From the photo, these look like individual deep-dish pizza cups baked in small disposable foil pans, loaded with seasoned ground beef, bell peppers, mushrooms, onions and plenty of melted mozzarella. The exact recipe can’t be determined from the image alone, but this version is designed to reproduce the look, thickness, toppings and browned cheesy top very closely.
Similar mini deep-dish pizza recipes use a dough base pressed into individual cups, tomato sauce, mozzarella and finely chopped toppings; pre-cooking moisture-heavy vegetables helps prevent a soggy crust.
Yield
Makes: 4 individual 6-inch pizza cups
Servings: 4
Prep: 25 minutes
Cook: 25–30 minutes
Total: about 55 minutes
Ingredients
For the pizza crust
450 g / 1 lb prepared pizza dough
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon flour, for handling dough
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
You can use homemade or refrigerated pizza dough.
Pizza sauce
1 cup / 240 g pizza sauce or thick marinara
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon red-pepper flakes, optional
½ teaspoon sugar, optional
Salt to taste
Tip: Use a relatively thick sauce. Too much thin sauce can soften the crust.
Beef topping
300 g / 10½ oz lean ground beef
½ small onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon olive oil, if needed
You can substitute ground turkey, chicken, Italian sausage or a plant-based mince.
Cooked, crumbled beef is particularly suitable for this style of pizza; similar ground-beef pizza recipes brown the meat first and drain excess fat before assembling.
Vegetable toppings
Use approximately:
½ red bell pepper
½ yellow bell pepper
½ green bell pepper
½ cup mushrooms, sliced
¼ red onion, thinly sliced
¼ cup sliced black olives, optional
¼ cup banana peppers or jalapeños, optional
Cut everything relatively small so it fits neatly into the individual pizzas.
Important
Sauté the mushrooms and peppers briefly before assembly.
Mushrooms and fresh vegetables contain a lot of water. Cooking them first helps keep the pizza from becoming soggy.
Cheese topping
2 cups / 200 g shredded low-moisture mozzarella
¼ cup / 25 g grated Parmesan
½ cup / 50 g shredded provolone, optional
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan for finishing
Fresh parsley or basil, optional
For the appearance in your photograph, low-moisture mozzarella is preferable because it melts beautifully and browns well.
Step-by-Step Recipe
1. Prepare the pans
Use four 6-inch / 15 cm individual round foil baking pans.
Lightly brush each pan with olive oil.
If using disposable foil pans, place them on a sturdy baking sheet before filling them. This makes them much easier and safer to move in and out of the oven.
2. Prepare the beef
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the ground beef and onion.
Cook for approximately 6–8 minutes, breaking the beef into small pieces.
Add:
garlic
salt
pepper
paprika
Italian seasoning
garlic powder
onion powder
Cook another 1–2 minutes.
The beef should be completely cooked.
Drain excess fat.
Don’t skip draining
Excess grease can make the pizza bottom oily rather than crisp.
Set the beef aside.
🫑 3. Cook the vegetables
Using the same skillet, add the mushrooms, bell peppers and onion.
Cook over medium-high heat for 3–5 minutes.
You aren’t trying to completely soften them.
The goal is to remove some moisture while keeping a little crunch.
Remove from the pan.
4. Make the sauce
Combine:
pizza sauce
tomato paste
oregano
basil
garlic powder
black pepper
red pepper flakes
optional sugar
Mix well.
Taste and adjust salt.
The tomato paste makes the sauce thicker and more concentrated, which works especially well for deep-dish pizza cups.
5. Prepare the dough
Divide the pizza dough into 4 equal pieces.
Roll each piece into a ball.
On a lightly floured surface, flatten each ball into a circle approximately 7 inches / 18 cm wide.
The dough should be slightly larger than the pan.
Don’t make it paper-thin.
You want enough dough to form:
a bottom crust
a raised edge
a sturdy wall around the toppings
🫓 6. Form the pizza cups
Place one dough circle into each greased pan.
