My family loves pizza, but I don’t always have time to make the pizza crust (peep my favorite sourdough pizza crust linked). This simple, prep-ahead pizza casserole for the crockpot is perfect for those days when I have appointments in the afternoon or a fussy baby/toddler right before dinner time. Can anyone relate? I also have a recipe for baked pizza casserole that you may enjoy if crockpots aren’t your thing or if you don’t have electricity like the Amish that I grew up with.
A few more crockpot meals that we love are Amish dairy casserole, chicken bacon ranch pasta, or easy chicken burrito bowls.
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Crockpot pizza casserole
Equipment
- 4 qt. crockpot (linked below)
- Cutting board (linked below)
- Stainless steel measuring cups and spoons (linked below)
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef (plus, salt and pepper)
- 3/4 cup diced onion white or yellow
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 3-4 cups marinara or pizza sauce *See note
- 4 oz. canned mushrooms, drained optional
- 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt *See note if using garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 3/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 3 oz. sliced pepperoni
- 8 oz. dry macaroni or 1 3/4-2 cups (dry)
Topping
- shredded mozzarella cheese
- additional peperoni optional
Instructions
- Brown beef in 2-3 tablespoons olive oil and season with salt and pepper, then drain the grease if needed.
- Place the browned beef, onions, minced garlic, mushrooms (optional) sauce (3 cups for lighter sauce and 4 cups if you prefer a saucier casserole), seasonings, pepperoni and parmesan cheese into a 3–4-quart crockpot.
- Stir the sauce, pepperoni and veggie mixture to combine, then cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours (cooking times may vary according to crockpot size and strength).
- Cook macaroni according to package directions, then stir into the meat sauce in the crockpot and top with shredded mozzarella cheese and additional pepperoni. Turn off the heat, then cover and allow the cheese to melt (8-10 minutes). Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Some equipment you will need for this pizza casserole recipe:
- 4-quart crockpot I prefer to use my 4-quart crockpot for this recipe but have also used a 2.5-quart crockpot and it worked well.
- Cutting board A cutting board is useful for dicing up the onion and mincing the garlic if you don’t have a garlic press on hand.
- Measuring cups and spoons Measuring cups and spoons are needed to measure out the onion, pizza sauce, parmesan and seasonings.
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Ingredients you will need for this pizza casserole: ground beef, canned mushrooms (optional), marinara sauce or other pasta sauce, dry macaroni (can also use penne, etc.) minced garlic, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion, grated parmesan (shredded would work too), shredded mozzarella, pepperoni, salt and pepper.
Step 1-2 for the crockpot:Â Brown beef in 2-3 tablespoons olive oil and season with salt and pepper, then drain the grease if needed. Place the browned beef, onions, minced garlic, mushrooms (optional) sauce (3 cups for lighter sauce and 4 cups if you prefer a saucier casserole), seasonings, pepperoni and parmesan cheese into a 2.5-4-quart crockpot.
Step 2-3: Place the browned beef, onions, minced garlic, mushrooms (optional) sauce (3 cups for lighter sauce and 4 cups if you prefer a saucier casserole), seasonings, pepperoni and parmesan cheese into a 3–4-quart crockpot. Stir the sauce, pepperoni and veggie mixture to combine, then cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours (cooking times may vary according to crockpot size and strength).
If using the crockpot, you can simply dump and go with most of the ingredients, Yay!
Pasta cooking tips:
My family is picky about the pasta being cooked al-dente (not mushy), so I prefer to cook the pasta separate in a saucepan and then drain it before adding it to this casserole. If you wish, you can simply toss the pasta into the crockpot during the last hour of cooking but will need to add extra sauce if using this method, because the uncooked pasta will soak up a lot of the liquid while cooking in the crockpot.
Step 4: Cook macaroni according to package directions, then stir into the meat sauce in the crockpot and top with shredded mozzarella cheese. Turn off the heat, then cover and allow the cheese to melt (8-10 minutes). Serve and enjoy! *Note, for aesthetic I like to add a little extra pepperoni on top of the mozzarella cheese during the last step. This is certainly optional.
Don’t forget to allow the casserole to cool a bit if serving it to toddlers/small children. I have found that crockpot dinners tend to hold the heat for longer than baked casseroles due to the thicker enamel of the crockpot.
How can I store leftover pizza casserole?
I prefer to store leftover pizza casserole in airtight containers and then we eat the leftovers within a few days. I do believe it will keep for around 5 days if kept refrigerated. This pizza casserole is also one that I like to freeze for a freezer meal. I usually keep it frozen for a month or 2 before enjoying it. If doing a freezer meal with pizza casserole, I would suggest checking the recipe for baked pizza casserole and scrolling down to the freezer meal notes section.
Feel free to pin this recipe for later (the pin icon is in the recipe card) and I would love to see your photos on Instagram if you try out this recipe! Tag me @thismom.cooks (don’t forget the dot, lol).
