I Taste-Tested 6 Totino's Pizza Rolls & The Winner Was a Beloved Classic

Of all the frozen pizza products now crowding your grocer's freezer, none are more convenient or easier to eat than pizza rolls—and there's no bigger name in pizza rolls than Totino's.

According to CNBC, the brand got its start as a mom-and-pop-run pizzeria in Minnesota back in 1951. Founders Rose and Jim Totino began selling frozen pies a decade later and built their business into the country's top-selling frozen pizza company by the 1970s. The couple sold the business to food giant Pillsbury in 1975.

Ironically, the Totinos themselves didn't come up with the bite-sized crispy pockets of deliciousness that their namesake brand now famously produces. That credit goes to Jeno Palucci, founder of Jeno's Pizza Rolls. In 1993, snack food history was made when Pillsbury rebranded Jeno's signature product under the Totino's name.

Today, Totino's offers a wide variety of frozen pizza roll flavors, including classics like cheese and pepperoni, along with some creative offerings like orange chicken.

To determine which Totino's pizza roll variety is the best, I went to a few grocery stores and rounded up all the flavors I could find. According to the directions, you can heat these in the oven, toaster, microwave, or air fryer. For optimal crispiness, I went with the classic cooking method: the oven. I lined a cookie sheet with the pizza rolls and cooked them at 425 degrees for about 10 minutes (and then for a couple more minutes after noticing the cheese didn't melt all the way). I let them cool for a couple of minutes and enlisted the help of an eager taste tester: my roommate.

As I tasted the pizza rolls, I paid close attention to the flavor while also considering the ingredients (which, unfortunately, are quite lengthy). Here are my thoughts on the six different varieties, which I ranked in descending order, starting with my least favorite and ending with the best-tasting pizza roll.

Faze Clan Buffalo Style Chicken

In 2022, Totino's and FaZe Clan, a professional esports and entertainment organization, teamed up for the release of a highly-requested pizza roll flavor: Buffalo chicken. As noted on the package, this variety features white meat chicken and cayenne hot sauce packed in a golden crust. It also includes something called "imitation mozzarella cheese," which I later realized is used in all of the products I picked up. Not the most enticing. I purchased a 50-count bag for $5.99.

The look: All of the square-shaped rolls were uniform in appearance, showcasing various shades of brown that were speckled with air bubbles. The inside featured a vibrant orange sauce that resembled the color of your typical Buffalo sauce-dressed chicken wings. Embedded in the sauce were small pieces of cheese and chicken.

The taste: Full disclosure: I'm not a big Buffalo sauce fan, so it's not an element I ever feel the need to pair with my pizza. With that, these pizza rolls were my least favorite, mostly because I didn't think these bites had enough of a "pizza essence" to them. Instead, they were just pockets of spicy Buffalo sauce. Additionally, the chicken had a weak presence that I could hardly detect. That being said, if you're a Buffalo sauce lover, I could see these being an appealing option. This flavor gave off notable heat that continued to linger.

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Combination

Totino's Combination Pizza Rolls are filled with sauce, cheese, sausage, and pepperoni, which the box labels as "seasoned pork, chicken, and beef pizza topping." I purchased a box of 15 for $2.99.

The look: Like the Buffalo variety, each pizza roll had slight variations in color, with air bubbles covering the surface of the dough. The inside was filled with a bright red tomato sauce and some small pieces of cheese. Some sauce peaked through the sides of the crust, as well. Given the ingredient lineup, I expected to see some pieces of meat when I cut open a roll. Where was it?

The taste: Again, still missing the meat. The sweet tomato sauce and cheese were the most prominent elements of the filling, though I was able to spot a tiny piece of sausage—but just a tiny piece. I thought this could have just been the roll I chose, so I cut open another one only to find two small pieces of meat. If you're looking for a meat-packed pizza roll, you might be disappointed by this one. "It doesn't have a ton of flavor," my roommate noted.

Triple Pepperoni

Totino's spices up its simple cheese-flavored pizza rolls by incorporating one of the most popular pizza toppings: pepperoni. Within the ingredients, this is labeled as "hickory flavored pepperoni seasoned pork, chicken, and beef pizza topping." I picked up a 50-count bag of the Triple Pepperoni Pizza Rolls for $6.65.

The look: Bubbly and brown, with some of the sauce peeking out of the sides of the squares. Upon cutting one open, I was a bit surprised to see some of the cheese still in small cube form even after I baked these a bit longer. To my surprise, there were only two measly cubes of pepperoni mixed into the sauce.

The taste: The smoky flavor of the pepperoni was noticeably pronounced and had a slight kick. However, this prominent smokiness was a detracting quality for me, as I found it to taste artificial. I presumed this was from the "natural hickory smoke flavor" included in the product's ingredients.

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Cheese

It doesn't get much more classic than cheese pizza. Unlike the aforementioned flavors, Totino's sticks to the basics with this product, which features a filling of just tomato sauce and cheese. I picked up a 15-count box for $2.99.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

The look: Crisp and golden brown like the others. Again, some of the cheese didn't melt and remained in solid form.

The taste: Out of all the pizza rolls I tried, the sweet tomato sauce had an off-putting, pasty texture that the other flavors seemed to lack. However, I still preferred this one to some of the other flavors because of its simplicity. There were no unnecessary toppings like the others. Though I wasn't particularly impressed by this one, my roommate felt otherwise, noting that this was one of his favorites. "It really does have a good pizza flavor to me," he said, adding, "This reminds me of the pizza you'd get at bowling birthday parties as a kid."

Triple Cheese

While many products with cheese blends have the types of cheese labeled on the package, the front of the bag says "Triple Cheese. Naturally flavored with other natural flavors." Once I read through the ingredients on the back of the bag, I found that this item contains three cheeses in imitation and dried or rehydrated form: mozzarella, Monterey Jack, and cheddar. A 50-count bag cost me $6.65.

The look: Like the others, these were crispy on the outside with darker brown edges. In terms of the filling, some of the cheese, again, didn't melt into the tomato sauce. Staying true to its name, there were more cheese cubes in this variety than the regular cheese option.

The taste: While the Triple Cheese pizza rolls weren't a major departure from the regular cheese flavor, these were slightly cheesier without being overpowering. I also didn't detect the same pasty texture of tomato sauce I found with the regular cheese option. Instead, I thought the sauce, cheese, and crust were more balanced with each other. That being said, I couldn't tell what the specific cheese flavors were—and there was still one other flavor I'd choose over this one.

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Pepperoni

Given the overly smoky flavor of the Triple Pepperoni pizza rolls, I wasn't sure what to expect with the regular pepperoni variety. I picked up a 15-count box of this flavor for $2.99.

The look: Virtually identical to the others. As I expected, the filling contained just a couple of pepperoni morsels, but the rolls weren't loaded with them.

The taste: Contrary to my feelings about the Triple Pepperoni flavor, I was pleasantly surprised with this one. Out of all six pizza roll flavors, this one was the most balanced. The meat flavor from the pepperoni was apparent without presenting the artificial taste I detected in the Triple Pepperoni Pizza Rolls. This meaty ingredient gave off a mild kick that wasn't overly powerful. Plus, it helped counter the sweetness from the sauce, offering a savory element. My roommate also highlighted this flavor's nostalgic factor, once again harkening back to the bowling-party pizza of his youth.

While I wouldn't opt for these pizza rolls over a slice of pepperoni pizza, if had to choose one Totino's Pizza Roll flavor to serve at a gathering, it would be this one, thanks to the notable balance of flavors and hearty dose of nostalgia.

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