Pizza Burgers

An open-faced pizza burger is the comfort-food dinner you didn’t know you needed. It’s a fresh take on burgers, which can get tiring and stale when you use the same recipes over and over again. This from-scratch filling—more sloppy joe than beef patty—features pizza sauce for a punchy dose of tomatoes. It’s placed on a bun with melted mozzarella cheese on top, making for a meal that everybody in the family will love.

Prep time takes just five minutes. Because you’re broiling them in the oven for just a few minutes, they’re ready in no time. No need to stand over the stovetop or grill while flipping burgers.

Ingredients for Pizza Burgers

• Ground beef: For this recipe, you’ll need 1-1/2 pounds of ground beef to make 12 servings.
• Onion: Use a yellow onion. They’re not as sweet as white onions or as sharp-tasting as red onions, and they become sweeter when cooked.
• Pizza sauce: Pizza sauce is sold in cans, tubes and jars, and is essentially a thick sauce of crushed tomatoes, olive oil and seasonings such as oregano, basil and garlic. Buy one of the best store-bought pizza sauces, or use up your homemade pizza sauce.
• Mushrooms: Buy one 4-ounce can of mushrooms, and drain them thoroughly before adding them to the ground beef mixture. You can use fresh mushrooms, but you must cook them beforehand in a pan by themselves to expel their water.
• Oregano: Dried oregano is more convenient than fresh oregano, and ensures it’s evenly distributed throughout the dish.
• Hamburger buns: Go with white, wheat or even pretzel buns for this recipe—it’s your choice. It’s a good excuse to perfect your homemade hamburger buns! Cut the buns in half, then toast them. It adds a really nice crispy texture against the soft ground beef topping.
• Mozzarella cheese: Buy bagged shredded mozzarella or grate your own. Whichever you choose, make sure it’s part-skim mozzarella. Fresh mozzarella will be much too watery.

Directions

Step 1: Cook the beef mixture

In a large cast-iron or other heavy skillet, cook the beef and the onion over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink, three to five minutes, breaking the beef into crumbles. Drain any excess grease.

Stir in the pizza sauce, mushrooms, sugar and oregano, and mix well.

Step 3: Broil the burgers

Place the pizza burgers on ungreased baking sheets. Broil them 4 inches from the heat until the cheese is melted, about two minutes.

Pizza Burger Variations

• Have fun with toppings: Add any of the usual best pizza toppings to these pizza burgers, like pepperoni, spinach, broccoli, green bell peppers, bacon, olives or basil. Precook the heavier toppings like broccoli, peppers and bacon, as four minutes under the broiler may not be enough to fully cook them.
• Max out on mozzarella: Make these pizza burgers extra cheesy by stirring mozzarella into the beef mixture, too.
• Add hot honey: This trendy ingredient—basically, honey infused with spicy pepper—tastes amazing on top of a pizza burger. Just a drizzle and you’re all set! You can buy hot honey at most stores, or make your own hot honey at home to control the spice level.

How to Store Pizza Burgers

To store leftover pizza burgers, allow them to cool to room temperature, then transfer them to airtight containers in the fridge for up to four days. They are best eaten the day they’re made, though, as the topping will make the burger buns soggy as the days go on. If you haven’t yet assembled your pizza burgers, store the buns separately from the beef mixture to prevent sogginess.

Can you freeze pizza burgers?

Yes, you can freeze pizza burgers, but don’t just freeze the cooled leftovers. Instead, place the split and toasted buns on a baking sheet. Spoon the cooled meat mixture onto the buns, then freeze them, uncovered, for one hour. Transfer them to freezer-safe airtight containers and freeze them for up to one month.

Can you make pizza burgers ahead of time?

Yes, you can make pizza burgers ahead of time. The best approach is to cook the meat mixture a day or two before you plan to eat them. When you’re ready, spoon it onto buns, top the burgers with cheese and broil them as directed.

How do you reheat pizza burgers?

If pulling these out of the freezer, thaw them completely in the refrigerator and sprinkle them with cheese if you haven’t done so already. Broil the pizza burgers 4 inches from the heat until they’re heated through and the cheese is melted, about two minutes.

Pizza Burger Tips

What should I serve with pizza burgers?

Given the mozzarella cheese and pizza sauce, these burgers definitely lean Italian. Pair them with our classic veggie Italian side dishes, such as white beans and spinach, Italian mushrooms or two-bean tomato bake. A nice, crisp, vinegary side salad would also work, breaking up some of the salty richness with a clean, zippy flavor.

Can I make pizza burgers vegetarian?

Yes, you can make pizza burgers vegetarian. Instead of ground beef, buy meatless crumbles and then follow the recipe. You could also make the patty mixture from our lentil burgers recipe instead. All other ingredients in this recipe are vegetarian-friendly.

Can you turn pizza burgers into sliders?

Yes, you can turn pizza burgers into sliders. Use King’s Hawaiian sliced slider buns, and just follow the recipe as you normally would, reducing the amount of beef mixture you add to each bun to allow for the smaller surface area. You could also just cook our pizza sliders, which are made with pepperoni instead of ground beef.