My family loves pizza night. They especially love pizza night in the summer because we make my mom’s famous pizza dough and then we make individual pizzas on the grill. It’s such a fun and easy dinner! But when entertaining and making pizzas for guests, I like to get a little more fancy. This Meat Lover’s Pizza is a crowd pleaser and perfect for guests. Three different kinds of meat combine with cheese and my homemade pizza sauce on the perfect pizza crust. It is absolutely delicious!
Shredding Your Own Cheese
For a recipe like homemade pizza where melty cheese is a key ingredient, I highly recommend buying a block of cheese and shredding it yourself. The reason this matters is because the preservatives on pre-shredded cheese that prevent it from clumping together in the bag also prevent it from melting well. While it may seem more convenient to just grab a bag of shredded mozzarella from the store, I promise it is worth buying a block of cheese and taking a few minutes to shred it yourself. You will see and taste a difference.
Make the pizza dough. Roll out the pizza dough on a preheated pizza stone. See more on this below. Spread the sauce over the dough. Add the toppings. Top with one cup of mozzarella cheese. Add the cooked meat and pepperoni. Then top with the remaining cheese. Bake the pizza. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the edges of your pizza are golden and the cheese is well melted. Slice and enjoy while warm!
My homemade pizza dough is enough to make two 12-inch pizzas. For this recipe, you will need half that amount. See some of my other homemade pizza recipes below. My favorite way to cook bacon is using the air fryer! Air fryer bacon is so easy and doesn’t have any grease splatter or bacon cooking in grease. You can also cook bacon in the oven.
Storing and Reheating Leftover Pizza
Keep any leftover homemade pizza in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Reheat the portion you plan to eat in the air fryer or oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until heated through. I like to reheat the pizza on the pizza stone as well. Please note that this pizza cooks best on a preheated pizza stone. If you don’t have one available, consider pre-cooking your rolled-out dough for five minutes before adding the sauce and toppings and continuing with baking. Another option is to completely make the pizza, bake it for 20 minutes, and then cover the pizza in foil and keep baking for another five to 10 minutes. This will crisp up the dough without burning the top. Other toppings ideas for meat lovers pizza include cooked ground beef, pancetta, sliced Canadian bacon, or ham.
