BBQ Chicken Pizza with a delicious bite-sized twist! These BBQ Chicken Mini Pizzas are packed with delicious flavor and baked to bubbly perfection… in a muffin tin!
Is there any such thing as too much pizza? Because somewhere along the line… I think I overdid it. When my kids were young, pizza was our go to… for easy dinners and movie nights and sleepovers with friends. It was quick and easy and everyone loved it.
But now that they’re all older? They literally never want it! I almost have to beg them or bribe them or force them to eat it. Either that OR it has to be fancy. Because these days, they only want things like pesto pizza or margherita pizza or hot honey pepperoni pizza.
So I decided to try something new and different and fancy-ish: these Mini BBQ Chicken Pizzas! Stuffed with shredded chicken and sautéed red onion and fresh cilantro and mozzarella cheese, these muffin tin pizzas are fancy enough to get the nod of approval from my now-teenage daughters… and easy enough to still feel like a dinnertime win for me!
What you’ll Need For This Recipe
Pizza dough – I used one tube of refrigerated pizza dough, which can be found near the refrigerated crescent rolls and biscuits. You can also use a package of pizza dough mix or substitute fresh dough.
Chicken – 2 cups of cooked chicken is the perfect amount for these pizza cups. I used shredded rotisserie chicken, but any type of cooked chicken works well.
Red onion – I added 1/2 cup chopped red onion, sautéed in olive oil.
Cilantro – I also added 2 Tablespoons minced cilantro, plus more for garnish.
BBQ sauce & ketchup – A combination of bbq sauce and ketchup creates a delicious sauce that’s not too sweet. Depending on the brand and flavor of bbq sauce you use, combining it with ketchup is optional.
Cheese – I used shredded mozzarella cheese on top, but feel free to use a pizza blend or a blend of mozzarella and smoked gouda.
Cornmeal – A sprinkle of cornmeal in the bottom of each muffin cup helps keep the dough from sticking to the pan.
How To Make Mini BBQ Chicken Pizzas
Prep the muffin tin. Spray a regular sized muffin pan with cooking spray, then sprinkle a small amount of cornmeal into the bottom of each cup. Set aside.
Sauté the onions. In a small skillet, heat 1-2 teaspoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté, stirring occasionally, until tender and browned.
Prep the filling. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the chicken, sautéed onion, cilantro, bbq sauce, and ketchup. Mix well.
Prep the crusts. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of each muffin cup.
Fill the crusts. Fill each dough cup with a spoonful of the filling, dividing it evenly among all 12 cups. Sprinkle each with shredded cheese.
Bake. Bake at 450°F for 10-12 minutes, until cheese is fully melted and edges are golden brown.
Recipe Variations
- Use homemade pizza dough instead of store bought
- Substitute ground chicken or any kind of cooked chicken
- Add chopped, cooked bacon
- Add minced jalapeños
- Use any type of cheese or cheese blend
- Add cheese to the filling
Pro Tips
Start with cold dough. Cold pizza dough will be much easier to press into the muffin cups, especially up the sides of the cups.
Use the cornmeal. A sprinkle of cornmeal will work wonders in keeping the dough from sticking to the pan.
Don’t overfill. No need to overfill these cups. The proportions listed will allow the dough to bake fully and keep the pizza cups from becoming soggy and hard to eat.
BBQ Chicken Mini Pizzas
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons cornmeal
- 1 tube refrigerated pizza dough 13.8 ounces
- 1 cup red onion chopped
- 2 cups chicken cooked & chopped
- 2 Tablespoons cilantro minced
- 6 Tablespoons bbq sauce
- 2 Tablespoons ketchup
- 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F.
- Spray a 12 cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle a small amount of cornmeal in the bottom of each cup. Set aside.
- In a small skillet, heat 1-2 teaspoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté, stirring occasionally, until tender and browned.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the chicken, sautéed onion, cilantro, bbq sauce, and ketchup. Mix well.
- Unroll the dough and divide into 12 equal portions. Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of each muffin cup.
- Fill each dough cup with a spoonful of the filling, dividing it evenly among all 12 cups. Sprinkle each with shredded cheese.
- Bake at 450°F for 10-12 minutes, until cheese is fully melted and edges are golden brown.
- Remove from oven and garnish with cilantro as desired.
