Instant Pot Spaghetti – The easiest spaghetti recipe ever!  A quick recipe for spaghetti made right in the instant pot.  Get a family favorite meal on the table even faster on busy nights!

instant pot spaghetti

Ok, you guys.  I resisted as long as I could.

It was definitely time for me to get myself an Instant Pot, and see what all the fuss is about!

If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll already know I bought one.

You may have been waiting and wondering what kind of dinner concoction was going to come out first.

Well, spaghetti it is!

It might SEEM boring, and unoriginal, but….c’mon, spaghetti is a total crowd pleasing, family favorite, classic.

Why not start there?

I was sitting around reading the manual for said Instant Pot and contemplating what to try first, when my son suggested spaghetti.

He loves spaghetti.  Could eat it for breakfast, brunch, lunch, snack, and dinner.  Not kidding.  If you’re craving more pasta, try out our Stuffed Shells too!

instant pot spaghetti

Do any of you have an Instant Pot already?  Thinking about getting one?  I’d love to hear what you think!

For now, here are my first impressions.

Before I even used the thing my initial reaction was that this thing is BIG.  Way bigger than my crockpot, and much heavier.

I got the 8 quart, which I’m happy about.  Just saying, if you’re going to get one, make sure you have the room for it!

Definitely read the manual.  If you don’t, you’ll probably feel stressed out and confused at all of the different buttons and parts.

My impression during and after making the spaghetti (which I did a few times to make sure cooking time would be accurate for you).

It was strange at first not being able to peek in the top like you can with a slow cooker.  Ummmm, is this thing on?

But, you can definitely hear that there is some boiling going on inside.

It really did cook the spaghetti just perfectly!

The noodles weren’t “gummy” being cooked all together with the meat/sauce/water, which was something I was worried about.

I may actually like spaghetti cooked in the Instant Pot now, more than the typical boiling the noodles and putting it all together after!

instant pot spaghetti

My last but not least favorite thing is that this is a true one pot recipe.  Spaghetti is always easy to make, but it also usually requires a pan for the meat, a pot for noodles, a pot for sauce, and a colander for draining.

One pot, and no colander needed here.

The meat cooks (I get super lean meat so I don’t even need to drain grease) then you toss in your pasta, sauce, water, and seasonings.

Dinner served in about 8 minutes!

How cool is that?!

Enjoy! Check out our video for this recipe below!

~Nichole

 

Make sure you follow along with us on Facebook where we always share the tastiest recipes!

 

4.94 from 837 votes

Instant Pot Spaghetti

Instant Pot Spaghetti - The easiest spaghetti recipe ever!  A quick recipe for spaghetti made right in the instant pot.  Get a family favorite meal on the table even faster on busy nights!
Prep 5 minutes
Cook 10 minutes
Total 15 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • Set the Instant Pot to saute' and add the ground beef.  Add the salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and Italian seasonings.  Cook the meat and seasonings, breaking the meat up until it's completely browned.  Turn the Instant Pot off. Drain any excess grease from meat if necessary.
  • Break the spaghetti in half and place on top of meat in the Instant Pot.  Pour over the spaghetti sauce, diced tomato, and water.  Push the spaghetti down with a spoon if necessary to make sure it is completely covered in liquid.  
  • Seal the instant pot and set it to manual mode, high pressure, 8 minutes cooking time.  When the time is up, use manual quick release to open the Instant Pot.  Stir the spaghetti well.  Serve immediately.

Notes

NOTE:  This spaghetti may appear to be a little liquidy right after cooking.  Be sure to stir well to incorporate all of the liquid into the noodles before serving.
NOTE:  Some people have had an issue with their noodles "clumping" together.  Try crisscrossing the noodles when you add them to the instant pot, instead of adding them in one big chunk. Some clumping is normal, simply use a fork to pull any noodles apart that have stuck together. 
NOTE:  This spaghetti will have as much flavor as you put into it!  Make sure that you add extra seasoning to taste and also use a flavorful spaghetti sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 385kcal, Carbohydrates: 56g, Protein: 26g, Fat: 4g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 46mg, Sodium: 63mg, Potassium: 430mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 2g, Calcium: 34mg, Iron: 2.9mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Like this? Rate & review this recipe below!

