Meatball Pizza
This Meatball Pizza layers homemade dough and sauce with spicy pork meatballs, fresh jalapeños, and creamy ricotta for the ultimate cozy‑meets‑bold flavor combo. It’s simple, satisfying, and exactly what you want on a pizza night at home!
Meatball Ricotta Pizza
Ever since we ate the BEST meatball ricotta pizza in New York City (back in 2016), I’ve been trying to recreate it. VERY hard to do because NYC pizza is so amazing! So here we go. I’ve got all the delicious details for you!
There are three parts to a great pizza.
- The pizza dough.
- The pizza sauce.
- The toppings.
I used homemade recipes for all three of these parts, but you could easily take a short-cut on the dough and the sauce. However, I don’t recommend buying the meatballs. My recipe is super easy and is the foundation for a great meatball pizza.
Reasons to love this recipe:
- The spicy pork meatballs bring big, bold flavor that makes every slice feel special.
- Creamy ricotta adds that soft, luxurious contrast to all the savory, crispy edges.
- It’s the kind of pizza that feels both cozy and a little indulgent – perfect for sharing or keeping all to yourself.
Ingredients you’ll need for meatball pizza:
- Pizza Dough – I used our regular homemade pizza dough but you could use store-bought too.
- Pizza Sauce – Our homemade pizza sauce and vodka pizza sauce recipe has seriously elevated our zaaa game. It’s super quick and you can choose to keep it chunky or blend it for smooth style!
- Meatballs – I used this sausage meatball recipe. It’s on the spicy side but feel free to tone it down.
- Jalapeños – I used fresh jalapeños (FROM OUR GARDEN)! What? Yes, we have a mini garden this year and these jalapeños stole the show. If you don’t like spicy, just leave out the seeds and ribs (or skip them altogether).
- Cheese – Ricotta cheese is best for meatball pizza! Use a full-fat version for best results.
Be sure to try out all of our best pizza toppings!
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How to make meatball pizza:
1. Make the dough.
- Follow my simple recipe for Homemade Pizza Dough. This dough is pretty quick, and you can mix it up about an hour before you start the pizza assembly. It really does make the BEST pizza!
- If you want to make it ahead of time, you can mix the dough, let it rise, stick it in the fridge (covered), and remove it 30 minutes before assembly.
- Use a baking mat and a rolling pin, with plenty of flour, and roll out the dough in a shape that works for you. If using a cast iron skillet, you’ll want to use your hands to press the dough into the skillet.
2. Make the sauce.
- Follow my simple 20 minute recipe for Pizza Sauce From Scratch. It’s a quick sauce and is SO MUCH better than store-bought.
- Choose to make it chunky style or smooth!
- This pizza sauce stores well in the refrigerator and freezes well too.
3. Make meatballs.
- Combine the sausage meatball ingredients in a mixing bowl. Use your hands to form into meatballs. For pizza, I like to make them bigger so that when I slice them, the chunks are larger. This recipe makes 8 large meatballs.
- Place the meatballs on a baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes. If they are a tiny bit pink inside, it’s ok because they will continue to cook when baking the pizza.
- Use a sharp knife to cut the meatballs into slices.
- These meatballs can be precooked and frozen, or frozen raw.
4. Assemble pizza.
For all of my pizza recipes, you can choose to bake them 1) in cast iron skillets in the oven or on a grill, 2) on baking sheets in the oven, or 3) on pizza stones in either the oven, grill, or smoker. We tend to rotate how we cook them based on the weather outside and how many people we are feeding.
- Arrange dough. To start, roll out the dough. For this occasion (pictured), we cooked the pizza in a cast iron skillet.
- Add toppings. Spread a generous amount of pizza sauce on the dough. Then add the sliced meatballs and jalapeños. Finally, add generous dollops of ricotta cheese.
- Finish. Drizzle some olive oil over the ricotta cheese, along with some kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste). This really helps the ricotta to shine.
5. Bake.
- Bake (or grill) – Cook pizza at a high temp. We use 450 degrees in our oven or at least 500 degrees on our grill/smoker.
- The pizza is done when the crust is nice and browned on the bottom.
