This Easy Homemade Instant Pot Spaghetti with Meat Sauce is a one-pot pressure cooker recipe and does NOT use jar spaghetti sauce. The sauce is made from scratch and the spaghetti and sauce are cooked together to make a quick and easy, kid-friendly, delicious meal!
If you’ve been following my blog, you’ll probably notice that this recipe is a departure from the usual, which tends to be international and/or spicy. That doesn’t mean we don’t eat Mac and Cheese or Spaghetti; it’s just that I don’t post those recipes.
Recently I got a request from a special person (my daughter!) to post my spaghetti recipe on this blog. She’s going to be living in an apartment at her university and plans to cook. She requested some Instant Pot pasta recipes that aren’t on the blog, so you get to enjoy them too!
Many of the Instant Pot Spaghetti recipes that you find on the internet use jar spaghetti sauce. I’m not opposed to jar pasta sauces and I do use them once in a while. But it’s so easy to make the sauce from scratch in the pressure cooker that there’s really no reason to use jar pasta sauce.
The sauce in this Instant Pot Spaghetti with Meat Sauce recipe is very similar to the sauce that I use in my Instant Pot Penne with Sausage in Tomato Cream Sauce recipe, but I’ve increased the quantity of garlic and spices and added tomato paste.
Tips
- Substitute ground pork or half quantity pork/half quantity beef for the ground beef.
- Substitute 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning for the dried basil and oregano.
- Omit sugar and add 1/4 cup shredded carrot.
- The spaghetti I use for this recipe is Barilla Spaghetti No. 5 which is a medium thickness. Its stovetop cook time is 9 minutes. If the cook time listed on your package is different, you may need to change the pressure cook time.
- Spaghetti tends to clump together when cooked in the Instant Pot. You can reduce the clumping drastically by spreading out and layering the dry spaghetti in a criss-cross pattern. If there are still clumps when pressure cooking is completed, stir the spaghetti and separate the clumps using a fork.
- I like my spaghetti to be cooked more than al dente, so I release the pressure after 5 minutes i.e. 5-minute Natural Pressure Release (NPR 5)
If you’re new to the Instant Pot
and aren’t familiar with how to use it, please read the Instant Pot DUO Beginner’s Quick Start Guide or the Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner’s Quick Start Guide first and then come back here to learn how to make this Homemade Instant Pot Spaghetti with Meat Sauce.
Easy Homemade Instant Pot Spaghetti with Meat Sauce Ingredients
How to Make Easy Homemade Instant Pot Spaghetti with Meat Sauce (Step-by-Step Instructions)
- Instant Pot DUO: Select the ‘Saute’ function.
- Instant Pot ULTRA: Select the ‘Saute’ function and press ‘Start’.
- Add olive oil to inner pot of Instant Pot.
- Add ground beef and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. (If the beef browns too quickly, press ‘Cancel’ until the Instant Pot cools down a bit and press the ‘Saute’ button again.)
- Drain fat or remove fat from beef with a small ladle.
- Add onion and garlic. Stir until onion is translucent.
- Add in salt, sugar, dried basil, dried oregano, crushed red pepper and black pepper. Stir to combine.
- Deglaze pot with a tablespoon or two of beef broth or chicken broth, stirring until liquid has nearly evaporated.
- Press ‘Cancel’ to turn Instant Pot off.
- Add remaining broth and stir.
- Add crushed tomatoes and tomato paste, but don’t stir.
- Divide spaghetti into three batches.
- Add one-third of spaghetti over the tomatoes, spreading it out horizontally.
- Add the next one-third of spaghetti, spreading out vertically.
- Add the final layer, spreading out horizontally.
- Using a spatula, push down on spaghetti until submerged in the liquid.
Instant Pot DUO Pressure Cook:
- Close the lid and make sure steam release handle is in ‘Sealing’ position
- Press ‘Manual’ (or ‘Pressure Cook’) and ‘+’ or ‘-‘ until the display reads ‘6′ (6 minutes).
Instant Pot ULTRA Pressure Cook:
- Close the lid.
- Select Pressure Cook mode and adjust time to 6 minutes (00:06).
- Press ‘Start’.
- Instant Pot display will change to ‘On’.
- Once the Instant Pot is pressurized, the float valve will go up.
- The display will count down from 6 to 0; it will then switch to ‘Keep Warm’ mode and display ‘L0:00’ or ’00 00′ and begin to count up.
Instant Pot DUO 2 Minute Natural Pressure Release:
- Once pressure cooking is complete, wait for 2 minutes and release pressure.
- Move the steam release handle to ‘Venting’. I like to place a folded towel over the steam release handle and move it to the venting position. Remove the towel after turning the knob.
- When your Instant Pot is depressurized, the float valve will be in the down position.
- Press ‘Cancel’ and open the Instant Pot.
Instant Pot ULTRA 2 Minute Natural Pressure Release:
- Once pressure cooking is complete, wait for 2 minutes and release pressure.
- Press down on the Steam Release Button until it locks into place, and steam begins to come out of the Steam Release Valve.
- When your Instant Pot is depressurized, the float valve will be in the down position.
