Crustless Pizza Bowl

A pizza bowl is a crustless pizza with all of your favorite toppings (and mine). It can be done in just 15 minutes from start to finish!

I really enjoy this recipe because it is crust-free. Making a pizza crust is not that tough, but it requires pizza dough proofing time. Of course you can buy the pizza crust, but why even bother sometimes?

I get lazy once in a while, and on those days this is my ideal recipe. I get a perfect pizza in no time, with all the best flavors and ingredients and it barely takes any effort or time to make!

Plus, a crustless pizza bowl option is great for those who can’t eat gluten or want to cut back on bread. You don’t have to go through the hassle of perfecting gluten-free crust!

Delicious, easy, and friendly to all kinds of diets – what’s not to love in a pizza bowl?

What’s Inside a Pizza Bowl?

Pizza bowls have pretty much all the ingredients of a regular pizza, minus the crust.

For this recipe, I’ve gone with sausages, pepperoni, tomato sauce, and cheese with some Italian herbs. You can use good ole basil and oregano or a mix of fragrant Italian herbs. It is totally up to you.

What Kind of Sausage?

For my pizza bowl, I chose to use a mild Italian sausage.

If you are into some spicy sausages, you can certainly use those as well, but the mild and sweet Italian sausages work best in my opinion.

If you are on a kosher or halal diet, you can just as easily use beef sausage or beef pepperoni instead.

Which Pepperoni is Best to Use?

Pepperoni is an air-dried spicy sausage with a few distinctive characteristics: It is fine-grained, lightly smoky, and relatively soft.

Although many believe otherwise, pepperoni is not an Italian product, but actually originated in the U.S. 

Pepperoni as we know it is not an ingredient with many varieties, but you can still find different slice sizes and an option between smokier or spicier flavors.

You can choose between these or simply make a pizza bowl with two types for an extra gourmet version!

As I said before, you can easily substitute a beef-based pepperoni if you do not eat or like pork products. This recipe is very friendly to alterations by personal preference.

Choosing the Right Cheese

This is where you have the most choices of all.

I will tell you all about my favorite types of cheese for pizza and give you some information about each so you can decide which is best for you:

• Mozzarella cheese: This is the most popular type of cheese for pizza. When making pizza you can choose freely between high and low-moisture mozzarella cheese. Between these two, I personally go with low-moisture mozzarella, as this one has a better taste and melts faster when baked. 

• Provolone cheese: Provolone cheese is a semi-hard Italian cheese, and is the second best option in my opinion. The flavor of provolone varies and it is all due to how long it has been aged. If you want a sweeter flavor, choose provolone that has been aged for a shorter time, and for sharper flavor, choose provolone that has aged for a longer time.

• Cheddar cheese: This is my third choice when it comes to pizza. Cheddar cheese is a widely known type of cheese and it is loved for its sharp taste. Cheddar is a good addition and it is best when combined with mozzarella, because it has just a little elasticity and does not blister like mozzarella. 

• Parmesan cheese: Parmesan is a hard cheese. In addition to other great cheeses, it can be shaved or grated on top of pizza. Parmesan cheese is best added after baking because if its baked, the flavor will be lost. I like to add my parmesan on top of a warm, freshly baked pizza. 

In addition to these you can try using gouda, Edam, Gruyere, and ricotta cheese. Each of these cheese will bring its unique flavor and turn your pizza bowl into a brand new amazing dish.

Which Mushrooms to Use?

Personally I like white mushrooms due to their milder taste. However, you can try using shiitake, oyster or any type of mushrooms you like.

When cleaning mushrooms, it is important not to wash them in water. Mushrooms have a tendency to soak up all that water and, once cooked, they will become soggy.

Always clean your mushrooms with a damp towel and skip the classic washing. 

Making a Pizza Bowl: The Basics

It all starts by cooking and browning the sausage. You can brown larger batches of sausage and keep in freezer and use anytime you want a delicious pizza bowl.

Cook the sausage in olive oil or some butter until browned. In the same skillet, cook the mushrooms until soft. It takes about five minutes.

Afterwards, it is time to assemble. Place some of the tomato sauce in bowls. Top with sausage, pepperoni, and cheese. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 Fahrenheit and that’s it! Enjoy your pizza bowl. 

How To Make a Pizza Bowl

Step 1

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.

Cook the sausage with a pinch of salt in heated oil until browned. Remove the sausage from skillet. 

Step 2

In the same skillet cook the mushrooms for 5 minutes.

Place some of the marinara or tomato sauce in the ramekins. 

Step 3

Top with sausage and pepperoni slices. Pour over the remaining sauce and top with mozzarella.

Step 4

Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes at 350F. 

Serve warm. 

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