Notes
Recipe Variations
- Use homemade pizza dough instead of store bought
- Substitute ground chicken or any kind of cooked chicken
- Add chopped, cooked bacon
- Add minced jalapeños
- Use any type of cheese or cheese blend
- Add cheese to the filling
These sound and look deeelish. Good idea to change things up. Doesn’t it seem like you got away with something? ☺
Funny….I DO feel like I got away with something….and I love it!! 🙂
these look stinkin amazing… i might have to try this out! yuum
They really were tasty….and oh so easy!!
Yummy! These look so good ! We had muffin pizzas for dinner but the normal variety. I think my family would love some zesty BBQ chicken in a pizza! I’ll try this next week. As always, great pics Cathy. You are THE BEST!
I never ever ever get tired of pizza. I just had my first BBQ pizza a few weeks ago and OMG. I’m SO doing these mini ones!
These look amazing! And what a great idea for little hands! I would love for you to share this at what i am eating http://www.townsend-house.com/2013/05/what-i-am-eating_17.html
These look so delicious! Pinned and making a batch soon 🙂
Linda
With A Blast
Boy do these look good, and I love how you made them into individual servings! I’d love it if you would share this at my Saturday Spotlight link party.
http://angelshomestead.com/saturday-spotlight-17/
Hope to see you there!
April
Angels Homestead
Those are adorable! I will have to try them this way sometime, so cute:)
How adorable are these. thanks for linking them up to sweet & savoury sunday this week 😀
I think these are the cutest things ever! I found you over at Watch Out, Martha. Love your site, and I’ll be back!
Laura @ The Salty Kitchen
Ohhh I love anything with a new twist on pizza. I assure you I love pizza in any form… now I’m thinking of a chicken, bacon ranch pizza or maybe taco in those cute little cups…
Kids that don’t like pizza? Who are they?! Haha, I can’t even imagine that…
These look so stinkin’ cute!
These look amazing! Thanks for sharing.
~Kaitlin @ Life’s Little Mischiefs
These look SO YUMMY, Cathy! Thanks for the recipe, pinned! 😉
Wow… My mind.. It’s everywhere! This looks and sounds so insanely good it makes me wish I was one of your kids.
Speaking of which, if my kid ever said he was tired of pizza, I would question whose kid he really is. Just saying.
Ok, I’m drooling reading this blog. I’ve pinned this recipe and can’t wait to try it! I’d love for you to share this on my blog link party, Sweet Tooth Tuesdays. It’s not just for sweet recipes! 🙂 These sound amazing!!
http://sarahlynnssweets.blogspot.com/2013/05/sweet-tooth-tuesdays-2.html
These look great!!! What a simple little meal too! Great job!
Sam
http://cooksandcreates.blogspot.com/
(found you on The 36th Ave)
My children would just love these!!! What a great idea! Pinning:)
Because they contain so many yummy foods, they would have to be wonderful! I love the addition of bacon. I will have grandchildren here this summer–I will make these for sure. Thanks, pinned.
My boys would love these! Thanks for sharing!!
~Jen @ Yummy Healthy Easy
My mouth is actually watering as I am looking over your pictures. These look just divine! I love bbq chicken pizza and my kids are also “mini-addicts” so I will be making this almost immediately. Thanks so much for sharing at Much Ado About Monday!
you are being featured!! Saturday morning my Fathers Day featured will be up! I hope you will stop by, check it out and grab a featured button. Would love for you to add the featured button to this post :o) thanks! http://www.nap-timecreations.com/2013/05/Fathers-Day-food.html
My kids would love these mini pizzas 🙂 So fun!
Thanks so much for sharing at last week’s All my Bloggy Friends – Linda and I look forward to seeing what you share this week! 🙂
These look great! In case you didn’t see it earlier, I featured this on my blog today! I’m stopping by to pin it, and to let you know you can grab a Featured button if you don’t already have one! http://practicallyfunctional.net/2013/05/9-creative-ideas-2/
These look yummy AND easy! Thank you for linking up at The Weekly Creative! I’ve pinned these…
Smiles,
Melanie {reasons to skip the housework}
So simple and delicious!! My kind of recipe. 🙂 -Kelly @ Mostly Homemade Mom
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These look great. I am going to have to try them. They are not on the wife’s diet but they are the perfect size for lunches through the week. For Me.
I really need to try this! Friday night is pizza night at our house but I’ve been getting kind of sick of the same ol’ thing. I will try these next Friday and I’ll also check out your other pizza recipe. Thanks so much for these! I’m a new follower 🙂 Angela @ sunnysweetlife.blogspot.com
These look amazing thank you for posting it. I’m making these for my daughter’s 3rd b-day party coming up. I’m wondering, can I put these together in advance, freeze them, and bake them later? Would these taste the same? Thanks!
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