Instant Pot Spaghetti is the best pasta with ground beef, cooked in the pressure cooker. It won't burn and is ready in 20 minutes, from start to finish.
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Why This Recipe Works
One of the most requested recipes to make in the Instant Pot is an easy pasta dish. I am excited to share my recipe for Instant Pot Spaghetti that won't burn and is perfectly flavorful. It's easy to make and ready in just under 20 minutes (including the IP coming to pressure).
This spaghetti is officially my family's favorite IP dinner and is requested every week! This Instant Pot Spaghetti is a perfect dish to have in your go-to pressure cooker recipes for busy weeknights or any day you want a big bowl of pasta.
Ingredients:
- beef: go for the lean kind but if your beef has more fat, spoon it out during cooking
- spaghetti: dry noodles, break them in half to fit
- water: necessary for pressure cooking
- canned tomatoes: diced and crushed to make a better-tasting spaghetti sauce from scratch instead of using a store-bought kind
- seasoning: garlic, onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper
Check out the full ingredient list with measurements in the recipe box below.
I used the 6qt Instant Pot DUO60 and love it. (This is an affiliate link.)
How to Make Instant Pot Spaghetti?
- Start by sauteing garlic. Add onion powder and Italian seasoning and stir.
- Add ground beef and cook until browned. Add ½ cup of water and scrape any bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Grab a handful of spaghetti noodles at a time, break them in half and arrange in a criss-cross pattern on top of the meat. (see photo nr. 2 for visual reference). Add remaining water to the pot.
- Add diced tomatoes and crushed tomatoes. Close the lid and set the valve to sealing.
- Set timer to 7 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes for the Instant Pot to come to pressure, then it will start the countdown. Once the timer is done, wait 1 minute, then switch the valve to venting to release pressure.
- The dish will look like it has too much liquid, but all you need to do is stir well several times and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. It will thicken up.
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The amount of liquid prevented the burn and made sure the pasta is perfectly cooked. The spaghetti will look like in the image below.
All you need to do now is stir it well and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Perfect time to set up the table and whip up a simple salad or breadsticks. After that, when the excess liquid evaporates and some absorbs into the dish, you will have spaghetti that looks like the image below, simply perfect!
What to serve with spaghetti?
- bread: My family loves my skillet focaccia that takes only 1 hour to make.
- salad: you can't go wrong with Caesar salad or creamy cucumber tomato salad.
- sides: choose steamed broccoli, sauteed green beans or roasted asparagus.
Recipe FAQs:
This Instant Pot Spaghetti cooks in 7 minutes. Since the meat is browned, all you need to do is cook the pasta. That's why the time is so short. You should also note that it takes about 10 to 12 minutes for the IP to come to pressure.
If you have a frozen block of beef (or turkey meat), you can quickly thaw it out in the Instant Pot before you set out to make the spaghetti. You need 1.5 cups of water in the insert, then set frozen beef on a trivet. Set for 7 minutes on HIGH pressure. Quickly release the pressure. The meat won't be cooked through but thawed so you can now brown it to make the spaghetti. Discard the liquid and remove trivet. Rinse and wipe the insert clean, if needed. Heat up oil and begin browning the beef.
If you have been cooking in your Instant Pot for a while, you may know that some dishes tend to be bland. It is almost a rule that you should overseason a dish cooked in the IP. My secret that I use often in a variety of dishes, is to heat up the spices in oil with garlic and onions, if using. It will activate dried spices. In this case, to make a flavorful spaghetti, I add Italian seasoning mix to the oil when sauteeing garlic. It becomes very fragrant. Then you add the beef and let the spices infuse the meat. This also works when making soups and dishes that start with sauteing garlic, onions, celery, carrots and even potatoes.
Yes! Chicken stock or broth can be used in this recipe. I recommend a low-sodium kind and adjusting the amount of salt to your preferences.
Absolutely. If you are using Italian sausage, you won't need as much spice. The sausage is usually pretty flavorful.
If you see a "burn" message displaying on your Instant Pot, the reason most likely is that you didn't deglaze the bottom of the pot and some food stuck. Always make sure to add a little bit of water after browning the meat and use a wooden spoon to scrape off any cooked on bits from the bottom. Another reason could be that you mixed the crushed tomatoes in with pasta and meat. Follow my recipe and add the tomatoes on top of pasta, away from sides of the pot and do not stir.
To double this recipe, you will need a bigger pot. I recommend 8 quart Instant Pot. The cook time stays the same, even if you double the ingredients.
To learn more about the Instant Pot, check out my Guide for Beginners. If you experienced the “burn” message while using your IP, check out my Instant Pot Burn Message post to learn how to fix the issue and prevent it in the first place.
More Instant Pot dinners:
If you like this recipe and make it, let me know in the comments below! Don't forget to rate it if you enjoyed it!
Instant Pot Spaghetti Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves chopped finely
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 lb ground beef I used lean
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 12 oz. spaghetti noodles
- 3 ½ cups water
- 15 oz can diced tomatoes
- 24 oz. crushed tomatoes or pasta sauce
Instructions
- Start by heating up oil on the saute setting. Add garlic and stir. Add onion powder and Italian seasoning. Stir and saute for 1 minute.1 tablespoon olive oil, 3 garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- Add ground beef and cook, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon, until browned. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon out and discard any grease (this depends on the type of beef you use).1 lb ground beef, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- Add ½ cup of water and scrape any bits from the bottom of the pot. This step is important as it will prevent the dish from burning during pressure cooking.3 ½ cups water
- Grab a handful of spaghetti noodles at a time, break in half and arrange in a criss-cross pattern on top of the meat. (see photo in post for visual reference). Add remaining water to the pot.12 oz. spaghetti noodles
- Pour diced tomatoes (with liquid) and crushed tomatoes (or pasta sauce) over noodles. Do your best to keep it in the center, away from the edges of the pot. Close the lid, set the valve to sealing.15 oz can diced tomatoes, 24 oz. crushed tomatoes or pasta sauce
- Set timer to 7 minutes and make sure the IP is set to cook on HIGH pressure. It will take about 10 minutes for the Instant Pot to come to pressure, then it will start the countdown.
