Instant Pot Spaghetti

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This is the best and easiest way to make spaghetti and meat sauce: Everything cooks together in the instant pot, dinner is ready in just 30 minutes!

plate with spaghetti and meat sauce in front of instant pot with text overlay

I have made my fair share of unsuccessful instant pot pastas – but this recipe is definitely a winner! The sauce comes out delicious and flavorful and the spaghetti cook to perfection.

The most important thing when cooking pasta in the instant pot is to avoid overcooking it. 6 minutes may seem like a short time, but it really is enough so please do not increase the cooking time.

Ingredients you’ll need

This is an overview of ingredients. Skip to the recipe for quantities.

photo of instant pot spaghetti ingredients with text labels — Ingredients for instant pot spaghetti: Oil, green pepper, onion, ground beef, Italian seasoning spaghetti, water and pasta sauce.

Ingredient notes

Beef: I used lean ground beef, but you can use any fat content. Mixed ground beef and pork is also great, and ground sausage works as well.
Pasta sauce: I used tomato basil. Any tomato-based jarred pasta sauce you like is fine.
Green pepper: Skip if you don’t like the taste of green pepper. Can also use diced one diced celery stick instead.

How to cook spaghetti in the instant pot

It’s super easy to cook spaghetti and meat sauce in your electric pressure cooker! No need to cook the pasta and sauce separately, everything cooks together in one pot. And it only takes 6 minutes of pressure cooking time – so quick and so simple.

photo of instant pot spaghetti steps with labels — How to make instant pot spaghetti: 1) Sauté onion and green pepper, then 2) add beef and cook until browned. 3) Break spaghetti in half and 4) spread over beef mixture. 5) Pour water over spaghetti, then 6) spread pasta sauce on top. 7) Seal lid and pressure cook, then 8) manually release pressure, 9) open and stir well to serve.

Recipe tips

Make sure to scrape any bits off the bottom of the instant pot after browning the beef. Otherwise it could trigger the “burn” warning during pressure cooking.
I recommend a natural pressure release of 2-3 minutes before manually releasing pressure (makes for less splatters). I always cover the valve with a kitchen towel to help combat splatters as well.
Make sure to measure out the water exactly, and use the right size jarred pasta sauce. Otherwise, the recipe may not work out as expected.
Do not pre-cook the spaghetti! They cook right in the instant pot with the sauce.

Recipe FAQs

How do you fix undercooked pasta in instant pot?

Make sure to stick to the exact liquid requirements of the recipe. Not adding enough liquid will keep the pasta from cooking through. If you added enough liquid and the pasta is still underdone, your exact brand of pasta might need an extra minute of cooking time. Make sure there is still enough liquid in the pot, then seal the lid again and pressure cook for one more minute.

Can you put frozen meat in instant pot?

If you only have frozen ground beef and forgot to defrost it, you can still make this recipe. Place the unwrapped frozen ground beef on a trivet in your 6-quart instant pot. Add 1 cup water, seal the lid and pressure cook on “high” for 5 minutes. Quick release the pressure, then carefully remove the trivet and beef (hot! use oven mitts!). Use the beef as directed in the recipe.

Serving suggestions

I like to make a big green side salad with Italian dressing to serve alongside spaghetti and meat sauce.

More easy instant pot dinners

Instant Pot Chili

white plate with spaghetti and meat sauce

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