Gently press it against:
the bottom
sides
corners
Leave the edge slightly higher than the rim if possible.
If the dough keeps shrinking, let it rest for 5 minutes, then press it again.
7. Par-bake the crust
This is one of my strongest recommendations for the photo-style result.
Heat the oven to:
400°F / 200°C
Prick the bottom of each dough crust several times with a fork.
Bake empty for 5–7 minutes.
You don’t want it browned yet.
It should simply become slightly firm.
This helps prevent the sauce and vegetables from making the bottom soggy. Par-baking pizza-cup shells is also a technique used in similar recipes.
8. Assemble the pizzas
For each pizza cup, layer approximately:
Layer 1
2–3 tablespoons pizza sauce
Spread it over the bottom.
Layer 2
¼ of the cooked ground beef
Spread evenly.
Layer 3
Add:
red pepper
yellow pepper
green pepper
mushrooms
onion
optional olives/jalapeños
Layer 4
Add approximately ¼ cup mozzarella.
Layer 5
Add another small amount of beef and vegetables.
Final layer
Cover generously with mozzarella.
Sprinkle Parmesan over the top.
9. Create the browned top
For the appearance in your photograph, don’t bury all the vegetables underneath the cheese.
Instead, put a few pieces of:
green pepper
red pepper
mushroom
onion
on top of the mozzarella.
This produces the colorful vegetables poking through the golden cheese seen in the image.
10. Bake
Bake at:
400°F / 200°C
for approximately 18–25 minutes.
They’re ready when:
the crust is golden
the cheese is completely melted
the edges are browned
the center is bubbling
the beef is hot
A comparable mini deep-dish pizza recipe bakes at about 425°F for 15–20 minutes, while other pizza cups use around 375–400°F; the exact time depends heavily on the thickness of the crust and size of the pan.
Optional: Extra-Golden Cheese
For the exact browned appearance in your photo:
Switch the oven to broil/grill for approximately 1–2 minutes at the end.
Watch it continuously.
Mozzarella can go from beautifully browned to burnt very quickly.
11. Rest
Remove from the oven.
Let the pizzas rest for 5–10 minutes.
This allows the cheese to settle and makes them easier to eat without the sauce running everywhere.
Finish with:
fresh basil
parsley
Parmesan
red-pepper flakes
Complete Layering Formula
For each individual pizza:
Dough → sauce → mozzarella → beef → vegetables → mozzarella → beef → vegetables → mozzarella → Parmesan
That layered approach gives you the tall, loaded appearance shown in your image.
Variations
Vegetarian
Omit the beef.
Increase:
mushrooms
bell peppers
onions
spinach
olives
You can also add zucchini, broccoli or corn.
Vegetable-loaded versions of mini pizzas commonly use bell peppers, mushrooms, tomato and mozzarella.
Chicken
Replace beef with:
300 g cooked diced chicken
Season with:
garlic
oregano
paprika
black pepper
Spicy Beef
Add:
½ teaspoon chili flakes
sliced jalapeños
hot Italian sausage
spicy pepperoni
🫒 Mediterranean
Use:
ground lamb instead of beef
feta
olives
red pepper
onion
oregano
Hawaiian
Use:
ham
pineapple
mozzarella
red bell pepper
What to Serve With It
Because these are rich and cheesy, pair them with something fresh:
Best choices
green salad
Caesar salad
cucumber-tomato salad
coleslaw
roasted vegetables
steamed broccoli
garlic bread
marinara dipping sauce
For a complete meal, one pizza cup + large salad works very well.
Approximate Nutrition
The following is an estimate for one of four pizzas, assuming the full recipe uses lean ground beef, regular pizza dough, mozzarella and the listed vegetables.