Note:  I use the 8 quart Instant Pot which you can find by clicking the link (affiliate) below.

**This post may contain affiliate links, all opinions stated here are my own**


Hey! Nice to meet you! I'm Nichole!

Welcome to The Salty Marshmallow! I'm a mom, animal lover, photographer, & kitchen mess-maker. Here you will find the result of my decades-long passion for chasing the best flavors in the kitchen, all meant to be cooked by regular people with busy lives just like you and me.

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980 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Quick, easy, perfection in a pot. Was craving spaghetti but needed it to cook itself today. Used elbow macaroni as that’s what I had and followed the advice of another comment to cook for 10 min. Pasta turned out perfect texture, and the amount of water (once stirred at the end) is exactly the right amount. Will definitely be making this again!

  2. 5 stars
    Love this! We’ve made it a few times now. The flavor is great since the noodles are cooked in the sauce. When people cook noodles with no salt then throw sauce on them, it’s not good. This is the opposite! Like Nichole says, it has as much flavor as you add to it.
    The only thing I would change is that this recipe under-cooks normal spaghetti noodles just a tad. I add 1 more minute for a 9-min cook time.
    Also, don’t worry too much about the noodles being under the water when you close the lid. Fearing clumpage and crunchy noodles I actually popped the lid open after 5 mins the first time I cooked this to check the noodle. They were all submerged and no big deal. Just spread them out and spiral them around. It all works out!

    We have used ground turkey, and also swapped out normal spaghetti with thin spaghetti. The 8-min recipe works well as-is for the thin spaghetti.

    Thank you, Nichole! You have so many great instant-pot recipes. I’ve found myself here looking up new stuff far more than I’d ever imagine.

  3. 5 stars
    With over 700 comments, its not like she needs mine, but how good, how easy and how thankful I am for the recipe demands it.
    Easy 5 star rating. It’s easy. It’s delicious. It’s a perfect last minute staple – and for a planned elegant Italian dinner.

    I’ve been using it for several years.
    Thank you for sharing it!

  4. 5 stars
    I have an instant pot & an old Breville Fast & Slow. I used the 6 qt Breville. I used a can of S&W Italian style stewed tomatoes. I used 2 big cloves of garlic cut in small chunks. Used oregano & Basil dried herbs for the Italian herbs. Barrilla Angel Hair spaghetti. Followed the recipe. High pressure 4 minutes as someone suggested. After quick releasing, I added microwaved mushrooms when I stirred it. My son asked me to add fresh mozzarella & pushed chunks into the spaghetti. It was really.good. Think spaghetti the next day. You know how good that is. One pot after a long day at work. Loved it.

  5. 5 stars
    Overdue commenting. I’ve used this recipe regularly in the past couple of years and love it. I’ve often used ground lamb. Sometimes ground bison and ground turkey. Usually use whole wheat pasta. Have used many pasta types. My additions: I put some carrots and celery in my mini food processor and add it after the meat has browned a bit. Ok liberal with all the spices except salt. I usually add thyme fresh or dry as well. It’s just my husband and I and I use 1/2 the pasta and a little less water. The results are amazing. The one caution is angel hair pasta. That’s the only time it came out mushy. Someone commented they only cooked for 4 minutes with angel hair pasta and if I use it again will reduce cook time. I’ve never increased cook time with whole wheat pasta. It will seem watery at the end but that final stir makes all the difference. Thank you for this simple versatile recipe!

  6. Would love to try this recipe! I’m wondering if you can use penne noodles instead? My kids like penne better than spaghetti noodles. If yes, how much would I cook it for? Thank you!

    1. Yup! I’ve used small shells and I have used thin spaghetti. My kids don’t like the thickness of the regular spaghetti and neither does my husband 😂

  7. 5 stars
    Just made this. I used a pound of wheat pasta. Filled the pasta sauce with 1/2 red wine and 1/2 beef broth. Used Italian pork sausage, added mushrooms and all the spices with double Italian spice. Turned out great! Next time I would really like to use rice noodles instead, but I know the timing would be different. Can you tell me how different?