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My birria pizza recipe features slow-cooked birria meat, gooey cheese, and spicy jalapenos baked on a chewy and fluffy crust. It’s packed with so much flavor.
Love recipes with birria? Try my birria quesadilla, birria ramen, or quesabirria tacos.
Birria is having its moment right now, and I am LIVING for it.
Sure, classic slow-cooked birria meat is delicious in its own right, but it’s the creative way it’s also used that makes it shine. My family considers themselves pizza connoisseurs, so recreating the viral birria pizza looked to be a challenge. After one bite of my homemade birria pizza, they were converted!
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
- It is so flavorful. My birria meat and stew pack heaps of flavor. It is sweet, spicy, tangy, and savory, and once you add cheese and a pizza crust, it’s pretty much perfect.
- Quick. If you have birria meat leftovers or a frozen batch, you can enjoy this pizza within minutes.
- Ultimate fusion recipe. If you love experimenting with exciting flavors and cuisines, this one is for you!
Ingredients Needed
- Pizza dough. Get your trusted store-bought dough, or make your pizza dough from scratch. I’ve successfully made it with my 2 ingredient pizza dough (just Greek yogurt mixed with self rising flour).
- Birria cooking liquid and meat. You’ll need this flavorful stew to sauce up the pizza, along with the meat.
- Cheese. No pizza is complete without a generous layer of shredded cheese. I find Mexican Oaxaca cheese to have the best flavor, but traditional mozzarella cheese or cheddar cheese is fine.
- Jalapenos. Sliced and scattered on top. I find adding a little spice on top just takes this pizza to the next level.
How to make birria pizza
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Roll the dough. Dust the surface and roll the dough out into a circular pizza base. Transfer it to the baking sheet and create raised borders to hold the toppings.
Step 2- Assemble. Add the birria liquid, spread the shredded meat, layer the cheese, and evenly arrange the jalapenos on the pizza.
Step 3- Bake, slice, and serve. Bake the pizza in a preheated oven at 250°C for 12 minutes until the cheese melts.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Thicken the birria cooking liquid. Reduce a cup of birria stew to half a cup by heating it in a saucepan to make a thick, silky sauce. Alternatively, you can fold in some pomodoro sauce or sugo for a tomato-flavored sauce.
- Bake the pizza in a hot oven. Do not forget to preheat the oven to the required temperature. The instant and sustained high heat helps to bake a light, crusty, and chewy crust.
- Use a pizza stone or a serrated pizza tray. The holes at the bottom give the crust that extra CRISPY bottom and sides while keeping the middle fluffy.
Variations
- Make a calzone. Instead of a pizza, wrap the juicy meat in the dough, shape it into a calzone, and bake it as indicated.
- Garnish with fresh herbs. Add chopped cilantro, parsley, or chives to garnish this pizza. It’ll elevate the dish with its refreshing crunch.
- Use other Mexican-style meat. Any flavorful Mexican meat works, including carnitas, beef barbacoa, or something hearty like al pastor or chicken al pastor. All of these proteins come in some form of broth too, which can work like a sauce.
Storage instructions
To store. I rarely have any birria pizza leftovers. But if you end up with a few extra slices, refrigerate them for 4-5 days in a sealed container.
To freeze. Freezing leftover pizza is not a great idea because the crust crumbles upon thawing.
To reheat. I prefer heating my pizza in the air fryer, but an oven works just as well. I’ve also been experimenting with reheating pizza on the stovetop (thank you, TikTok), and it’s pretty stellar.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! I’ve noticed Costco, Whole Foods, and other grocery stores now stocking pre-made birria meat. While (in my opinion) not as tasty as my homemade version, it’s a fabulous shortcut that works perfectly.
Yes, you can. Just use your favorite gluten-free pizza dough (I like the Scharr brand).
More creative pizza ideas
- Crustless pizza
- Chicken crust pizza
- Sicilian pizza
- Low calorie pizza
- Cloud bread pizza
- Or any of my pizza recipes
Birria Pizza
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound pizza dough * See notes
- 1/2 cup birria broth
- 1 cup birria meat
- 1 cup oaxaca cheese shredded
- 1 small jalapeno sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 250C/420F.
- Roll out the pizza dough to a 12-inch circle, dusting with flour as needed.
- Place it on the baking sheet or pizza stone. Flatten the inside part of the dough, creating higher edges of the dough (1/2 an inch width) to reserve the birria liquid inside.
- Pour the Birria liquid onto the dough and spread it using the ladle. Sprinkle the Birria meat evenly, followed by the cheese. Top with some jalapeno pepper slices.
- Bake for 12 minutes or until the cheese melts and begins to go golden.
- Slice the pizza and serve warm with some hot sauce or more Birria liquid.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published August 2023, updated and republished November 2024
Where can I find birria meat?