Name: Homemade Mexican Pizza
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 8 flour tortillas (soft taco or fajita size); 1 pound lean ground beef; 2 tablespoons taco seasoning (or 1 packet); 1/2 cup water; 15 ounce can Refried beans; 1-2 tablespoons milk (optional); 15 ounce can red enchilada sauce; Shredded cheddar cheese; Shredded jack cheese; 2 Roma tomatoes (diced); 2 ounce can sliced olives (drained); 2 Green onions (thinly sliced); Other optional toppings: Sour cream (cilantro, avocado, guacamole, sliced jalapenos)

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Skip the drive thru and make Mexican Pizza at home, with layers of crispy flour tortilla, seasoned ground beef and refried beans, all topped with your favorite taco toppings. It’s a simple kid friendly dinner that’s way better than the original!

This recipe will make about 4 Mexican pizzas, but it’s very versatile and you can play around with the ingredients and the amounts.

What is Mexican Pizza Made of?

The Mexican Pizza is a unique fusion of two of the most popular foods on the planet – tacos and pizza! Made popular by Taco Bell in the late 1980s, it was one of my favorite items on the menu. In fact, it still it!

The original Taco Bell Mexican Pizza had 8 delicious layers:

Crispy flour tortilla
Refried beans
Seasoned ground beef
Another crispy tortilla
Enchilada sauce
Three cheese blend
Sliced green onions
Sliced olives

The recipe has changed a bit over the years. Taco Bell removed the olives at some point and the green onions were removed in 2006 due to an E.coli outbreak. Even though the outbreak was under control within a few months, they decided to leave them off the famous pizza.

The great thing about make a Mexican Pizza at home is that you can add these beloved ingredients yourself.

How to Make Mexican Pizza

Crispy Tortillas – Bake tortillas in the oven to get them nice and crispy. You can use flour (preferred, and in the original recipe) or corn tortillas.
Refried Beans – Heat refried beans in a saucepan on the stove.
Seasoned ground beef – Cook ground beef with taco seasoning and water to form a thick sauce.
Assemble Mexican Pizzas – Spread beans on one tortilla, then some of the ground beef. Top with the other tortilla and spread enchilada sauce on top. Top with cheese, olives and green onions. Bake until the ingredients are hot and the cheese is melted.

Top Tips and Variations

Spray tortillas with cooking spray or brush with canola oil before baking to help them crisp and turn golden brown.
For super creamy refried beans, I like to add a splash of milk to make them. Or, make refried beans from scratch. Mashed black beans would also be completely delicious.
Add your favorite taco toppings to your baked Mexican Pizza, like pico de gallo, sour cream, diced tomato, cilantro or diced red onion.
Use any of your favorite meat instead of ground beef. Try with Spicy Shredded Mexican Beef, Chicken Tacos meat or even ground turkey.

Serving Suggestions

Mexican Pizza is an easy meal on it’s own, but you can make it even better by adding a few sides. We like to include Mexican Rice and a simple Black Bean and Corn Salad.

More Mexican Inspired Food

Planning a fiesta of your own? We make Mexican food at home at least once a week, from Ground Beef Tacos to Slow Cooker Carnitas to Mexican Chicken Casserole. If you want some delicious authentic and Mexican inspired recipes, you’ve got to try our Instant Pot Barbacoa, Shrimp Ceviche and Chicken Tortilla Soup. My husband swears by my famous homemade Guacamole and my kids rave about my Homemade Taquitos. Don’t forget the Margaritas!

Or, you can check out all of our favorite Mexican recipes in one place!