I have reached the stage of adult life where canned beans are no longer just an emergency pantry backup —they are the centerpiece of some of my favorite weeknight dinners. And while I love homemade pizza as much as anyone, it’s not “easy weeknight dinner” material. You have to pull out the stand mixer, wait for dough to rise, and clean flour off every inch of the counter. Most people aren’t doing that on a random Tuesday night.
That is where Pizza Beans come in! This skillet delivers everything you actually want from a loaded supreme pizza — tomato sauce, garlicky sautéed veggies, and thick, bubbly melted mozzarella — spooned over tender white beans instead of dough. It comes together in one pan, takes less than 30 minutes, and turns a couple of cans from your cupboard into legit comfort food.
Table of Contents
Quick Recipe Overview
- Flavor & Texture: Rich, savory marinara packed with garlic and Italian herbs, tender, creamy beans, and a gooey layer of lightly browned melted vegan cheese.
- Total Time: About 35 minutes (10 min prep, 15 min on the stovetop, 10 min in the oven).
- Method: Stovetop skillet sauté to build flavor, finished with a quick high-heat bake or a little blast under the broiler.
- Pro Tip: If you have a little bit of extra time, make your marinara from scratch! You can really make it your own and adjust to your liking.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- One-pan convenience: Everything sautés, simmers, and bakes in a single oven-safe skillet, keeping weeknight cleanup down to one pan. Can you believe it?!
- High protein and fiber: Two cans of beans supply about 25 grams of plant protein and 28 grams (!!) of fiber for a dinner that feels decadent without feeling heavy.
- Customizable supreme toppings: Just like an actual pizza, you can tailor the skillet with whatever you have in the fridge. Add whatever you usually love on pizza!
Cannellini vs. Butter Beans: Which Works Best?
You can make this with almost any white bean, but the two best choices are cannellini beans and butter beans.
- Cannellini beans are my standard choice. They have a thin skin, a mild flavor, and hold their shape during a simmer without falling apart and/or turning into mush.
- Butter beans give you a much meatier, richer bite. Their large size and velvety interior make the skillet feel extra hearty. Also, eating huge beans is just fun.
Great Northern beans are a fine backup, but they are softer and slightly smaller, so handle them gently when stirring. Always make sure to drain and thoroughly rinse canned beans before adding them to remove the starchy canning liquid.
Controlling Sauce Thickness in a Skillet Bake
The biggest trap with skillet beans is ending up with tomato soup instead of a thick, scoopable bake. Because the skillet spends only 10 minutes in the oven, the sauce won’t reduce much once it’s covered in cheese.
If you are using jarred marinara, pick a thick, high-quality sauce that isn’t overly watery. Start with 2 1/2 cups and add more as desired.
If you build your own sauce with crushed tomatoes and broth, you need two things to keep the consistency rich:
- Bloom the tomato paste first: Stirring a tablespoon of tomato paste directly into the hot oil with your veggies for 60 to 90 seconds caramelizes the sugars and acts as an immediate thickening base.
- Keep the added liquid tight: A 15-ounce can of crushed tomatoes combined with just 1/2 cup of vegetable broth provides enough liquid to simmer the beans without drowning them. If you like an extra-saucy skillet, you can always splash in more broth right at the end of the simmer.
How to Get Vegan Cheese to Melt and Brown
Vegan cheese behaves differently than dairy mozzarella because it lacks the natural protein and instead relies on plant starches and coconut oil. If heated too slowly, it can dry out; if trapped under moisture, it turns gummy.
- Best melting shreds: For that classic stretchy, bubbly pizza melt, Follow Your Heart and Daiya Mozzarella are my go-to choices.
- Bake uncovered at high heat: Baking at 450°F lets excess moisture evaporate so the cheese melts smoothly across the top instead of steaming.
- Do not fear the broiler: Alternatively, you can finish the skillet under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes. Plant-based cheeses can go from perfectly golden to burned quickly, so keep the oven door cracked and watch it the entire time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. You can cook the vegetables, beans, and sauce on the stovetop up to 2 days in advance and keep them in an airtight container in the fridge. When ready to bake, transfer to your skillet, add the cheese on top, and add 3 to 5 minutes to the baking time to ensure it heats all the way through to the center.
Crusty bread is practically mandatory. A warm, toasted baguette, sourdough, or homemade garlic bread works as the spoon for scooping up the beans and melted cheese.
Definitely! Vegan Italian sausage (like Beyond Meat) or vegan pepperoni slices work great. If using raw vegan sausage, brown it in the skillet first, remove it to a plate, and stir it back into the sauce right before adding the cheese and transferring to the oven.
Storage & Reheating
- To Store: Keep leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. The sauce will naturally thicken up as it sits in the fridge.
- To Reheat: Warm single servings in the microwave in 1-minute intervals, or reheat in an oven-safe dish at 350°F until the cheese is bubbling again. If the sauce looks a little too thick after chilling, stir in a splash of water or vegetable broth before reheating.
- Freezing: I don’t recommend freezing the assembled skillet with the melted cheese, as thawed vegan cheese tends to separate and turn all weird. The sauce and bean base (without cheese) can be frozen for up to 2 months.
More Easy Weeknight Dinners
- Easy Miso Ramen
- Sheet Pan Gnocchi
- 10 Minute Chili Garlic Silken Tofu
- Easy Chickpea Curry
- Easy One-Pot Lentil Curry
- Garlic Peanut Noodles
Pizza Beans (Easy Weeknight Dinner)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes optional
- 1 small white or red onion diced
- 4-6 cloves garlic minced
- 8 ounces button or cremini mushrooms optional, sliced
- 1 green or red bell pepper optional, diced
- 2 – 3 cups marinara sauce to preference, see notes to DIY your own
- 2 (15 oz) cans cannellini or butter beans drained and rinsed
- baby spinach
- 1 (2.25 oz) can sliced black olives optional
- 2 cups vegan mozzarella shreds
To Serve
- fresh basil optional, to garnish
- grated vegan parm optional, to garnish
- crusty bread for dipping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F.
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet or cast iron pan over medium heat. When oil shimmers, add 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional) and 1 small white or red onion. Sauté 3-5 minutes, or until translucent. Add 4-6 cloves garlic and sauté for about a minute, until very fragrant.
- Add in 8 ounces button or cremini mushrooms (optional) and sauté for another 3-5 minutes, until they have shed some of their moisture. Then stir in the diced 1 green or red bell pepper (optional) and sauté for just another minute.
- Pour in the drained 2 (15 oz) cans cannellini or butter beans along with the 2 – 3 cups marinara sauce. (If you'd prefer to build your own sauce rather than use jarred marinara, see the notes.) Allow the mixture to come to a gentle simmer, then fold in baby spinach (optional), sliced 1 (2.25 oz) can sliced black olives (optional). Allow to simmer just until the spinach has wilted (about 1-2 minutes), then remove from heat.
- Sprinkle the 2 cups vegan mozzarella shreds evenly over the top of the beans, then transfer to the preheated oven. Bake for about 10 minute, until the cheese is melted and bubbly. (Optionally, you can finish it under the broiler to brown the cheese, but keep a careful eye on it to avoid smoke. It only needs a few minutes.)
- It will be piping hot when it comes out of the oven! I recommend letting it cool for at least 5 minutes before you dig in. Garnish with fresh basil and vegan parm if desired, and serve with crusty bread for dipping!
