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Instant Pot Spaghetti (With or Without Meat Sauce)
Only 3 ingredients make up this nutritious dinner recipe that your family will love. You’ll have this done in 15-20 minutes and will only dirty up one pot! See Cooking Notes for how to make this with a delicious meat sauce.
Yield: 8 servings 1x
Prep: 5 minutesCook: 10 minutesTotal: 15 minutes
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Ingredients
For Optional Meat Sauce:
- 1 small onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 pound lean ground beef (sub: ground turkey)
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
For Meatless Version:
- 4 cups water
- 16 ounces (full package) whole wheat spaghetti
- 2 (24-ounce) jars marinara sauce (I used our Homemade Marinara)
- Optional, for serving: freshly grated Parmesan cheese and/or fresh chopped parsley or basil
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Instructions
To Make WITH Meat Sauce: (skip this part if you want to make a meatless version)
- Turn on the Saute function (on high) and heat 1 teaspoon olive oil.
- Add 1 diced small onion and saute until softened, about 4 minutes. Add in 4 minced garlic cloves and stir for 30 seconds.
- Add in 1 pound lean ground beef or turkey. Break it up with a wooden spoon while it cooks and season it with 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Saute until cooked through. Drain off excess grease, if desired.
- Then follow the rest of the recipe below.
To Make WITHOUT Meat:
- Add water to the Instant Pot. Break the spaghetti in half and add to the pot, spreading it out in thin layers over the liquid, criss crossing each layer. Make sure it’s not clumped together. Pour the marinara over the pasta and make sure all the pasta is submerged. DO NOT STIR.
- Lock and seal the lid. Cook at high pressure for 5 minutes. When the cook time is up, let the pressure naturally release for 4-5 minutes (meaning, do not touch). Then, quick release the rest of the pressure by turning the valve. (If the pasta isn’t done enough, turn on the Saute function, add 1/2 cup of water or more as needed, and stir for a few minutes until it’s softer.)
- It will seem soupy at first. Simply stir and let the pasta sit for a few minutes. It will absorb more of the liquid and thicken up a bit. Serve warm and topped with shredded Parmesan cheese and/or fresh chopped herbs like basil or parsley.
Notes/Tips
- How to Cut This Recipe in Half: I tested making half of this recipe (8 ounces pasta, 1 jar marinara, 2 cups water), and it works the same way. Just cut all the ingredients in half but cook for the SAME time length. This will serve 3-4 people.
- What to Do If You Get a Burn Notice: Occasionally the pasta can stick to the bottom of your pot and cause a burn notice as it’s coming to pressure. If you happen to get a burn notice, here’s what to do. Press cancel. Add 1/2 cup more water and shift the pasta slightly. Try again. It should work this time.
- The longer the pasta sits in the pot, the softer it gets. So I suggest eating it right away and/or turning off the “warm” mode. You may also want to transfer it to another dish instead of letting it sit in the Instant Pot (because of the residual heat).
- I have not tested this with regular (not whole wheat) spaghetti. Please let me know if you do.
- I have not tested this recipe with gluten-free pasta but from the articles I’ve read I would not suggest it. Instead, make our gluten-free Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce and cook your gluten-free pasta on the stove top instead.
