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The classic combination of sausage and peppers gets turned into a delicious grilled pizza! This Grilled Sausage and Peppers Pizza is topped with pesto, grilled Italian chicken sausage, bell peppers, onions and dollops of ricotta cheese. An easy and delicious dinner or serve it as an appetizer!
Thanks to my friends at Bilinski’s Chicken Sausage for sponsoring this post. As always all opinions are my own.
Grilled sausage and peppers is an easy and classic dinner recipe that you may already be familiar with. Essentially all it is is Italian sausage, bell peppers, and a yellow onion that are either grilled or cooked on the stove or in the oven, depending on the season.
You can eat them as is, on a hoagie roll with marinara sauce and mozzarella or do what I did and make this Grilled Sausage and Peppers Pizza.
Ingredients For Grilled Sausage and Peppers Pizza
- Pizza dough
- Pesto
- Bilinski’s Organic Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage
- Bell peppers
- Yellow onion
- Mozzarella cheese
- Ricotta
- Fresh basil (optional)
How to Grill Pizza
Grilling pizza may seem intimidating, but I assure you, it’s actually quite easy. The cooking time is faster and if you’re making this in the summer, you won’t heat up your house by turning on the oven.
- Start by making sure your grill grates are clean and oiled.
- Preheat the grill to 425° F. And keep the lid closed until you’re ready to put the pizza dough on.
- Divide the pizza dough in half so you will have two medium sized pizzas versus one large one. Doing this makes it easier to transfer the dough onto the grill.
- Drizzle some olive oil onto a baking sheet and roll or stretch the dough into the desired size and thinness. Once the dough is ready, brush or rub the tops with more olive oil.
- Use your hands to lift the dough off of the baking sheet and onto the grill. It’s ok if the shape isn’t a perfect circle, mine never is and I like it better that way.
- Cover the grill with the lid and let the dough cook for 2-3 minutes. Uncover and use tongs to lift up the pizza dough. Check the bottom to make sure it’s browned and there are grill marks then flip it over onto the baking sheet so that the grilled side is facing up.
- Add your toppings onto the pizza dough. In the case of this grilled sausage and pepper pizza I only added on the pesto and mozzarella cheese.
- Lower the heat a little and then put the pizza back on the grill for another 2-4 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the bottom of the crust is golden brown.
How to Make Grilled Sausage and Peppers Pizza
Before following the steps above regarding how to grill pizza, you’ll want to grill the chicken sausage, peppers and onion. Preheat the grill to 425° F. You’ll grill the sausage, peppers and onions at the same temperature as you’ll grill the pizza dough.
Grilled Peppers and Onions – Brush the quartered peppers and halved onion with a little olive oil and lay them down on the cleaned and oiled grill grates. The peppers and onion will need about 10 minutes to grill and you’ll want to flip them over halfway through the cooking time.
The skins should be slightly charred and the vegetables should be tender. Remove them from the grill onto a plate. Cut the peppers into strips and the onion into half moons. Tent the vegetables with foil to keep them warm.
Bilinski’s Organic Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage – For the sausage in this recipe I used Bilinski’s Organic Chicken Sausage. I discovered Bilinski’s a couple years ago and was thrilled to partner with them and create a recipe. Their organic chicken sausage is free of antibiotics, is non-GMO, GAP Step 3 Certified, gluten-free and has no casing.
The sausage tastes incredible! The Organic Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage, which is what I used for this recipe tastes just as you’d expect and want Italian sausage to taste. The difference is, the quality of the chicken and the ingredients used.
Bilinski’s is very transparent about what goes into their sausage. The ingredients are straightforward and simple. Skinless chicken, spices, salt, and water are all you’ll find in the spicy Italian flavor.
All of their chicken sausages are fully cooked, which makes this grilled pizza that much easier. For the pizza, all I did was grill them until they were warmed through and the outside was crisp and had some grill marks on it. Slice up the sausage, then add it to the plate with the peppers and onions and keep it covered with foil until you’re ready to assemble the pizza.
