Grilled Lamb Pizzas are crazy delicious, but simple enough to make for a game-day watch party or tailgate – everything can be prepped ahead, at home! Made with naan bread, caramelized onions, feta + mozzarella cheese, ground lamb, fresh arugula, and a drizzle of honey.
Thanks to our friends at the American Lamb Board for sponsoring this post! All opinions are my own.
People. PEOPLE! I cannot even express how delicious these pizzas are. They’re little dreamboats filled with some of the most delicious things ever – tons of cheese, a pile of caramelized onions, and tender, flavorful lamb meat!
You might be wondering if this is too “fancy” for a tailgate – and, well, they’re really not! Let’s walk it through.
How to Prep Lamb Pizzas for a Tailgate:
The main thing is to prep your ingredients at home, and then all you’re doing at your tailgate is assembling the pizzas and grilling them! And, of course, eating them – the most important step. Caramelize your onions at home, cook your ground lamb with some spices, and pack that up in a cooler with your cheeses and some fresh arugula that you’ve tossed in a little bit of olive oil – because olive oil tossed arugula is super fancy but really it just tastes bettero fin. Grab some honey and your naan breads, and that’s all you need! I do recommend bringing a large cookie sheet (like the one pictured below) so you can easily assemble + transfer pizzas between the grill and your plates.
If you’ve never caramelized onions before, it’s actually pretty simple. It takes a bit of patience, but the flavor is so incredible that it’s worth it! Slice up your onions, and cook them in some butter, adding water as needed so they don’t burn, until they turn a nice caramely shade. 
When you’re ready to grill your pizzas, brush the naan with olive oil, add your cheese, cooked lamb, and caramelized onions and cook for a few minutes over medium heat (be careful not to burn them, they cook fast) until the cheese is melty and the crust is browned. 
To finish off your pizzas, top with the arugula and a drizzle of honey. You don’t even need to slice them, if you don’t want to – just dig right in! Everyone in the tailgate lot will be looking at you like ummm, why aren’t they just eating brats + burgers like normal people, and you’ll be too busy face planting into these DELICIOUS pizzas to even notice.
Plus, tailgating is a very American thing to do, and you should purchase American-grown lamb for these pizzas, so really – the two things absolutely belong together. Buying locally produced lamb ensures that it’s as fresh as possible, AND it helps support American farmers and their families – double win!
If you’re not sure where the lamb you’re purchasing is from, ask your butcher, or use this handy list that the American Lamb Board has put together on their website, or check out a local food co-op grocery store.
Happy tailgating (Go Pack!) and happy pizza-eating, friends!
Learn more about how you can celebrate Game Day Tailgates + Sunday Funday with the American Lamb Board by entering their Sunday Funday contest here! You can enter to win a cozy lamb-inspired prize pack complete with lamb and all the fall-entertaining kitchen accessories you need to bring you from Sunday Funday right to Friendsgiving!
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Grilled Lamb Pizzas with Feta, Arugula, and Honey
Ingredients
- 8 pieces naan bread You can get naan in two-packs at most grocery stores - I like using a mix of white and whole wheat. You can also make your own!
- 1 and 1/2 lbs ground lamb
- salt + pepper, to taste
- 2 large cloves garlic, minced
- fresh mozzarella cheese
- feta cheese
- 2 medium yellow onions
- 3 TBSP salted butter
- 1 large container arugula
- olive oil, for brushing the pizza crust + for tossing with the arugula
- honey, for drizzling
Instructions
- Prep: Slice your onions thinly - see photos above for reference. Add to a large, heavy-bottomed, wide pot (like a dutch oven - don't use a small pot or the onions won't caramelize properly). Melt the butter, then add 1/3 of the onions and cook, stirring a bit, for 2 minutes - they'll start to look translucent. Repeat this until you've added all the onions - adding them in batches helps prevent the ones on the bottom from burning. Add a pinch of salt. Continue cooking, stirring every few minutes to avoid burning the onions, for 30-40 minutes, until the onions are a nice caramel shade. (You can cook your lamb and organize your kitchen junk drawer while these cook, since they don't need to be stirred constantly.)If they're browning around the edges or sticking as you go, reduce your heat a bit. You can (should) also add a splash of water every now and then to keep the pan from becoming too dry, which would prevent the onions from caramelizing.
- Cook the lamb: While the onions are caramelizing, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large non-stick pan over medium high heat. Add the ground lamb, season with salt + pepper, and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the minced garlic and continue cooking, stirring to break up the meat, until cooked through. Drain the grease from the meat (I like to line a colander with paper towels, set it in the sink, and add the meat to drain the grease). Store meat in the fridge, in an airtight container, until ready to use.
- Assemble the pizzas: Brush each piece of naan bread with a bit of olive oil, then add the cheese, some caramelized onions, and some of the lamb meat. Grill over medium low heat for 4-5 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned and the cheese is melted. Watch them closely so they don't burn - especially the first ones, so you can get a hang of how long they need to cook on your particular grill.
- Serve + Store: Finish the pizzas with the arugula tossed in olive-oil and add a drizzle of honey. Enjoy immediately!
- Make-Ahead Tips: The onions and lamb can be prepared 1-2 days ahead and stored in the fridge. If you're going to make these pizzas for a tailgate, make sure to pack everything you need in your cooler and do everything you can ahead of time - including tossing the arugula in some olive oil. Easier to do that at home! Then, all you need to do at your tailgate is assemble the pizzas (bring a large cookie sheet or two to help with this) and grill them. You'll need to bring some olive oil for brushing on your pizza crusts - pour some into a small container with a tight-fitting lid (so you don't have to bring a huge glass bottle of oil) and grab a spoon for spreading it. You can also skip this but it does taste nice if you do it. Bring a large tupperware container to keep any leftover pizza in inside your cooler.
- Oven Directions: Prepare pizzas as directed. Bake in an oven preheated to 400 degrees F for 2-4 minutes, until cheese is melted and crust has lightly browned.
Notes
Nutrition
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Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Naan Bread is a common bread in India and we have never eaten it as this until I was exposed to using Naan bread as pizza base. It works so beautifully and I love your addition of arugula with a drizzle of honey. That is a perfect blend of flavors!
Mae says
This is the best homemade pizza ever. This was my first time using lamb and it was delicious. The Naan bread is a great base, and as the others stated the arugula and honey balance for great flavor.
Stephanie Simmons says
Thanks so much, Mae! Glad you enjoyed this recipe 🙂
Catherine says
These sound absolutely heavenly!! I love all flavor profile here. The arugula and honey perfectly balances each other…I wish I had a slice right now!