Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce:
A tasty, traditional spaghetti and meat sauce recipe that can be made in just 30 short minutes in your Instant Pot.
This spaghetti is a fool proof recipe, and comes out perfectly every time with just a few simple tricks. It results in perfectly cooked noodles, a rich, sauce, and tons of flavor.
Serve with cheesy garlic bread, or garlic bread twists for the ultimate dinner. And top that dinner off with rich chocolate molten lava cakes.
Make Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce on a night when you want to eliminate the worry about whether your meal will come out good or not, and when you want a simple, tasty dish the whole family will love. This spaghetti and meat sauce recipe delivers each and every time.
In fact, every time I make it I wonder why I don’t make it more often.
How Do You Make Good Spaghetti?
Although spaghetti is a pretty basic food, there are some tips for making it come out just right.
Tips for Making Good Spaghetti:
Don’t Overcook The Spaghetti.
Fortunately when following my Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce recipe you don’t have to worry about this. Just follow the recipe and let your Instant Pot do the rest.
However, when you are making a spaghetti recipe over the stove you have to be careful to not overcook it and have it become mushy. No one likes mushy pasta.
That is why when cooking spaghetti on the stove, opposed to using my Instant Pot recipe, you need to check your spaghetti a couple minutes before you think it should be done to make sure it is not getting overcooked.
Don’t Rinse The Pasta.
After the spaghetti is cooked, don’t rinse or run water over the pasta. Rinsing pasta that is intended for a hot pasta dish is not recommended.
By rinsing the pasta, you get rid of the starchiness that is a component that combines together nicely the sauce and pasta.
No need to worry though, you won’t even be tempted to rinse the pasta with my Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce because the sauce and spaghetti will already be incorporated.
Once you take the spaghetti and meat sauce out of the Instant Pot, your dish is done.
Cook Spaghetti with Sufficient Amount of Liquid.
Lastly, when making spaghetti you need to cook with enough liquid. Too little of liquid can result in pasta not being the desired consistency.
Don’t worry, for my spaghetti and meat sauce recipe the proportions of liquid have already been figured out. All you have to do is follow the instructions and your spaghetti will come out great!
What Is The Difference Between Noodles And Spaghetti?
It seems like we often use pasta and noodles interchangeably when referring to spaghetti.
Spaghetti though is a type of pasta and pasta and noodles are usually made with a different type of flour.
Pasta is usually made with a more coarse flour than noodles.
Also pasta is usually sold dry on the shelf in the grocery store and noodles are sold dry, fresh, steamed, etc.
Of all the types of pastas, I like using spaghetti with a meat sauce like mine. It a great consistency to pair with the texture of this sauce.
How Long Do You Cook Pasta In The Instant Pot?
Depending on the recipe, cooking times will vary. For example, my Instant Pot Mac and Cheese recipe I cook this dish in the Instant Pot for 5 minutes.
However for my spaghetti and meat sauce recipe the cooking time is totally different. After cooking the ground beef, I set the pot to 8 minutes at pressure. It takes about 10 minutes for the pot to come to pressure, then 8 minutes to cook, then I quick release pressure, which takes a couple of minutes. So it takes about 20 minutes all said. But only 8 of active cook time.
How Long Do You Cook Spaghetti In The Instant Pot?
For my Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce I found that the sweet spot for cooking time in the Instant Pot was for 8 minutes on high.
This cooking time is of course after the hamburger meat has been sautéed in the Instant Pot and Instant Pot has heated up to cook.
How Do You Make Southern Spaghetti With Ground Beef?
All spaghetti and meat sauce dishes have some similarities. Like both my spaghetti and meat sauce recipe and southern spaghetti sauce use tomato sauce, spices and ground beef.
Why I Think My Spaghetti And Meat Sauce Is So Great:
- Well proportioned spices
- Good texture and flavor
- Simple preparation
What I think makes my classic spaghetti and meat sauce such a winner, is its well-balanced use of spices, its use of meat to give good flavor and texture, and its minimal preparation, resulting in a dish that you won’t mind making again and again.
Easy Dinner Option:
Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce is a tasty and easy dish!
There is nothing worse than making a great meal and thinking, “Well I better it enjoy it now because there is no way I am going through all that effort again.”
That is what is so great about this Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce recipe. It is a dish with not only fool proof results, it tastes good, and the prep is so minimal that you will be willing to make it again and again.
Looking For Other Great Pasta Dishes?
- Caprese Pasta Salad
- Italian Pasta Salad
- Baked Spaghetti
- Baked Ziti
- Easy Pasta Bake
- Baked Tortellini Skillet
Tools Needed For Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce:
- Instant Pot: This tool is my best friend when it comes to cooking, because it’s just so simple and quick to use.
- Noodle Measuring Tool: Are you tired of guessing the right amount of noodles to cook and always doing too much or too little? Well, this noodle measuring tool is your solution because it measures 4 servings of noodles for you.
Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meatsauce
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 12 oz. spaghetti noodles
- 24 ounces spaghetti sauce
- 3 cups water
- 14.5 oz. diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons shaved parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In a 6 quart or larger instant pot, turn on the saute function.
- Add olive oil to the instant pot liner
- When the pot is hot, add ground beef, and season with salt, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning.
- Brown ground beef thoroughly until cooked through.
- When cooking is complete, hit cancel on your Instant pot to turn off the saute function.
- Next, add the spaghetti noodles by breaking them in half, and layering them over the meat in a criss cross pattern. This will help to avoid clumps in the noodles.
- Now add water, diced tomatoes with liquid, and marinara sauce.
- Use a wooden spoon to gently press down on the noodles to make sure they are all covered by the liquids.
- Cover the pot with the lid, and lock into place, set the valve to sealing.
- Pressure cook on high for 8 minutes.
- When cooking is complete, quick release the pressure and remove the lid.
- Stir the spaghetti, making sure none of the noodles are clumped.
- Let it rest 5 minutes, it will thicken as it cools.
- Serve garnished with parmesan cheese and fresh parsley!
Nutrition
Our recipe card software calculates these nutrition facts based on averages for the above ingredients, different brands, and quality of produce/meats may have different nutritional information, always calculate your own based on the specific products you use in order to achieve accurate macros for this recipe.
Want to use this recipe in a meal plan?Try PrePear, my FREE Meal Planning App that allows you to save your recipes, plan meals, shop for groceries, and cook simply in one place. Join Here!Pin to your Instant Pot board:
Aimee Shugarman says
Love how easy this dinner is to make, in no time at all!
Julie Blanner says
I always love a quick dinner recipe!
Erin says
Yum! This is such a classic dinner and I love how hands off it is in the Instant Pot!
Becky Hardin says
Such a quick and easy dinner idea that everyone will love.
Cheryl says
Just one more reason to love my Instant Pot! This recipe never fails to be a hit!