Beef , Cheese , Tomato , cilantro
Best for: Taco Tuesday meets pizza night — hot, cheesy, and crunchy in the same slice.
Two family favorites in one pan: taco-seasoned beef and cheddar-jack over a base of refried beans thinned with salsa, baked crisp on the stone, then finished the way a taco should be — cool lettuce, fresh tomato, sour cream, and a crunch of crushed tortilla chips.
Grill: Pizza stone on a covered grill at 500–550°F; beef precooked in a cast-iron skillet on the grill. Equipment: Pizza stone, 10-inch cast-iron skillet, grill with a lid, metal peel, instant-read thermometer.
Ingredients
Rest: 5 minutes. Total: 43 minutes.
Beef
- 1 lb ground beef (80/20)
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon fine table salt
- 1/4 cup water
Pizza
- 1 lb pizza dough (homemade grilled pizza dough or store-bought), at room temperature
- 1/2 cup refried beans
- 1/2 cup salsa, plus more for serving
- 2 cups shredded cheddar and Monterey Jack blend
- 1 cup shredded romaine or iceberg lettuce
- 1 medium tomato, diced
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup lightly crushed tortilla chips
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 tablespoon cornmeal or flour, for the peel
Directions
Set the pizza stone on the grate and heat the covered grill to 500–550°F for a full 30 minutes. Stir the refried beans and salsa together into a spreadable base.
Set the skillet on the grill and brown the ground beef, breaking it up, for 6–8 minutes. Drain the fat, stir in the chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and water, and simmer for 2 minutes. The beef should be cooked through to 160°F.
Stretch the dough into a 12-inch round on a peel dusted with cornmeal and spread the bean-salsa base over it, leaving a 1/2-inch border.
Scatter the cheese blend over the base, then the seasoned beef over the cheese.
Launch the pizza onto the stone and grill with the lid closed for 8–10 minutes, until the crust chars at the edges and the cheese is fully melted and bubbling.
Rest the pizza for 5 minutes. Top with the lettuce, tomato, a drizzle of sour cream, the crushed chips, and the cilantro. Slice and serve with extra salsa.
Grilling tip: The cool toppings go on after the bake and the chips go on last of all — heat is for the crust and cheese, and the crunch should still be crunching.
