Imagine a food mash-up of burgers and pizza…. you found it! These Pizza Burgers are a perfect combo of these two popular foods. A burger patty is made with a mixture of ground beef and Italian sausage with plenty of “pizza” spices and a little pizza sauce. Grill it up and then top them with provolone or mozzarella cheese and some sliced pepperoni.
When you serve them add all your favorite pizza toppings; green peppers, mushrooms, onion, black olives and of course more pizza sauce! You can even grill the veggies to add a little more grilled flavor.
Ingredient Details
Ground Beef- I recommend using an 80/20 or 85/15 lean ground beef. This ratio allows the burger to have enough fat to be flavorful.
Italian Sausage- You can use any Italian Sausage you like; mild, sweet, hot, pork or turkey, they will all work.
Bread & Milk- These ingredients mix together make a panade, which is a starch and liquid mixed together to make a ground meat recipe juicy and tender. Make sure you choose a bread that is not overly grainy or seedy. A white or whole wheat bread is great. If you choose a bread that has a very hard crust, like ciabatta, remove the crust first.
Seasonings- A mixture of raw garlic, Italian seasoning, onion powder and Worcestershire sauce perfectly season these pizza burgers.
Pizza Sauce- Adding a little pizza sauce boosts the flavor of these burgers and a little liquid to keep the burgers juicy.
Making and Grilling Pizza Burgers
Start by preheating your grill for direct medium high heat.
Then in a large bowl combine the bread cubes and milk. Mash it together really well with a fork to create a panade.
What is a panade?
A panade is a mixture of a starch and liquid used to keep a ground meat recipe juicy and tender. We use this technique in just about all our burgers and meatballs.
Add the seasonings, Worcestershire sauce, and pizza sauce. Stir to combine.
Add the ground beef and Italian sausage and with clean hands or a fork completely mix everything together.
Form 5 equal patties. Press your thumb into the center of each patty creating a divot. This will help reduce the patty shrinkage on the grill.
Grill the Pizza Burgers over direct heat for about 4-5 minutes per side. Since these burgers include sausage you will want to cook them through completely, this will be measured when the internal temp reaches 165°F.
Move the burgers to indirect heat and add the sliced cheese, then top with 3-4 pieces sliced pepperoni. Close the lid to the grill and let the cheese melt, about 1 minute.
We recommend toasting the Pizza Burger buns as well. Spray the cut side of the buns with cooking oil spray or you can use olive oil or butter. Place on the grill, cut side down, for about 30 seconds. Don’t walk away from the buns, they will grill up quickly!
Serve the burgers on the toasted buns with pizza sauce and everyone’s favorite pizza/burger toppings.
Pizza Burger Toppings
Top your Pizza Burgers with all the things you love on pizza:
- Green peppers, red onion, and/or mushrooms (can be grilled!)
- Additional pepperoni or cheese
- Grated parmesan, romano or asiago
- pepperoncini
- Black olives
- red pepper flakes
- Extra pizza sauce or marinara
Side Dish Ideas
You can treat these Pizza Burgers like burgers or pizza when you are thinking about side dishes.
- Caesar Salad
- Perfect Side Salad
- Tortellini Pasta Salad
- Big Italian Salad
- Cucumber Onion Salad
- Pesto Pasta
- Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta
- Crispy Cast Iron Potatoes (add Italian seasoning!)
- Truffle or Parmesan Fries
More Burger Recipes
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Pizza Burger Recipe
Equipment
- Grill
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef - – 80/20 or 85/15
- ½ lb. Italian sausage - – use mild or spicy/hot
- 1 slice white bread - – cut into very small cubes (see notes for more detail)
- 3 Tbsp. milk
- ¾ tsp. kosher salt
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
- ½ tsp. pepper
- 1 clove garlic - minced
- 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp. pizza sauce or marinara
- 12-15 pieces sliced pepperoni
- Provolone cheese slices
Serving and Topping Options
- Brioche buns - well toasted – so it's like a pizza crust!
- Pizza sauce
- Red onion, green pepper slices, and mushrooms - – optionally grilled
- Black olives, banana peppers, extra pepperoni
- Grated Romano, Asiago or Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat grill to medium high, direct heat.
- In a large bowl combine the bread cubes and milk. With a fork mash everything together until it forms a smooth paste-like consistency.1 slice white bread, 3 Tbsp. milk
- Add in the salt, onion powder, Italian seasoning, pepper, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and pizza sauce. Stir to combine.¾ tsp. kosher salt, 1 tsp. onion powder, 1 tsp. Italian seasoning, ½ tsp. pepper, 1 clove garlic, 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1 Tbsp. pizza sauce or marinara
- Add the ground beef and the Italian sausage to the bread mixture and gently mix to thoroughly combine the ingredients.1 lb. ground beef, ½ lb. Italian sausage
- Form the mixture into approximately 5 large, flat pizza burger patties, with your thumb make a large divot in the center of each burger to minimize shrinkage on the grill.
- Place the pizza burgers onto the preheated grill and grill over direct heat for approximately 4-5 minutes per side. (If grilling any veggies place them on the grill at this time too)
- During the last minute of cooking time, top the pizza burgers with a slice or two of provolone cheese and 3-4 slices of pepperoni. Close the lid and let the cheese melt for 1 minute.Provolone cheese slices, 12-15 pieces sliced pepperoni
- Remove pizza burgers from the grill and allow to rest for 4-5 minutes before serving.While the pizza burgers rest, oil the cut side of the buns with cooking spray, olive oil or butter, and toast on the grill.
- To serve, place the pizza burger on a well toasted bun and top with 2-3 tablespoon of pizza sauce or marinara and your favorite pizza toppings.
Building a Pizza Burger
- This is how I build my pizza burger, bottom to top, use this as a guide:toasted bottom bunpizza sauce and marinarapizza burger with provolone and pepperoni slicessprinkle of black olivesgrilled mushroom slicesgrilled red onion & grilled green pepperssprinkle of parmesan cheesetop toasted bun
Recipe Tips and Notes:
GREAT SIDE DISHES FOR PIZZA BURGERS: Caesar Salad Perfect Side Salad Tortellini Pasta Salad Big Italian Salad Cucumber Onion Salad Pesto Pasta Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta Crispy Cast Iron Potatoes (add Italian seasoning!) Truffle or Parmesan Fries
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