- Once the timer is done, wait 1 minute, then switch the valve to venting to release pressure.
- Open the lid away from your face, as there will be leftover steam in the pot. The dish will look like it has too much liquid, but all you need to do is stir well several time and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. It will thicken up.
Christopher says
Fast and most importantly very tasty
Przyprawione sercem says
With your recipe, cooking is child's play. Great recipe
Sharon says
This is a perfect recipe for Spaghetti. Thank you for publishing this recipe!
Anna says
Thank you, Sharon!
Missy F says
Do you think the recipe as written could be made in a 3 qt. Instant Pot or would it have to be halved?
Donna M. Klappa says
I have a similar recipe that calls for 16 oz pasta. The total water is 3 cups. I am wanting to cut the recipe in half, so I looked for how much water for 8 oz and the same 24 oz pasta sauce. It said 2c water for 8 oz of pasta. I am wondering if your recipe is "more saucy"?
Anna says
Hi Donna! If you watch my video, you will see the dish is saucy right after cooking, but when you let it sit for 10 minutes, it thickens perfectly!
Claudia & Gerald says
Thank you Anna soooo much for sharing this recipe. I just showed my 83 yrs old cousin how to make it as he will do soon be getting an instant pot, He absolutely loved it just as much as we do.
Good bless,
Claudia
Anna says
Hi Claudia! That is so sweet of you! I am so happy that he loved it! Thank you for making my recipe!
Sue K says
My father learned how to make spaghetti when he was a medical student in Italy before WWII. Once his pasta was done al dente, he always cooked the spaghetti in the sauce. He never understood why Americans put the sauce on top of the pasta. I have never been able to replicate the flavor and texture of his spaghetti...until I found this recipe. It is amazing. We have it at least 2 - 3 times a month!
Anna says
Hi Sue! I just love your story! Thank you so much for sharing it. I am so happy to know that you love this recipe!
Rick Schoenborn says
Hi,
Do you cook as posted or make changes? Onions or onion powder? Crushed tomatoes or pasta sauce? Beef or other meat? Thanks...
Andrea says
This IP recipe is very much like my stovetop recipe so I love it. I usually saute onion, poblano pepper, and fresh mushrooms when I cook the meat. So good!!
Diane says
This is my fav spaghetti recipe. Make it all the time. Can I use chicken broth instead of water, have so much made. Thx
Melissa says
I bet that would make it more flavorful. We usually use broth instead of water for everything.
Tony Cossey says
I added pepperoni slices with the meat while doing the saute'... about halfway through. And I added a can of mushroom pieces and stems (8 oz) after the crushed tomatoes and before the spaghetti sauce. Came out great!
SF says
This is the BEST instant pot spaghetti recipe I have tried. Other recipes have tasted bland and ordinary so I was skeptical at first but this recipe is so simple but so delicious! I used to make the spaghetti and sauce separately thinking it would be more flavorful but this recipe proved me wrong. The whole family loves this and it is a weekly staple in our house now. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
Denys says
This is by far the best! I use ground sausage instead of beef. Thank you so much for this. My husband won’t let me make spaghetti any other way! And I don’t think I’d want to!
Jen says
Made tonight and my family really enjoyed it- especially with the garlic butter cheesy breadsticks. Thank you! Quick question- I used spaghetti noodles but is it ok to swap out for angel hair? That is my kids favorite but I was afraid it would end up over cooked.
Jessica says
I tried angel hair when I first made this and it was very sticky and had a horrible consistency. Taste was ok, but everything stuck together.
Denise says
I dont know what I do but i ALWAYS get the burn food message when I cook spaghetti or chili or anything that is not pure liquid. HELP!
oof says
Add more water to prevent the burn notice. Always scrape the pan after browning the meat also.
Andrea says
Use more oil and saute meat at a lower temperature so it doesn't leave burnt pieces on the bottom.
Bethany says
I doubled this recipe and cooked it in my 8qt instant pot. My family loved it, thank you!
Anna says
Awesome! Thank you so much, Bethany!
Becky says
I’m going to double recipe as well! Having company! I have an 8qt IP. Hope it turns out well!
Anna says
I hope you and your guests love it!
KATHY BURTON says
I have a 6 qt instapot. Do you think I would be able to double this recipe?
Patrick Prouty says
Yes. Used 1 onion, 1 green pepper in the sauté. Used gluten free noodles on top of the mixture. Added fresh tomatoes and sauce on top. Covered with mushrooms and another round of sauce. Turned out great. No burns.
Belinda Pennings says
Did you double the water too?
Debbie says
Also
Wondering if we double the cook time?
Anna says
Cook time stays the same.
Bob Walker says
You are amazing girl! My 8 qt feed an army that couldn't say enough good things. I cheated peeling garlic (hate that) when I found packages of fresh garlic already peeled in the dairy case. To my surprise it was fresher and better tasting than any bulb I've ever bought. I know you were keeping it quick and easy, but I substituted fresh basil for personal preference. Thank you. I'm coming to you first on all future recipes.