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Easy, crispy, and delicious, this vegetarian onion pizza is a real treat for any pizza lover. The soft marinated onions release their sweetness in the oven pairing beautifully with creamy mozzarella and savory olives.
The recipe uses my super easy one-bowl pizza dough: no kneading, no stand mixer, no mess. Give it a try, it’s a no brainer.
Well, let’s say there’s no such thing as too many pizzas, ok?
I don’t know you, but I would eat veggie-loaded pizzas every single day: arugula, artichokes, peppers, zucchini, tomatoes, spinach. I love any sort of vegetarian pizza topping!
But have you ever try onions? If not, you must.
The humble budget-friendly onions shine on pizza. Their essential sweetness, bright color and amazing flavor turn the most simple pizza crust into something special.
Also, it’s worth noting that these economical root vegetables are also packed with great health benefits. Just saying.
For this pizza recipe, you don’t have to cook them on the stove, don’t bother, because the recipe makes them deliciously soft and ready for the oven by using a simple trick: the MARINADE.
All you have to do if finely slice the onions and toss them with some extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and let them rest for 30 minutes. It’s really a super simple marinade, nothing fancy, but I guaranteed it will make the onions softer, flavorful and more delicious.
For the pizza crust, I use my favorite 1-bowl pizza dough recipe that requires zero effort. But you can use your fav pizza dough if you wish. Ready for the recipe?
List of the ingredients
- Pizza dough (follow this easy recipe, or use your fav dough)
- Red onions (white or brown are fine too)
- Mozzarella
- Kalamata olives (optional)
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Oregano
- Salt & pepper
How to make pizza with onions
(Note: this is a quick description, the full recipe is at the bottom of the page)
- First things first: follow this easy recipe to make the dough, or use your fav homemade or store-bought pizza dough.
- Marinate the onions: there’s a fair amount of slicing involved, but I use this tool and slicing is a breeze, you can slice a ton of onions in a few seconds!
- Then toss the onion slices with olive oil, salt and pepper and let them rest for about 30 minutes. It’s that easy.
- When the dough has risen, it’s time to preheat the oven.
- Then stretch the dough gently into a rectangular shape.
- Top with mozzarella, gorgonzola, walnuts, and add some salt and black pepper.
- Bake for about 10-15 minutes until golden and crusty!
Recipe notes
Onion pizza ingredients
Homemade pizza dough: this easy no-knead pizza dough is a game changer! It’s a great 1-bowl recipe that uses instant yeast and makes a delicious crispy crust. Have a look at the video tutorial, it’s super easy!
Onions: I love red onions, they’re sweeter than regular onions and they’re packed with flavonoids and antioxidants. But you’re welcome to use the onions you have.
Marinade: extra virgin olive oil adds flavor, while the salt draws out the excess moisture from the onions making them soft, sweeter and ready for the oven.
Mozzarella cheese: I use whole milk mozzarella in water, and if you use it keep in mind it’s important to not overload the pizza because its water content can make the crust soggy. Alternatively, shredded firm mozzarella works just fine.
Olives: they add their savory flavor to the sweet onions. But they’re not key ingredients in the recipe, so you can skip them if you wish.
Herbs: oregano adds aromatic notes and make the pizza more hearty, but also fresh thyme, fresh basil and chives are great with the onions.
Salt & pepper: sprinkle some salt on the top and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.
Note: the salt brings out the excess moisture form the onions. Don’t rush this step otherwise the onions will release their moisture once they’re in the oven. And you don’t want that when you bake your pizza.
How to bake a crispy delicious pizza?
- Don’t use a rolling pin! It pushes out those gas bubbles that make your crust lighter. Use your fingers to stretch the pizza dough ; )
- Place the rack in the lowest position close to the heating element to make the bottom golden and crispy. However, each oven is different, feel free to use the position that works best for your oven.
- Preheat the oven and make sure it’s hot!