Nutrient Approx. per pizza
Calories 650–700 kcal
Protein 32–36 g
Total fat 28–32 g
Saturated fat 12–15 g
Carbohydrates 60–65 g
Fiber 4–5 g
Net carbs 56–61 g
Total sugars 7–9 g
Added sugar 0–2 g
Cholesterol 80–100 mg
Sodium 1,000–1,300 mg
Calcium 400–500 mg
Iron 4–5 mg
Potassium 700–850 mg
These numbers are estimates, because the nutritional values change substantially depending on the dough, sauce, cheese, beef fat percentage and amount of toppings.
If you use less cheese and very lean beef, the calories and saturated fat can be reduced considerably.
Nut & Allergen Information
Tree nuts
None in the recipe as written.
Peanuts
None in the recipe as written.
Other major allergens
Contains:
Milk — mozzarella, Parmesan, provolone
Wheat/gluten — conventional pizza dough
May contain:
Packaged pizza sauce, dough and shredded cheese can have facility cross-contact warnings, so check the label if you have a serious allergy.
Gluten-Free Version
Replace regular pizza dough with a gluten-free pizza dough.
Check:
pizza sauce
sausage/meat seasoning
shredded cheese
for gluten-containing additives or cross-contact if necessary.
The toppings themselves are naturally gluten-free.
Dairy-Free Version
Use:
dairy-free pizza dough
dairy-free mozzarella
dairy-free Parmesan alternative
The meat and vegetables are naturally dairy-free.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the bottom of my pizza soggy?
Usually because there is too much sauce or moisture from vegetables.
Use thick sauce, sauté mushrooms/peppers first and par-bake the crust.
This is one of the main recommendations for preventing soggy mini pizza cups.
Can I skip par-baking?
Yes, but I recommend par-baking for a thick, deep-dish pizza.
If you skip it, use less sauce and bake until the bottom is completely cooked.
Can I use store-bought pizza dough?
Absolutely.
It is actually the easiest option.
Let refrigerated dough sit at room temperature for about 20–30 minutes before shaping.
Can I use crescent-roll dough?
Yes, but it will produce a softer, more buttery crust rather than traditional pizza crust.
Can I use biscuit dough?
Yes. It produces a thicker, breadier deep-dish base. Similar pizza-cup recipes use biscuit dough pressed into muffin-style cups.
Can I make these without meat?
Yes. Mushrooms, peppers, onions, olives, spinach and extra cheese make an excellent vegetarian version.
Can I use ground turkey?
Yes. Season it more aggressively because turkey is milder than beef.
Can I use fresh mozzarella?
Yes, but drain it extremely well and preferably use low-moisture mozzarella for this particular recipe.
Can I use cheddar?
Yes. A mozzarella-cheddar combination gives a stronger flavor but won’t have exactly the same pizza-shop stretch.
Why did my cheese become watery?
Fresh mozzarella and vegetables can release water.
Use low-moisture mozzarella and pre-cook watery vegetables.
Can I assemble them ahead?
Yes.
Assemble the pizzas, cover and refrigerate for up to about 4 hours, then bake. Similar pizza-cup recipes recommend this approach for advance preparation.
Can I freeze them?
Yes.
Cool completely, wrap individually and freeze.
For best quality, use within about 2 months.
Reheat in a 350°F / 175°C oven until hot and crisp. Oven reheating is preferable to microwaving when you want to preserve the crust texture.
Can I reheat them in an air fryer?
Yes.
Try 350°F / 175°C for 4–7 minutes, checking frequently.
Can I make them smaller?
Yes. Use muffin tins and smaller dough rounds.
Mini deep-dish pizzas are commonly made in muffin-style pans, although the exact cooking time becomes much shorter as the size decreases.
How do I get the exact look of the photo?
Use these five tricks:
1. Use individual round foil pans.
2. Make the crust fairly thick.
3. Use low-moisture mozzarella.
4. Put colorful peppers and mushrooms both under and on top of the cheese.
5. Finish under the broiler for 1–2 minutes.
With years of experience in restaurant research and local SEO, Sara creates accurate, user-friendly guides that work for both people and search engines. Her goal is to help users go from search results to their nearest restaurant or menu choice with as few clicks as possible.
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