Instant Pot Mac and Cheese – This macaroni and cheese is every family’s favorite comfort food pasta recipe made easy in the Instant Pot! You can have creamy, mouthwatering, homemade mac and cheese for dinner in about 10 minutes!
Have I mentioned lately that I’m kind of in love with my Instant Pot? Although, I do love our classic Baked Mac and Cheese too! If you have been following me on Instagram you’ll know that I’ve documented my daily trials and errors using the thing. I was so skeptical of even getting one in the first place, and now, it’s pretty much all I want to use for cooking at all! It takes a lot of the in-between steps out of making simple recipes. Like this mac and cheese, the pasta cooks in just enough liquid, with no need to drain! If you’re looking for more amazing Instant Pot dinners definitely try out this Instant Pot Jambalaya it’s out of this world!!
My family absolutely LOVED this macaroni and cheese. Well, I did too. The flavor was absolutely perfect and it was super creamy, just like a good mac should be.
I made this recipe in my 8 quart Instant Pot, and it will definitely work just fine if you have a 6 quart as well. It makes a whole lot by the way. Yay for leftovers!
There was enough for my family of four to eat this as a main dish with a side salad for supper. Then, my kids took some for lunch in their thermos to school the next day. Even after that we had enough left to use up as a side dish later in the week!
How to Make Instant Pot Mac and Cheese:
- For the best flavor, I recommend using chicken broth as your cooking liquid. I used low sodium chicken broth. If you don’t have low sodium, leave out the extra addition of salt, then salt as needed when serving.
- Use seasoning! I add salt, pepper, garlic powder, and hot sauce to this before cooking. Don’t worry, the hot sauce does not make this spicy at all. It just adds an additional layer of flavor that’s amazing.
- Use a combination of cheeses for the best taste. I use a mixture of sharp cheddar, mozzarella. When you add the cheese, make sure to stir continuously so that it all melts in really well and you aren’t left with clumps.
- Don’t use canned milk. I used regular 2% milk, and I recommend that or whole milk for best results. Most of the recipes I saw for Instant Pot mac and cheese used evaporated milk which I am not a fan of at all.
Enjoy!
~Nichole
Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 16 Ounces Uncooked Elbow Macaroni
- 4 Cups Chicken Broth
- 2 Tablespoons Butter
- 1 Teaspoon Hot Pepper Sauce
- 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 2 Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 1 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
- 1/2 Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
- 1/2 -1 Cup Milk
Instructions
- Add the uncooked macaroni, chicken broth, butter, hot sauce, garlic powder, pepper, and salt to the Instant Pot.
- Place the lid on the pot and set to sealing. Cook on manual function, high pressure for 5 minutes. Then, do a quick release.
- Add the milk, then the cheese to the pot in 3-4 handfuls, stirring in between each addition until smooth and creamy. Season as necessary to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Looking for other great Instant Pot recipes? Try these:
Made it tonight with the cheese I had on hand. Mozzarella, Marble and extra old Cheddar. Turned out perfect, creamy, flavour plus and so delicious! Highly recommend, will make again. (and again!)
My grandson says this is the best Mac and cheese he’s ever had, and that’s sayin something! Thanks for sharing ?
Made this tonight…easiest mac’n’ cheese I have ever made and it was a hit. My previous favorite recipe had a tsp of dry mustard & a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce in the cheese sauce so I added those to my milk before stirring in and reduced the amount of hot sauce a bit. Can’t believe how quick & easy this was to make! ??
My granddaughters are vegetarian. Has anyone tried this with vegetable broth
It works great with vegetable broth 🙂
Really great texture and flavor. Don’t skip the hot sauce! It adds flavor but does not make it spicy at all. I cut this recipe in half and it still makes a lot! I’m new to instant pot and this gets better every time. A new favorite!!
I am new to the IP, but this turned out great! I used 12 oz of small shell pasta and cut the chicken broth back to 2 and 1/2 cups (prior experience with my pot). I used extra sharp Vermont Cheddar and fresh Parmesan I think I need to cut the cook time to 3 minutes with small shell pasta. Thanks for the great recipe!
Found this recipe before Christmas and my family loves it. I started weight watchers and want to create this recipe to get a points value. I know it serves 8, but wondering how much a serving is. If you can answer that it would be great. Thanks!
I LOVED LOVED LOVED THIS!!!!! I don’t think I’ll ever bother with store bought mac and cheese again. I’m new to everything instant pot. This is a fantastic recipe and I thank you so much for it. I looked at the proportions in the recipe and it seemed almost like equal parts water and pasta(i was gambling lol because all I had was 2 1/2 c pasta. So I took a shot and used equal liquid. Cooked per instructions, and added approx amount of cheese I thought to use. This was super awesome.
I have tried to make stovetop homemade mac n cheese and found it stupidly labor intensive for the result i got. Not so with this recipe.
I can’t thank you enough for sharing this with us!!!! Definitely a keeper. 🙂 🙂 🙂
We really like this recipe but for some reason every time I’ve made it after the first time I have a lot of broth in the pot after the 5 minutes. How can i remedy this? Less broth or more time? Thank you!
Does the hot sauce make it spicy? Wondering if I need to omit it for my 4 year old..thanks!
No, it just adds flavor 🙂