Instant Pot spaghetti
Spaghetti and meat sauce cooked together in one pot, so the noodles soak up all the flavor and there’s no colander to wash.
- 40 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 6
- About $1.98 a serving
- 540 calories
- Good the next day
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 6 servings.
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lb 85/15 ground beef
- 1 lb spaghetti
- 1 jar marinara sauce
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
From your pantry
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 3½ cups water
Each serving has about 540 calories, 27 g protein, 70 g carbs and 16 g fat, and costs about $1.98 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No 85/15 ground beef? 90/10 ground beef works.
- No spaghetti? Fettuccine works.
- No grated parmesan? Parmesan wedge works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the onion and the garlic.
Dice. Dicing means cutting food into small, even cubes, usually a quarter to half an inch across. Pieces the same size cook at the same speed, so nothing burns while the rest catches up.
How you’ll know: Your pieces are little cubes about the size of a chickpea, and they all look close to the same.
Mince. Mincing means chopping something into the tiniest pieces you can, smaller than a grain of rice. Tiny pieces melt into the dish, so you get the flavor without biting into a chunk of garlic.
How you’ll know: Every piece is tiny and about the same size, and the pile starts to look almost like a paste.
Set the Instant Pot to Sauté. Add the beef and onion and cook 6 to 7 minutes, breaking up the beef, until no pink is left.
Timer: 6 min 30 sec
Food safety: Ground beef, pork and lamb are done at 160°F. When it’s cooked through there’s no pink left anywhere in the pan.
Spoon off most of the fat, then stir in the garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper for 1 minute.
Pour in the water and scrape the bottom of the pot until nothing is stuck.
Dolly’s tip: Stuck bits are what set off the burn warning, so scrape until the bottom feels smooth.Break the spaghetti in half and scatter it over the top in a crisscross pattern, pressing it under the water.
Dolly’s tip: Crisscrossing keeps the strands from cooking together into a clump.Pour the marinara over the pasta and spread it out. Don’t stir.
Lock the lid, set the valve to sealing, and pressure cook on high for 8 minutes. Then turn the valve to quick release.
Timer: 8 min
Stir well, breaking up any strands that stuck, and let it sit 5 minutes to . Serve with parmesan.
Thicken. Thickening means cooking a sauce or soup until it’s less runny, by simmering it down or adding something like cornstarch. A thicker sauce clings to food instead of pooling on the plate.
How you’ll know: It coats the back of a spoon, and a line drawn through it with your finger holds its shape.
Timer: 5 min
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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