6. Serve pizza and enjoy!
We like pairing pizza with a simple side salad. Add one of our favorite dressings – Honey Lemon Dressing, Creamy Italian Dressing, or Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette.
What to serve with homemade meatball pizza:
- Let’s start out with some craft beer or red wine, shall we? OR you could whip up The Best Mai Tais or some Swirl Margaritas for something fun!
- A simple green salad is all you really need with this hearty pizza. But you could also pair it with my Best Italian Chopped Salad which is a great salad to have in the refrigerator all week long.
- Dessert anyone? We’ve got some delicious ice cream recipes for you to try! Try our Blueberry Ice Cream Recipe or Mint Chip Ice Cream, and let me know what you think!
Recipe FAQs:
Do I need to cook the meatballs before putting them on the pizza?
Yes – partially cooking them first helps them stay tender and ensures they finish perfectly in the oven.
Should I add the ricotta before or after baking?
Add dollops of ricotta before baking so it warms, softens, and blends into the toppings.
What kind of sauce works best for meatball pizza
A simple, well‑seasoned red sauce or vodka pizza sauce is perfect for meatball pizza.
Can I make this pizza ahead of time?
You can prep the dough, sauce, and meatballs ahead, but assemble and bake right before serving for the best texture.
Other Delicious Pizza Recipes:
Kitchen Tools Used: (affiliate links)
xoxo ~Sue
Meatball Pizza Recipe
This Meatball Pizza layers homemade dough and sauce with spicy pork meatballs, fresh jalapeños, and creamy ricotta for the ultimate cozy‑meets‑bold flavor combo. It’s simple, satisfying, and exactly what you want on a pizza night at home!
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Servings: 18 slices (3 pizzas)
Calories: 239kcal
Ingredients
- 1 batch homemade pizza dough – use any homemade or store-bought dough
- 1 ½ cup pizza sauce – use my homemade version or store-bought sauce
- 2 medium jalapeños -sliced, with or without seeds and ribs
- 2 cups ricotta cheese – or more
For the sausage meatballs:
- 1 pound ground pork – we use the HOT version
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup onion – minced
- 1 clove garlic – minced
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese – freshly shredded
- 1/3 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper – to taste
- 2 Tablespoons cold water – or a little more
Instructions
- Make a batch of homemade pizza dough or use store-bought. 1 batch homemade pizza dough
- Make our Pizza Sauce From Scratch, vodka pizza sauce, or use store-bought. You'll need almost two cups of sauce for this recipe (3 pizzas).1 ½ cup pizza sauce
- Make the meatballs. In a mixing bowl, combine the sausage meatball ingredients. Use your hands to gently mix. Divide the mixture into 8 sections and gently form into meatballs. Use cold water for moisture, and add as you need.1 pound ground pork, 1 large egg, 1/4 cup onion, 1 clove garlic, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, 1/3 cup Panko breadcrumbs, 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, 2 Tablespoons cold water
- Bake meatballs. Bake meatballs in a 400 degree preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, or until done to your liking. For pizza, I under-bake slightly as the meatballs will cook more with the pizza.
- Assemble pizza. Layer the homemade dough into three large cast iron skillets, baking sheets, or pizza stones. Use flour on a flat surface to roll dough out. Add pizza sauce, jalapeño slices, and sliced meatballs to the sauce. Then add spoonfuls of ricotta cheese. Top with a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper (to taste).2 medium jalapeños, 2 cups ricotta cheese
- Cook pizza. Bake at 450 degrees for 16-20 minutes or until the bottoms are golden brown. If using a grill, cook at 500 degrees until done.
Notes
- Store leftover pizza in an airtight container in your refrigerator for 3-4 days. Reheat in an air fryer or microwave.
- We love to grill this pizza on our Big Green Egg at a high temperature.
Nutrition
Calories: 239kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.001g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 300mg | Potassium: 206mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 289IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 89mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @Suebeehomemaker or tag #suebeehomemaker!
Spicy pizza on the Big Green Egg. I agree with Josh. Let’s go!
YES!
Made this for lunch yesterday on the big green egg! One of my favorite pizza recipes (perfect level of spice)
Woohoo! Grilling pizza is so much fun!