- Press ‘Cancel’ and open the Instant Pot.
- Stir spaghetti and meat sauce until combined.
- If there are any strands of spaghetti stuck together, use a fork to separate the strands.
- If you find the spaghetti to be too liquidy, allow it to rest for 3 to 5 minutes, and it will absorb the extra liquid.
- Sprinkle with chopped parsley and shredded Parmesan cheese.
Easy Homemade Instant Pot Spaghetti with Meat Sauce
This Easy Homemade Instant Pot Spaghetti with Meat Sauce recipe does NOT use jar pasta sauce. The sauce is made from scratch and the spaghetti and sauce are cooked together to make a quick and easy one-pot meal that’s kid-friendly and delicious!
Print Pin RatePrep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 579kcal
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1/2 cup onion chopped
- 2 Tbsp garlic minced
- 1 tsp salt or to taste
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp black pepper or to taste
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper or to taste, optional
- 2 cups low sodium beef broth or chicken broth
- 28 oz. (1 can) crushed tomatoes
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 lb dry spaghetti
- Shredded Parmesan cheese
- Parsley chopped, to garnish
Instructions
- Select the 'Saute' function and pre-heat the Instant Pot.
- Add olive oil to the inner pot.
- Add ground beef and cook until browned, about 3 to 5 minutes. (If the beef browns too quickly, press ‘Cancel’ until the Instant Pot cools down a bit and press the ‘Saute’ button again.)
- Drain fat or remove fat from beef with a small ladle.
- Add onion and garlic. Stir until onion is translucent.
- Stir in salt, sugar, dried basil, dried oregano, black pepper and crushed red pepper.
- Deglaze pot with a tablespoon or two of broth, stirring until liquid has nearly evaporated.
- Press ‘Cancel’ to turn Instant Pot off.
- Add remaining broth and stir.
- Add crushed tomatoes and tomato paste, but don’t stir.
- Divide spaghetti into three batches. Add spaghetti to the inner pot in a criss-cross pattern: add one-third of spaghetti over the tomatoes, spreading it out horizontally. Add the next one-third of spaghetti, spreading out vertically. Add the final layer, spreading out horizontally. (see blog post for step by step photos).
- Using a spatula, push down on spaghetti until submerged in the liquid.
- Close the lid and pressure cook for 6 minutes.
- Do a 2 to 5 minute Natural Pressure Release (NPR 2 to 5). *
- Open the lid and stir spaghetti and meat sauce until combined. If there are any strands of spaghetti stuck together, use a fork to separate the strands.
- If you find the spaghetti to be too liquidy, allow it to rest for about 5 minutes, and it will absorb the extra liquid.
- Sprinkle with chopped parsley and shredded parmesan cheese before serving.
Notes
- Prep time does not include steps that are already accounted for in the ingredient list, e.g. minced garlic, cut vegetables, etc.
- * Use 2 minutes Natural Pressure Release (NPR) for al dente pasta.
- See the blog post for more detailed recipe tips.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 579kcal | Carbohydrates: 80g | Protein: 41g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 60mg | Sodium: 739mg | Fiber: 21g | Sugar: 12g
Have you made this recipe?I love seeing your photos! Tag me on Instagram @PaintTheKitchenRed hashtag #paintthekitchenred
I am not a certified nutritionist. I provide my best estimate of nutritional information merely as a courtesy to my readers. If you depend on nutritional information for dietary or health reasons, I suggest using your favorite online nutrition calculator to confirm the nutritional value of this recipe based on the actual ingredients that you use.
If you loved this recipe, please give it a 5 Star rating in the comment section below and please share it on social media using the social media share buttons at the top and bottom of this post. Thank you so much!
You might also like to try these Instant Pot Recipes:
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| Instant Pot Vegetarian Rigatoni | Instant Pot Penne with Sausage | Instant Pot Chili |
Michelle
I came across your spaghetti with meat sauce recipe, and currently it is my family’s favorite dish! In addition to your instructions, I sautee puertorrican sofrito, green peppers, olives, no pepper or crushed red peppers and voila! You have saved dinner so many weeksays!!! Thanks!!! (Last time I also tried preparing 1 box of spaghetti. It took longer to come to pressure, and I added 2 additional minutes of HP cooking.)
Paint the Kitchen Red
Michelle – I too love this recipe because it’s so easy and satisfying. I love the sofrito substitution. Thank you for sharing your modifications. I also add shredded carrots sometimes 🙂
Brynn
This was delicious as is, but would there be a way to adjust it to make the noodles separately? My daughter is only a fan of a little sauce so in the future I’d probably do it on the side. Also then I could feeeze the leftover sauce for next time!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Brynn, this recipe was my own creation by combining my homemade pasta sauce recipe with spaghetti. Here’s the (non Instant Pot) pasta sauce recipe . I wouldn’t recommend making the pasta sauce in the Instant Pot because you’d need to add a lot of liquid to make the Instant Pot seal. And that would make it too watered down. This is a very tasty and easy recipe.
