Try this delicious and simple Mexican pizza recipe, which uses ground beef, tortillas, cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, and your favorite toppings. It’s perfect for a quick and tasty weeknight dinner option.
We love tacos and all things with that Tex-Mex flare. If you like this recipe, try easy Mexican coleslaw, Mexican shrimp cocktail, taco spaghetti, and crock pot chicken tacos.
These pizzas are fun for weekend dinners with extended family and friends yet easy enough for weeknights. They are a favorite at our house.
Ingredients Needed
- Corn tortillas – they work best because they get crispy
- Oil – canola or vegetable oil
- Ground Beef – I like to use ground beef with a bit of fat in it for flavor
- Yellow onion: or Vidalia onion
- Refried beans: either canned or homemade
- Cheese – cheddar, Monterey Jack, or a Mexican blend
- Toppings – tomatoes, jalapeno, black olives, and green onion
How to make Mexican Pizza
This is the nutshell version; please see the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and instructions.
Fry the tortillas in a little bit of oil. Stack them with paper towels between them. Cook the seasoned ground beef. Layer and stack the tortillas with refried beans and seasoned beef. Top with cheese, black olives, tomatoes, green onions, and jalapenos. Bake until the cheese melts, and serve promptly.
Preparation Tips
- Heat 1/2-inch canola or vegetable oil in a heavy skillet or Dutch oven to fry corn tortillas. The oil should be about 350-375 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer, it is hot enough when a drop of water added to the pan crackles and pops. Fry for about 15-20 seconds on each side. The corn tortillas should be crispy and hold up well after adding the refried beans and seasoned beef. Remove the tortillas and put them on paper towels to drain.
- You can fry the corn tortillas up to 3 hours in advance. Stack with paper towels between each to absorb any excess oil.
- Make my homemade taco seasoning. It adds so much flavor, and it is easy to make.
Topping Suggestions
- Vegetables: green onions, jalapenos, pickled jalapenos,
- Fruit: tomatoes, black olives, avocado
- Sauce: salsa, sour cream, guacamole, taco sauce, mango salsa, Pico de gallo
Storage and Reheat
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. For best results, reheat in a cast iron skillet in the oven at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes or until warm. Alternatively, reheat in an air fryer at 375 degrees for 2-3 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Substitute ground chicken, pork, or turkey for the ground beef. They are all delicious.
Taco Bell uses flour tortillas, but I like the corn tortillas so much better. They hold up much better and taste better when fried with seasoned beef and refried beans.
Instead of spreading the tortillas with enchilada sauce as Taco Bell does, try including warm enchilada sauce on the side for dipping. The pizzas stay crisp, and the flavor and texture are much better.
More Tex-Mex Recipes
Mexican Pizza Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 six inch corn tortillas
- canola or vegetable oil
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 medium onion finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 can 16 ounces refried beans
- 3/4 cup finely shredded cheddar cheese
- 3/4 cup finely shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 6 grape tomatoes sliced
- 1 small jalapeno sliced
- 1/3 cup sliced black olives
- 1 green onion chopped
Instructions
- In a Dutch Oven or heavy skillet, heat 1/2 inch oil to 350-375 degrees. Add one tortilla at a time and fry until crispy (about 1 minute), flipping halfway through the frying process. Remove to paper towels to drain.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, brown ground beef, breaking it up as it browns. Halfway through the browning process, stir in the chopped onion. Once the ground beef is fully browned, and the onions have softened, add the taco seasoning and water. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Spread refried beans over 6 corn tortillas. Equally, divide the seasoned ground beef over the beans. Top with half of each cheese. Top each with another crispy corn tortilla and place on parchment paper-covered baking sheets. Top each pizza with the remaining cheese, sliced tomatoes, jalapeno, black olives, and green onions.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 7-10 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Video
Notes
- To fry corn tortillas, heat 1/2 inch canola or vegetable oil in a heavy skillet or Dutch oven. It should be about 350-375 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer, it is hot enough when a drop of water added to the pan crackles and pops. Fry for about 15-20 seconds on each side. The corn tortilla should be fairly crispy, so they hold up well after the refried beans, and seasoned beef are added. Remove the tortillas to paper towels to drain.
- You can fry the corn tortillas up to 3 hours in advance. Stack with paper towels between each.
- Use your favorite taco seasoning for the ground beef. I personally like Spice Islands, which I purchase from Costco.
- You can substitute a Mexican cheese blend for the cheddar and Monterey Jack.
- Top your taco pizzas with your favorite taco toppings. Everyone has different tastes.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. For best results, reheat in the oven.
Nutrition
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Anjali
These Mexican pizzas turned out to be so so delicious!! It was the perfect weeknight meal for us today – even my kids loved it!
Sara
These were so much fun to make and personalize; a great twist to a traditional pizza, indeed!
Shashi
I so love this idea! Such a fun and flavorful take on pizza!
Becki
These were fantastic! I plan to add them to my go to recipes.
Beth Pierce
Thanks Becki! So glad that you liked them!!
Kimberly
Oh my gosh, I totally forgot about these! I remember having them when I was a kid but haven’t had them since – thanks for the recipe!
Sara
I am loving all the cheesy goodness in this dish! Definitely my kind of pizza; looks delicious!
Toni Dash
This was a huge hit at my house! Everyone really loved it!
Kevin
This is my kinda pizza! I love this recipe so much!
Jen
Yay! I no longer need to doordash my favorite guilty pleasure! This tasted so much better too!
Cathy
Such a fun recipe… especially now that Taco Bell is discontinuing theirs!
Erin
These delectable Mexican pizzas are on my must-make list!
Angela
A fun take a taco pizza. My family loved it!
Toni
This is totally irresistible! Such a great idea!
Pavani
We love Mexican food in our home and this pizza sounds perfect for us. IT looks so cheesy, colorful and delicious. Will be trying this very soon.
Luci
These Mexican pizzas are delicious! My family and I had a great time making them and they were so flavorful. I can’t wait to make them again because this recipe is a new favorite!
Pam Greer
I used to love to get Mexican pizza from our take out Mexican restaurant, but this recipe is soooo much better! We love it!