This Vegetarian Mexican Pizza Recipe (a.k.a taco pizza) features creamy refried beans, corn, tomatoes, red bell peppers, onion, and pickled jalapenos. All under a blanket of bubbly cheddar cheese.
If you're a lover of Mexican food, you've probably tried Taco Bell's Mexican Pizza. It consists of crispy tortillas layered with beef, beans, and cheese.
I was inspired to make a Mexican pizza at home and to put my own spin on it, including pillowy soft pizza dough and vegetarian toppings. Sometimes, if I feel a little extra, I add a dollop of garlic pizza sauce as well.
Enjoy this vegetarian Mexican pizza with your favorite condiments for a fun family dinner!
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Ingredients You'll Need
Get all the details on these simple ingredients in the recipe card at the post's bottom.
- Pizza dough: In this recipe, I used homemade pizza dough, but you can use different pizza bases, including store-bought pizza dough, or corn tortillas.
- Refried black beans: You'll need a batch of vegetarian refried beans to spread on the dough instead of marinara sauce. Another thing you can use as a base is enchilada sauce or taco sauce.
- Cheese: You can use any cheese you like, including cheddar cheese, Mexican cheese blend, or mozzarella cheese.
- Vegetables: Use your favorite vegetables that are in season. I added red bell pepper, red onion, diced tomato, corn, and pickled jalapenos.
- Taco seasoning: For seasoning the vegetables. Use your favorite blend for the best results.
- Olive oil: If you're using pizza dough, you'll need a few tablespoons of olive oil to grease the baking sheet to prevent the dough from sticking.
How to Make This Vegetarian Mexican Recipe
Start by rolling out your dough. Sprinkle some flour onto a clean surface and using a rolling pin, roll the dough from the center to the edges, until you reach the desired thinness (for me it's ½ inches).
Transfer the dough onto a greased baking tray and spread a layer of refried beans. Add the vegetables, and sprinkle the taco seasoning.
At this point, you can add any other pizza toppings you like such as black olives, salsa, and green chilies.
Sprinkle cheese all over the vegetables, and bake for 15 minutes.
You know the pizza is ready when the cheese melts and becomes golden brown and bubbly, and the pizza crust is cooked through.
Cut the pizza into the desired shape and top with fresh cilantro if desired. Serve right away!
Top Tips
- Cut the toppings into small pieces. You don't want to have big chunks of vegetables on your pizza.
- Roll out the dough thin to make sure it cooks through. When making pizza, you want to make sure that the dough is thin enough so that it cooks by the time the cheesy is golden brown.
- Season the vegetables well. This recipe is healthier than Taco Bell's version, especially with so many vegetables and without any meat. That's why it's essential to flavor it with spices so it's not bland. I've found that a taco seasoning works best and if you want to add more heat, use chili powder as well.
- To make this recipe Taco Bell-style, use a tortilla instead of the pizza dough. Make sure to bake the tortilla for 5 minutes on each side, until golden brown, before adding your favorite toppings. This way you'll have a crisp tortilla as a base and it won't get soggy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! You can easily make vegan Mexican pizza using vegan cheese such as VioLife's Cheddar cheese block.
It consists of crispy tortillas layered with ground beef, tomato sauce, and refried pinto beans.
The only thing that I've found works when it comes to soggy pizza is spreading a thin layer of olive oil over the pizza base before adding the toppings. I use a party brush to gently brush the oil without damaging the dough.
Serving
This vegetarian Mexican pizza recipe is best enjoyed alongside a dip such as guacamole, sour cream, or your favorite salsa. For even more flavor, top the pizza with green onions and hot sauce before serving.
Storage
Let the pizza cool to room temperature then cut into triangles and transfer to an airtight container. Save in the fridge for 3-4 days.
More Mexican-Inspired Recipes
Vegetarian Mexican Pizza Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ball pizza dough (homemade or store-bought)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup refried beans
- ½ red bell pepper, chopped
- ½ medium tomato, chopped
- ½ cup canned corn, drained and rinsed
- 1 small red onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon taco seasoning
- 4 oz cheddar cheese, shredded (or Mexican cheese blend)
- ¼ cup pickled jalapenos (optional)
- Chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Start by rolling out the dough. Sprinkle some flour onto a clean surface and using a rolling pin, roll the dough from the center to the edges, until you reach the desired thinness (for me it's ½ inches).
- Brush a large baking sheet with olive oil and transfer the pizza dough. Brush the top of the dough with olive oil and spread a layer of refried beans on top. Add the vegetables, and sprinkle the taco seasoning.
- Sprinkle cheese all over the vegetables, and bake for 15 minutes. You know the pizza is ready when the cheese melts and is golden brown and bubbly, and the pizza crust is cooked through.
- Cut the pizza into the desired shape and top with fresh cilantro if desired. Serve right away!
(Please refer to the post above for instructional photographs and other helpful information for this recipe)
Notes
- Cut the toppings into small pieces. You don't want to have big chunks of vegetables on your pizza.
- Roll out the dough thin to make sure it cooks through. When making pizza, you want to make sure that the dough is thin enough so that it cooks by the time the cheesy is golden brown.
- Season the vegetables well. This recipe is healthier than Taco Bell's version, especially with so many vegetables and without any meat. That's why it's essential to flavor it with spices so it's not bland. I've found that a taco seasoning works best and if you want to add more heat, use chili powder as well.
- To make this recipe Taco Bell-style, use a tortilla instead of the pizza dough. Make sure to bake the tortilla for 5 minutes on each side, until golden brown, before adding your favorite toppings. This way you'll have a crisp tortilla as a base and it won't get soggy.
Nutrition
Post photography by: Petranka Atanasova.
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