- Bake your pizza on a hot pizza stone or pizza steel. Alternatively, you can use a baking tray (see my tips in the recipe card!). This avoid soggy bottom and makes the crust crispier.
- Use parchment paper and a pizza peel or the back of a baking sheet to transfer your pizza to the hot stone. This helps if you use a sticky high-hydration dough like my easy no-knead dough.
Onion pizza variations
This simple, delicious pizza with onions is easy to customise with other delicious add-ins if you wish. Here a few of my favorite combinations:
Cheese: blue cheese and Italian gorgonzola are perfect. You can mix the marinated onions with this gorgonzola topping, and you’ll fall in love with it, I promise!
Fancy more veggies? Add some wilted spinach before baking, or fresh baby arugula when it’s time to serve this onion pizza. You can also add some sautéed mushrooms when you add the onions.
Other vegetarian options: spread on some easy pizza tomato sauce before adding the mozzarella, or add some sun-dried tomatoes or jarred peppers for a delicious Mediterranean twist.
If you love onions…
I love them too, and I’ve been experimenting quite a few recipes with onions lately. From this amazing collection of onion recipes to scrumptious pasta, salad and side dishes including roasted onions!
More pizza and focaccia recipes?
I’m sure that this amazing collection of 17 veggie pizzas, 25 pizza toppings and 15 focaccia toppings are perfect to inspire you! Here a few of my favs:
- Pizza with zucchini
- Pizza with peppers
- Spinach pizza
- Quick Caprese pizza
- Pizza with eggplant
- Easy no-knead Italian focaccia
- Mozzarella pizza
- Olive pizza
- Cream cheese pizza
If you make this pizza with onions this weekend, or you have a question, let me know by leaving a comment. I would love to hear from you and get your feedback! x
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Easy onion pizza
Ingredients
Pizza dough
- 1 ball easy pizza dough (or your fav dough)
Onion topping
- 2-3 (approx 250 grams) red onions (or any other color), finely sliced
- 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp fine salt
- ⅛ tsp black pepper, plus more before baking
- 6oz (170 grams) fresh mozzarella ball (or firm shredded mozzarella)
- ¼ cup Kalamata olives, pitted
- ½ Tbsp dried oregano
Instructions
Pizza dough
- Follow the easy no-knead pizza recipe through step 5, including shaping the pizza and preheating the oven.
Onion topping
- Marinate the onions: While the pizza dough is resting, slice the onion finely and place the in a bowl along with the olive oil, the salt and the pepper. Toss well to combine and let the onion mixture rest for about 30 minutes, don't rush this step.
- Shape the dough: when the dough is ready follow step 5, place the dough on a parchment paper sheet and starting from the center, gently press it out with your fingers until you get approx a 9×13 inch pizza. Then gently place the dough onto a pizza peel or onto the back of a rimmed baking sheet.
- Add the topping: top the dough evenly with mozzarella cheese, olives, and onions. Finish with freshly ground black pepper (a few cracks of the grinder are fine), dried oregano and a pinch of fine salt evenly distributed.
- Bake the pizza: use the pizza peel to carefully transfer the pizza onto the preheated pizza stone. Bake the pizza until the cheese and crust are nicely browned, about 15 minutes. But each oven is different, keep an eye on it (e.g. in a forced fan oven it will take about 8-10 minutes).
- Serve: allow the pizza to cool for a minute or two before. Slice and serve immediately. Serve with more freshly ground black pepper if you wish.
Wendy
Made this on a day when I didn’t have much to cook with. It was SO good!
Katia
Fantastic! Cooking something good with just a handful of basic ingredients, that’s the GOAL. : )
Thanks so much for sharing your feedback, Wendy. xx
Kristin
When do I add the kalamata olives? With the marinated onions and fresh mozzarella?
Katia
Exactly, I’ve just noticed I didn’t mention the olives again in the recipe, will do.
Thank you! x