Ro
This was delicious! So easy and have already shared this. Even my husband, who does not care for pasta, really enjoyed it. I am not too familiar with the instant pot but next time I would like to increase the amount of pasta. I was left with a lot of meat sauce. Any tips on that? How much more liquid do I need? Thank you!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Ro, thanks for the comment; I’m glad you enjoyed it. If you add more pasta, add 2 cups liquid for every 8 oz. of pasta. Either broth or water will work. Let me know if you need further help.
Karen
Easy and delicious! The sauce is very flavorful, yet quick to prepare. I expect this recipe will be on my menu plan often. I used Italian sausage in place of the ground beef because that’s what I had on hand.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thanks for your comment, Karen. And I’m happy to hear you like this easy and quick recipe like I do!
Jen
If I am not cooking the pasta in the sauce, should I reduce the amount of liquid?
Paint the Kitchen Red
Jen, yes you would need to reduce the liquid and the only concern I have with that is you shouldn’t have trouble sealing. Make sure you don’t stir the tomatoes in.
Steven Johnson
I can’t wait to try this!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hope you enjoy it, Steven!
Terence
Recipe came out great, even I ate it (I don’t usually eat Italian food, but my kids love it). Wasn’t watching very closely, so ended up with NPR of 3 minutes, which gave perfect al dente spaghetti (De Cecco Spaghetti #12)
Aaron
This recipe did not work in my 6-quart instant pot. Followed the recipe exactly and I did not get enough pressure in my instant pot for pressure cooking. Luckily the meal wasn’t a complete disaster as I got the pasta to cook thoroughly.
Paint the Kitchen Red
I’m sorry you had trouble with the recipe. Here are some possible reasons why your Instant Pot didn’t come to pressure.
Ginger
This was my first recipe in my new IP. I am gifting IP’s to my 3 daughters for Christmas so I gifted one to myself too! The spaghetti was perfect and you made it so easy to accomplish with your detailed instructions on your blog. Thank you! My question, two of my daughters have 4 kids and they are hungry at dinner! Can they double this recipe exactly and expect the same results or does liquid need to be altered. Also can I sub a little burgundy wine for some of the broth? Thank you for making my first IP experience a great one!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Ginger, I’m glad the recipe came out well. Yes, you can substitute wine for some of the broth. As long as you don’t go past the 1/2-full mark for foods that expand: pasta, rice, beans, etc. yes, you can double. You might have a bit more clumping of the spaghetti. Just pull apart with a fork. And one more point: when you double, you don’t double cooking time. Thanks for your comment 🙂
Keisha
Even though when doubling the recipe the cooking time stays the same, but does the amount of liquids stay the same to pressurize a larger amount of food or does the amounts of liquid need to be doubled as well?
Paint the Kitchen Red
Keisha, it depends. If you’re cooking a recipe where there’s a lot of liquid and it’s discarded, then you might be able to keep the liquid the same but otherwise, you would double the liquid. Especially in a recipe like this one because the pasta will absorb the liquid. Hope that helps!
Jen
This was super simple and delicious! I doubled the recipe because I have three teenagers, and it worked perfectly. We still had plenty of leftovers, which we love. I used 1/2 ground beef and 1/2 mild Italian sausage and it was very tasty. This will be going into regular rotation. Thanks!
Paint the Kitchen Red
That’s great, Jen. I do like the flavors of Italian sausage mixed in. I so glad you liked the recipe.
John
This one was a big hit with the whole family and was an easy weeknight meal.
Diane
Hi ~ looking forward to trying this but I have a few questions (beginner!).
* can you use gluten-free all rice pasta? (Not the blends of corn, etc.) …if yes, any adjustments to the liquid or cook time!
* can you substitute rice instead? …if so, what liquid and/or time adjustments?
I’m new, so still looking at so many recipes, and I haven’t found any that have these options included.
Thanks for any input!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Diane, although I have not used gluten free pasta, I’ve heard Barilla brand works well – not sure if it’s a rice pasta though. One reader on another pasta recipe of mine used 12oz. gluten free pasta for 4 minutes and also added 1/2 cup of water. If I were to do it with rice, I would add the liquid, stir, add the rice, tomato products and not stir. 1 cup rice: 1 1/4 cup broth, pressure cook for 4 minutes if Jasmine rice, 6 minutes for long grain rice. Natural Pressure Release (NPR) 10 minutes. Keep me posted on what happens!
Lindsay
Love this kid-friendly meal that allows for a homemade spaghetti sauce for my family. You’re food blog is the absolute best! I’m recommending it to all my family and friends. Keep those fabulous
recipes coming. You rock the kitchen RED!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Lindsay, thank you for your comment, and for passing on the word – I so appreciate it.
elaine
I do love your IP recipes and the whole web-site, for that matter!!!! One of my VERY favorites!!!
One suggestion, rather than putting items in red (which is very difficult to read) – I would suggest bold and italics…
I’m finding your comment area text print to be extremely light or faded in shading.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Elaine – thank you so much for taking the time to make those suggestions. I picked red for obvious reasons but didn’t consider the viewability for everyone. Let me play with the colors and fonts and see what I can do to make the text and links easier to read. Thank you also for your kind words.