Pizza Dough – The instructions and tips for grilling the pizza dough are above. Once the first side of the dough has been grilled, remove them from the grill back onto the sheet pan and spread on the pesto and sprinkle on the mozzarella.
Put the pizzas back on the grill so the other side can cook and the cheese can melt. Once it’s done, remove the pizzas from the grill and top them with the grilled sausage, peppers and onions. Dollop on spoonfuls of ricotta and garnish with fresh basil.
Frequently Asked Questions
I didn’t find the sausage to be overly spicy. There was a kick of spice, but it wasn’t like my mouth was on fire. If you’re sensitive to spicy food try using Bilinski’s Organic Mild Italian Chicken Sausage
If you don’t have a grill, use a grill pan or large skillet (cast iron is great for this). Heat it over medium-high heat and add in enough olive oil so the peppers and onions are sticking. Sauté them until their soft and then remove them from the pan onto a plate.
Add the sausage to the pan and cook until the outsides are golden and crisp and the sausage is heated through. Slice the sausage, peppers and onions in the same way that you would for the grilled method.
Bake the pizza dough with the pesto, mozzarella and all of the toppings on it, except the basil, at 475° F. for 10-12 minutes. Garnish with the basil and serve.
Instead of using pesto, try marinara or traditional pizza sauce. Another favorite of mine is to take a tablespoon or so of olive oil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper and whisk it together. Then just spread it over the top of the pizza dough like you would a sauce.
More Pizza Recipes
- Grilled Caprese Pizza
- Spinach and Artichoke Dip Pizza
- Chicken Peach Ricotta Pizza with Arugula and Balsamic Glaze
- Grilled Zucchini Ricotta and Pine Nut Pizza
- Grilled Corn Tomato and Pesto Pizza
- Chicken Enchilada Pizza
Grilled Sausage and Pepper Pizza
Ingredients
- 1 pound pizza dough divided into 2 balls
- 3 tablespoons pesto
- 1 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese
- 3/4 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 of a yellow onion peeled and root intact
- 1 red bell pepper cored, seeds removed and cut into quarters
- 1 yellow bell pepper cored, seeds removed and cut into quarters
- 2 links Bilinski’s Organic Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage
- Fresh basil leaves for garnish
Instructions
- Clean and oil your grill grates and preheat to 425° F.
- Prep the peppers and onion rubbing them with a little olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Place them on the grill along with the chicken sausage. Grill the peppers and onion for about 8-10 minutes or until the skin is charred and they’re tender. Flip them halfway through the cooking time. Grill the sausages until the outside is crisp and they are heated through, turning them occasionally.
- Remove the vegetables and sausage from the grill onto a plate. Slice the peppers into strips and the onion into half moons. Slice the sausage into rounds. Cover the plate with foil to keep everything warm.
- Clean and oil the grill grates again keeping the temperature at 425° F. Drizzle olive oil on a large sheet pan and rub it all over to keep the dough from sticking. Take the pizza dough halves and roll or stretch them into the desired shape and thickness. Brush or rub the tops with a little more olive oil. Take the pizza dough, pesto, a spoon to spread the pesto, and mozzarella out to the grill.
- Use your hands to lift the dough off of the baking sheet and place it onto the grill grates. Adjust and stretch the dough out as needed, then cover with the lid. Grill for 2-3 minutes then uncover and use a pair of tongs to lift up the dough and check to see if it’s golden brown and has grill marks.
- Remove the pizza dough from the grill onto the sheet pan so that the grilled side is facing up. Lower the heat slightly. Spread the pesto over the tops of the crust and sprinkle on the mozzarella. Put the pizza back onto the grill and cook another 2 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the bottom is golden brown.
- Remove the pizzas from the grill and top them with the peppers, onion and chicken sausage. Dollop on the ricotta and finish with fresh basil leaves.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was so yummy! (The onion is missing from the ingredient list… but I caught it in the instructions.)
I will have to make it again to perfect the technique. A fun way to have pizza when it is too hot for the oven!
I’m glad you liked the pizza stefanie! And thanks for letting me know the onion was missing from the ingredient list, all fixed now.