Ground Beef Meatballs Pasta Pressure Cooker

This recipe for Instant Pot spaghetti and meatballs makes tender meatballs and perfectly cooked spaghetti, all in one pot!

You might be wondering why you'd want to cook spaghetti and meatballs in a pressure cooker. It's a good question! I wondered too, but now I've become a convert. My family loves Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meatballs!

Why Use a Pressure Cooker for this Recipe?

• Less mess. The meatballs, pasta and sauce all cook in one pot, at the same time.
• Less hands-on cooking. Get the meatballs and sauce in the pot, then let dinner cook while you do something else (like toss a salad, or just relax)
• The flavors meld. Pasta really absorbs the flavor of the sauce in a pressure cooker, making the whole dish more flavorful.
• Richer flavor. Not only do the flavors meld, but the pasta tastes rich and silky when cooked directly in the sauce.

Meatball Recipes

This recipe includes instructions for beef meatballs. You can use my recipe, or use any of your own favorite meatball recipes to make spaghetti in your pressure cooker. You can even use pre-cooked store-bought meatballs to make life easier.

Other meatball recipes you might like include pork and ricotta meatballs (my favorite!), turkey and ricotta meatballs, or turkey and zucchini meatballs.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Set meatballs in the Instant Pot
2. Break the spaghetti noodles in half and layer the pasta over the meatballs in a cross hatch pattern

3. Pour in marinara sauce and water
4. Cook 8 minutes at high pressure, quick release. Gently stir in the noodles with a fork to separate any that have stuck together. Let the noodles rest 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

How Long Does Spaghetti Last in the Fridge?

Spaghetti (or spaghetti and meatballs) will stay fresh for 3 to 5 days in the refrigerator. The real issue with keeping leftover spaghetti in the refrigerator is that the texture of the pasta will become softer. This is especially true with pasta that has been tossed in marinara sauce.

The best way to store leftover spaghetti is to keep the pasta and sauce separate in the refrigerator.

To reheat leftover spaghetti and meatballs, the microwave is most convenient. You can also cover a pan of spaghetti and meatballs with foil and warm it in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes.

Common Questions About Making Spaghetti and Meatballs in a Pressure Cooker

Do I have to break the noodles in half?

Yes. Otherwise, the noodles won't fit in the pot. The noodles need to lie flat so they're underneath the sauce and water and not poking out.

Can I Use More (16 ounces) or Less (8 ounces) of Pasta?

It's better that you don't, as 12 ounces is the perfect amount of pasta for this recipe. I don't bother measuring the pasta exactly, just eyeball
¾ of a box.

I don't recommend using a full box of spaghetti (16 ounces) for this recipe. There will be too much pasta and not enough sauce, making the flavor a little bit bland.

You can try making this recipe using 8 ounces of pasta - I've haven't tried yet because it's not enough to feed my family. I'm guessing it will work fine, but if you try it let me know!

How Do I Prevent the Noodles from sticking together?

Add dry spaghetti in 4 to 6 layers, criss-crossing each layer in a cross-hatch pattern so that the noodles are lying in many different directions. This helps prevent the noodles from clumping together.

Even so, the spaghetti will stick together a little bit. What really helps is using a fork to immediately stir and separate the cooked noodles when you open the lid. Then, when I scoop the spaghetti and meatballs into a serving dish, I use a fork to separate the noodles again.

I've tried using olive oil to keep the noodles from sticking together, and it doesn't seem to help at all.

How Do I Keep the Noodles from Getting Mushy and Overcooked?

I find that many Instant Pot spaghetti recipes cook the noodles too long. I prefer a shorter cooking time (8 minutes) which insures that the noodles won't be mushy. I like "al dente" noodles, so sometimes I even cook this recipes for just 7 minutes.

Remember, even after the cooking time is complete and you release the pressure, the noodles will continue to cook in the hot marinara sauce and continue to absorb any water that remains in the pot.

If you cook the noodles until they're completely soft, then they cook some more in the residual heat, you'll end up with mushy noodles. They'll be especially mushy the next day if you're eating leftovers.

My Spaghetti Noodles Aren't Cooked Enough!

When you first open the lid, the noodles will still be fairly firm. Don't worry; the noodles will continue to cook while they rest in the pot and absorb the sauce and liquid.

I find that it usually takes 5 to 7 minutes after the pressure is released and you've opened the lid for the pasta to be perfectly "al dente" and ready to eat.

How Much Water Should I Add?

I've made this recipe many times, and I've found that 2 ¼ cups water is the right amount of water to add, along with one 24-ounce jar of marinara sauce.

