your portobello mushrooms before you use them, but resist that urge! Mushrooms act like sponges, and they’ll absorb moisture if you run them under water. (And spongy, soggy mushrooms are not ideal for cooking.) Instead, to clean your mushrooms, simply wipe them off with a damp paper towel, and they’re ready to go!
For more tips, our guide to how to wash mushrooms provides all the details for perfect mushroom prep.
Ingredients for Portobello Pizza
- Portobello mushroom caps: Portobello mushrooms are the only type of mushroom that will work as a pizza “crust.” Other types of mushrooms aren’t as large and won’t be able to hold nearly as many toppings. Look for portobellos with deep caps and a diameter of at least 4 inches.
- Pizza sauce: Use store-bought pizza sauce to keep the recipe as simple as possible, or make a from-scratch sauce if you prefer homemade.
- Cheeses: Our recipe uses mozzarella as well as Parmesan, two of the most common types of cheese for pizza. They’re great because they melt down nicely.
- Toppings: We make supreme-style portobello pizzas by topping the pizzas off with cooked sausage, green peppers, onion and garlic.
Directions
Step 1: Bake the portobello mushroom caps
Preheat oven to 350°F. Place the mushroom caps, stem side down (even though the stems have been removed), on a greased broiler-safe baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil.
Bake the mushrooms for 20 to 25 minutes or until tender, turning over once halfway through cook time.
Step 2: Prepare the pizza toppings
Meanwhile, cook the sausage over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink. Drain the grease from the skillet. Then, stir in the pizza sauce, green pepper, onion, mushrooms, Parmesan cheese and garlic.
Step 3: Top the portobello pizzas
Divide the topping mixture evenly among the portobello mushroom caps, and sprinkle evenly with mozzarella cheese.
Step 4: Broil the portobello pizzas
Increase the oven setting to broil. Broil the portobello pizzas 2 to 3 inches from the heat for one to two minutes, until the cheese is melted. Sprinkle with basil if desired.
Portobello Pizza Variations
Most toppings that you’d use on a regular pizza crust would work well on portobello mushroom pizza as well. The only real limitation is to avoid watery toppings like fresh mozzarella or burrata, which will release too much water and create potentially soggy pizzas.
Also, don’t forget: Since you’re working with a smaller surface area, you’ll need to pick just a few toppings total so you’re not overloading the mushroom caps. Here are a few ideas on how to make portobello pizzas your own:
- Add your favorite meats: Pepperoni (or mini pepperonis), salami, sliced ham and shredded chicken would all work nicely on a portobello pizza.
- Choose different cheeses: Consider any of the best cheeses for melting, such as Gouda, Gruyere or feta.
- Load up with more veggies: Artichoke hearts, pepperoncini, sun-dried tomatoes, jalapeno slices and olives would all add lots of flavor without too much bulk.
- Try different sauces: Instead of a typical red pizza sauce, try pesto or barbecue sauce.
How to Store Portobello Pizzas
Portobello pizzas are best fresh since mushrooms tend to release more water and juices as they sit. If necessary, you can keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat them in an oven at 350° until heated through.
Portobello Pizza Tips
How can you prevent the mushrooms from becoming too watery?
To prevent your mushrooms from becoming too watery, it’s important you cook them before assembling your pizzas. This bake time allows the water in the mushrooms to release onto the baking sheet, draining the juices from the mushrooms before you add any pizza toppings.
What do you serve with portobello pizzas?
Portobello pizzas are smaller and not quite as hearty as regular pizza, so you may need to prepare more than one pizza per person if you serve them as a main dish. As an entree, pair with a side salad, your favorite garlic bread or a homemade tomato soup. Couscous, quinoa or roasted veggies would round out the meal just as well.
If you want to serve your portobello mushroom pizzas as a side dish, they’d be right at home alongside Italian-inspired chicken recipes. Or pair them with a one-dish Italian recipe for a complete meal that’s fuss free.
