The Guilty Pleasure of the Meat Lover’s Pizza

Every now and then, it’s important to let ourselves indulge in something that satisfies our meatiest cravings. Enter the Meat Lover’s Pizza—a masterpiece of savory meats and gooey cheese that’s best enjoyed as a rare treat. Ready to dig in with me?

This is not the healthiest pizza on our site

Shocker but a meat lover’s pizza isn’t full of healthy goodness (even if you pile it up with spinach and other greenery). It’s hardly likely that any of our vegetarian readers have even made it this far in the article!

Time Magazine reports on how the Meat Lover’s pizza is one of the worst foods for your heart health. So, be thoughtful about when (or for some folks, whether) you should put this on the menu.

Meat Lovers Pizza Nutritional Information

The meat lovers pizza is a rich, indulgent treat, and while it’s not the healthiest option, it’s perfect for an occasional splurge.

It may not be heart healthy, so before we dig in, let’s look at a breakdown of the nutrition for a typical serving size (which we’re assuming is half of a 12″ pizza:

• Calories: Approximately 600
• Fat: About 40 grams (62% of the daily recommended value)
• Sodium: Roughly 1,800 milligrams (75% of the daily recommended value)
• Cholesterol: Around 100 milligrams (33% of the daily recommended value)

Note: These values are approximate and can vary based on the specific brands and ingredients used.

Health Considerations of Meat Lover’s Pizza

While this Meat Lovers Pizza is undeniably delicious, it’s also quite high in fat, sodium, and cholesterol. Here’s a comparison to the recommended daily values for a typical adult diet, based on a 2,000-calorie intake:

• Fat: The daily recommended limit is about 65 grams. Half of this pizza has 40 grams, which is over half of the daily allowance.
• Sodium: The recommended limit is 2,300 milligrams. With 1,800 milligrams per serving, this pizza covers most of that limit.
• Cholesterol: The daily recommended limit is 300 milligrams. With 100 milligrams per serving, it provides one-third of the daily limit.

Still…

Once in a while, we deserve a treat our heart, liver, blood stream…all of our internal organs…might not necessarily love.

But our tastebuds will! Let’s get some meat going!

The Ultimate Meat Lovers Pizza Recipe

Our meat lovers pizza recipe is all about both indulgence and a something a little unique. We know it’s going to have the standards on it, but we’re going to make sure we have pizzazz in our meat pizza!

Ingredients

For a 12-inch pizza, you’ll need:

• 11 ounces of pizza dough (will make slightly thicker 12″ pizza or thinner 13″+ pizza)
  • You can use a pre-made dough but I would recommend making your own. Why not try our Easy Peasy Dough?
• 3 ounces of simple tomato sauce
• 2 ounces of andouille sausage, sliced
• 1 ounce of pepperoni slices
• 0.8 ounces of quartered salami slices
• 1 ounce of cubed uncured pork salami
• 0.6 ounces of bacon bits
• 4 ounces of cheese (I prefer half Monterey Jack, half mozzarella for this recipe)

How to Make this Meat Lovers Pizza Recipe

Meat Over or Under the Cheese??

Do you put the meat or the cheese on top?!?  Really, this is a matter of taste. Meats will certainly cook differently if on top than if under the cheese, and therefore so will the cheese. Many folks prefer the extra browning (or even crisping) when the meat is on top. Some meats (especially lean ones) might over cook if they are on top.

For this recipe, I favor putting the sausage and pepperoni on top since they are pretty fatty and can handle the direct heat.

Quick Tip for a Loaded Meat Lovers Pizza

Naturally, you can pile on the toppings for a really loaded meat lovers pizza. But, this can be tricky if you are going to launch the pizza. The extra weight and lose toppings on top could make this tricky to handle (and I’m saying this from experience!).

If you really want to cook this on a pizza stone, an option is to parbake (partially bake) the crust before putting any toppings on it. Just cook the crust long enough for it to set its shape, then take it out and top it. I recommend cooking it at 400 F for this step.

Alternatives for your Meat Lovers Pizza recipe

Other Meat Choices?

It should come as no surprise that the most important factor in your meat lovers pizza is the quality of the meat! You’ll probably be able to taste the difference between a wonderfully, naturally cured and aged meats, although that often comes at an expense that might not be justified if you’re piling it all on top of each other on a pizza.

That’s up to you!

How About a Vegetarian Meat Lovers Pizza?

I jokingly said that there wouldn’t be any vegetarians reading our meat lovers pizza recipe, but some folks are big on meat alternatives. So for those folks, why not make a meat-alternative pizza?

Since we’ve harped a little on the nutritional values, just take a close look at the substitute(s) you use. Often vegetarian substitutes will generally have much less cholesterol (often zero), but could have more fat, sodium, and/or calories – so pay attention when you’re shopping for your ingredients.

Meat Alternatives

1. Vegetarian Bacon Bits
   • Alternative: Use 0.6 ounces of vegetarian bacon bits.
   • Flavor and Texture: These bits offer a smoky, crispy texture similar to traditional bacon, perfect for adding a savory crunch to your pizza.
2. Vegetarian Sausage
   • Alternative: Replace 2 ounces of andouille sausage with vegetarian sausage slices.
   • Flavor and Texture: Opt for a spicy vegetarian sausage to mimic the robust flavor of andouille. Brands like Beyond Meat or Field Roast offer excellent options.
3. Vegetarian Pepperoni
   • Alternative: Use 1 ounce of vegetarian pepperoni slices.
   • Flavor and Texture: Vegetarian pepperoni provides the classic, slightly spicy flavor and may have the texture you expect from traditional pepperoni…but also maybe not. Be wary – it may not cook the same and could burn more easily.
4. Vegetarian Salami
   • Alternative: Replace both the 0.8 ounces of quartered salami slices and the 1 ounce of cubed salami with vegetarian salami. You can do slices or cubes or even a mix – it might depend on the texture of the vegetarian salami you are using.
   • Flavor and Texture: Vegetarian salami is usually made from soy or wheat gluten and offers a savory, meaty flavor.

You obviously don’t have to make any changes to the sauce or cheese to make the pizza vegetarian.

September 21, 2024