It's enough water for the pasta to cook and for the sauce to spread evenly over the noodles without diluting the sauce. And, it doesn't leave too much water still sitting the pot when the cooking time is done.

It's also enough water to prevent the meatballs or sauce from burning to the bottom of the pot. I have never had a burn notice when I cook this pasta.

Can I Use a Can of Crushed Tomatoes or Tomato Sauce Instead of Jarred Pasta Sauce?

You can, but I honestly don't think the recipe comes out quite as good. Using crushed tomatoes or canned tomato sauce gives the spaghetti a stronger tomato flavor - it kind of reminds me of SpaghettiOs!

Also, you'll need to doctor up the sauce a bit. At the very least, add sauted garlic and Italian seasoning to the tomatoes.

Can I Use Any Type of Meatballs I Want?

Sure! You can use any type of meatballs for this recipe, made out of any type of ground meat. The meatballs can be raw, frozen, homemade or store-bought. The cooking time stays the same.

Just make sure the meatballs aren't too big. I find that golfball sized meatballs cook best in 8 minutes at high pressure.

More Instant Pot Pasta Recipes

If you'd like to try cooking different types of pasta in your Instant Pot, try Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan Pasta which uses penne or Instant Pot Bowtie Pasta with meat sauce. Instant Pot Artichoke Spinach Dip Pasta is another popular Instant Pot pasta recipe on Kitchenskip.

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Description

This recipe for Instant Pot spaghetti and meatballs makes tender meatballs and perfectly cooked spaghetti, all in one pot!

You can use my meatballs recipe, or your own favorite recipe. You can also use store-bought frozen meatballs.

Total Instant Pot Cooking Time: 15 minutes to reach pressure + 8 minutes on high pressure + Quick Release

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Meatballs

• 1 egg
• ¼ cup milk (optional, but makes meatballs more moist)
• ¼ cup panko or breadcrumbs
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano or Italian seasoning (or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or parsley)
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder or 1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 pound ground beef

Spaghetti and Sauce

• 1 24-ounce jar marinara/pasta sauce
• 2 ¼ cups water
• 12 ounces* spaghetti, broken in half

*I don't weigh this amount exactly, I just use ¾ of a box of spaghetti

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Meatballs

1. Whisk together the egg, milk, breadcrumbs, oregano, onion powder, garlic and salt in a large bowl until well blended.
2. Add the ground beef, using your hands or a fork to gently combine all the ingredients.
3. Roll into meatballs. Make the meatballs about golf ball sized; I usually get about 14 meatballs.
4. Set the meatballs in the Instant Pot in one layer.

Spaghetti and Sauce

1. Break spaghetti noodles in half and lay them in different directions over the meatballs. Criss-crossing the spaghetti, instead of laying it all in one direction, keeps it from sticking together too much. I usually get about 6 layers.
2. Pour in the marinara sauce, evenly covering the noodles.
3. Pour the water over the sauce, making sure that some drizzles down to the meatballs.
4. Press down gently on the noodles if needed, so they are completely covered by the sauce.
5. Secure the lid, making sure the steam release valve is in the sealed position.
6. Cook on high pressure for 8 minutes.
7. Quick release the steam valve as soon as the the cooking time is done, so the noodles don't overcook.
8. Gently stir the noodles with a fork to separate any that are stuck together. Don't stir too deep or you will hit the meatballs and break them apart.
9. Don't worry! The pasta is supposed to look a little watery at this point and the noodles will be slightly undercooked. The pasta isn't quite done cooking yet.
10. Let the pasta rest! Let the spaghetti sit in the pot, covered with the lid set loosely on top, for 5 to 10 minutes. This final step of letting the pasta rest is crucial for the sauce to thicken and the noodles to finish cooking while they absorb any remaining liquid in the pot and absorb the flavor of the sauce.
11. Check on the noodles every 3 minutes or so, giving them a quick stir, to see if they're cooked to your liking yet. I like my noodles "al dente" so I usually let the pot sit for 5 minutes before moving the spaghetti and meatballs to a serving dish topped with parmesan.

Notes

This recipes was tested in a 6-quart Instant Pot

Before adding the water, I pour it into the empty sauce jar, shake the jar to release all the sauce, then pour it in the pot.

For jarred sauce, I often use Trader Joe's Marinara Sauce, 365/Whole Foods Marinara or Rao's when it's on sale. Cup of Jo did a round up of the best jarred pasta sauce.

• Prep Time: 20
• Cook Time: 8
• Category: Pasta
• Method: Instant Pot
• Cuisine: Italian American

Keywords: spaghetti and meatballs, meatballs, instant pot, instant potspaghetti and meatballs, pasta

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