Instant Pot Lasagna

This easy Instant Pot Lasagna is comfort food done easy right in your pressure cooker. Simply layer all ingredients in a springform pan and cook!

Cooking pasta in the Instant Pot is very easy! We love my Instant Pot Spaghetti and the Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta.

If you are already a fan of Instant Pot pasta dishes, you will love this lasagna! It's made with flavorful meat sauce and a creamy and cheese ricotta layer. All with no-boil (or otherwise known as oven-ready) noodles to save time. Simply layer all ingredients in a springform pan and pressure cook for 23 minutes. You can even make it ahead of time and reheat in your Instant Pot! This lasagna is bound to be a hit!

Ingredients

• ½ lb ground beef
• olive oil
• garlic
• yellow onion
• green bell pepper
• Italian seasoning
• crushed red peppers
• crushed tomatoes
• no-boil lasagna noodles
• mozzarella cheese
• ricotta cheese
• Parmesan cheese
• egg

Step by step instructions

This dish is quite simple to make if you have the ingredients ready to use. Make the sauce in a pan, mix in ricotta cheese mixture and prepare the Instant Pot. Add water to the bottom of the pot, then place the trivet inside. For this recipe, you will need a 7" springform pan, because that is what will fit in the 6qt Instant Pot. I believe an 8" pan will fit in the 8 quart IP. Test before cooking.

Step 1: Make the sauce

In a saucepan, saute garlic, onion and peppers with seasoning. Add meat and cook until browned. Add crushed tomatoes (or marinara sauce) and stir everything together.

Step 2: ricotta layer

Mix ricotta cheese with egg and Parmesan cheese. Add spinach (torn into pieces), if desired.

Step 3: layer ingredients

Start by a thin layer of sauce in the pan. Layer the following: noodles, ½ of ricotta cheese, sauce, noodles, rest of ricotta, meat sauce, noodles, rest of the sauce and shredded cheese.

step 4: cook

Top the lasagna with shredded mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese, cover the dish loosely with a sheet of aluminum foil. Close the lid and set the timer to 23 minutes.

How to make it without springform pan?

If you layer everything right in your Instant Pot insert, there is a big chance your dish will burn and the Instant Pot will stop. I recommend buying a 7" round pan for lasagna. You can use it to make a cheesecake or even a breakfast casserole. If you don't have a springform pan, you can use a cake pan if it is 3" tall. Otherwise, the layers won't fit.

Storing and freezing

Yes! Like any pasta dish, this lasagna can be made ahead of time. Once cooked, cool it completely and place in the fridge. The next day, reheat in the Instant Pot.

Yes! Once the lasagna is cooked, cool it completely in the pan. Then remove and place in a disposable tin foil round pan (you can use a square pan as well), wrap in saran wrap and place in a freezer-safe ziploc bag. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Reheating

If you made the lasagna the day before and stored it in the fridge overnight, you can simply reheat it in the Instant Pot. Add 1 cup of water to the Instant Pot and set the trivet inside. Place lasagna in the springform pan inside. Close the lid and set the valve to sealing position. Set timer to 5 minutes. When the timer is done, let the pressure release naturally. It takes only 5 to 7 minutes. Once it's done, let it release the pressure naturally for at least 5 minutes. Carefully remove the pan from the Instant Pot, run the knife around the lasagna and release the springform side.

Sides

My family loves this lasagna with a Caesar Salad and a side of my One-Hour Skillet Focaccia or the Garlic Butter Breadsticks (made with crescent roll dough).

Variations

• vegetarian: skip the meat and use 6 ounces of mushrooms for the umami flavor
• gluten-free: use GF noodles only if you have experience with them

Expert tips

• use no-boil noodles: this makes the recipe even easier; no need to cook the noodles!
• flavorful sauce: I highly recommend using onion and green bell pepper sauteed with seasoning to make the sauce. It will ensure that the dish is flavorful.
• drain the grease: depending on what ground meat you are using, you may need to drain the grease before adding crushed tomatoes. If using ground turkey, no need to drain. If using 75% ground beef, you may need to drain it.
• cover the dish with foil: this prevents the condensation from gathering on top of the cheese layer on your lasagna. It is not necessary to use the foil. You can simply dab the moisture away with a paper towel.

More Instant Pot pasta recipes:

• Instant Pot Spaghetti
• Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese
• Instant Pot Baked Ziti
• Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta

Check out my Instant Pot Guide for Beginners, filled with all the info you need to get started with your new appliance! Seeing BURN message on your IP? Read my Instant Pot Burn Message post to learn why and how to save your dish.

If you like this recipe and make it, snap a photo and share it on INSTAGRAM! Tag me @crunchycreamysweet so I can check it out and leave a comment! 😀