Pizza Sliders - 4 Ways

These sliders are going to be your go to appetizer at home when you need a quick recipe to serve a crowd. They are so simple to prepare and very delicious, with a classic pepperoni, ham pickle and cheese, sautéed mushrooms and a cheesy garlic bread slider option. Serve it with pizza sauce or on its own and enjoy!

The plan was to share this recipe last year when I made it for the first time. Since then I’ve made so many variations at least a dozen times. I feel like I need to apologize for holding out on it for so long but here we are and I am sharing it with you now, so better late than never. This recipe is for all those pizza lovers and slider lovers. If you don’t want to choose between the two then this is the recipe for you. Trust me, they will be a serious crowd pleaser for any gathering or party.

What are pizza sliders?

Pizza sliders are basically all the flavors of pizza in a slider. In this recipe we have made 4 different flavors. The buns are packed with various fillings and cheese, topped with garlic butter and baked until golden, fluffy. I have used pre baked butter rolls or dinner rolls to make these sliders soft and delicious on the inside but crusty and golden on the outside.

What ingredients do you need to make pizza sliders?

To make these sliders we need dinner rolls/Hawaiian rolls/butter rolls/pav (check out my homemade pav recipe here), pizza sauce – you can use store bought (check out my homemade pizza sauce recipe here), mozzarella cheese, gouda cheese, parmesan cheese and pizza seasoning. For toppings I have used pepperoni, ham & pickles, sautéed mushrooms (recipe is linked here) with thyme and butter and garlic butter (I have used my homemade garlic bread butter spread recipe). A simple homemade pizza seasoning mix is combining equal parts of dried basil, dried parsley, dried oregano, dried onion powder, dried garlic powder with a little bit of salt and pepper.

What flavors and fillings can you use to make pizza sliders?

You can use any flavors you prefer to make these sliders, use any deli meat you like form pastrami, bresaola, bacon, sausage meat etc. you could also make them like breakfast sliders with eggs and cheese. Alternatively you could do sautéed eggplant and zucchini with cheese too. I love making a spinach and cheese option with 4 cheeses too.

What equipment do you need to make pizza sliders?

To make these buns we need a baking tray, baking paper, bread knife and microplane grater. To make the mushrooms we need a sauté pan with a rubber spatula. We have baked these in the oven.

How to make pizza sliders?

Preheat the oven to 180℃, line a large baking tray with baking paper and set aside. Slice the buns into half without ripping them apart you can flip the entire loaf over, I have used 12 buns hence each flavor will get 3 buns each. On the first 3 buns add the pizza sauce, top with mozzarella cheese and then pepperoni. On the next 3 buns top with the pizza sauce, sautéed mushrooms mozzarellas cheese. For the next one top the buns with mustard, ham, sliced pickles, gouda cheese. For the garlic bread, add the pizza sauce, the garlic bread spread and both the cheeses. Sprinkle over the pizza seasoning on all the buns, crushed black pepper too. Brush the other loaf of bread with the garlic bread spread and cover the filled buns. Brush the top of the buns with more garlic bread spread too. Sprinkle over the seasoning and cover with baking paper and aluminum foil, bake for 10 minutes covered and then for 5 minutes uncovered to get that deep golden color.

Storing them and make ahead options:

Once they are baked they should be served immediately as they are hot and perfect with the cheese oozy and melting. The leftovers can be stored in a zip lock bag in the freezer for 2 weeks, when ready to eat allow it to thaw before reheating in the oven for 4-5 minutes on until warmed through at 180 deg C. You could also store it in the fridge for 2-3 days. Another good idea would be to assemble the sliders ahead wrap in baking paper and aluminum foil, place in the fridge over night and when ready to bake the next day place on a baking tray and bake covered for 10 minutes. And uncovered for 5 minutes until golden and crusty on the top.

Best way to serve pizza sliders?

They are best served hot out of the oven. I would always recommend serving it with more grated parmesan cheese, additionally you can serve it with more pizza sauce for dipping or in some cases hot sauce/ketchup. I like keeping some extra garlic butter on the side as well.

Looking for more hot appetizer recipes?

Now that we have covered how to make these pizza sliders – 4 ways, you can have a look at the recipe video on my socials but let’s get to it.

If you try this recipe out, don’t forget to share it with me on instagram so I can see how it turned out. I’d love nothing more than to chat with you on your cooking/baking.