Braised Beef Cheeks Ingredients
For this recipe, we used 4 large beef cheeks , which yielded enough meat and sauce to have three meals: three servings of meat with mashed potatoes and green beans, two servings of braised beef tacos, and three servings of pasta with beef cheek ragu . You can freeze cooked beef cheeks in portions if you dont want to use them all right away.
The sauce comes together with classic stew ingredients of onions, celery and carrots, garlic, herbs, red wine, tomato sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Plus, some water and thats about it.
Dump And Start One Pot Spaghetti:
Weve developed this spaghetti recipe with an option for those who want the quickest & easiest dump-it-all-in meal. You can get this spaghetti meal on the table in 30 minutes!
*Note: Simply remember to break the seasoned ground beef into smaller chunks, then layer the ground beef, onions, garlic, dried herbs at the bottom of the pot before pressure cooking.
How To Make Gluten
If you need to make gluten-free spaghetti, I recommend cooking the pasta in the Instant Pot without the sauce. Ive tested this method using gluten-free noodles, and the resulting one-pot pasta is way too thick and gluey in texture for my taste.
However, if you want to use the Instant Pot to cook your spaghetti noodles, its still helpful to make the process totally hands-off. Simply cook the pasta and water together using the timing I mentioned above, then drain and rinse the noodles under cold running water to remove the starch.
You can add the rinsed-off noodles back to the Instant Pot bowl and stir in the sauce, and if you need to heat it up further, use the Sauté function on your machine. If youd like to use ground turkey or beef, sauté it in the pot before adding in the sauce and cooked pasta.
Recommended Reading: How To Steam Kale In Instant Pot
The Instant Pot Pasta Formula
To cook any type of pasta perfectly in the Instant Pot :
But theres no need to do all that math. Just use the chart below:
**0 is a real setting on the Instant Pot / pressure cooker. For small pasta shapes with a short recommended cook time, set the timer to zero minutes. The pressure cooker will fully pressurize but wont hold for any amount of time.
Instant Pot Spaghetti Delivers A Saucy Dose Of Nostalgia With Little Hands
This post has been updated.
My husband had just finished roasting summer squash from our garden. As he spooned the squash into a storage dish, the alarms blared: carbon monoxide, a.k.a. the silent killer.
Before he had a chance to text me I was traveling he called 911, evacuated the house and waited for the firefighters to show up. If youve ever been in this situation, you know the drill, which involves opening doors and windows, blowing a big industrial fan and using CO detectors more sensitive than the alarms. Soon enough, the verdict was in, and the guilty party was no surprise our aging gas stove.
How would I live without it? There would be salads galore, of course, and I still have tomatoes and herbs coming out of the garden to go in them. But just as the nights are taking on a chill, I wouldnt be able to undertake my favorite fall cooking techniques: roasting and broiling. And my husband, whose cooking is typically limited to scrambling some eggs for his breakfast, couldnt even do that.
Takeout has become more frequent. Beyond that, I cycled through other options and combinations thereof: the microwave, an outdoor charcoal grill, even a portable induction burner I had previously used solely for cooking demos and videos. And then I realized that I was postponing the inevitable, and I started turning to my Instant Pot.
Also Check: What To Do If Your Instant Pot Says Burn
Is This Spaghetti Noodle Recipe Keto Friendly
Unfortunately, because youll be using traditional pasta noodles to make this spaghetti, this recipe is definitely not keto friendly .
Theres no need to fret though as you can still definitely make ridiculously good keto friendly spaghetti with your instant pot. Youll just need to get a little bit creative with your ingredient choices.
One of the most common ways to make keto style spaghetti is to simply swap out the spaghetti noodles for spiralized veggie noodles. The two most popular choices for low carb veggie spaghetti are typically either squash or zucchini.
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 or Less 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 eyeball¾ of a box.I don’t recommend using a full box of spaghetti 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?My Spaghetti Noodles Aren’t Cooked Enough!How Much Water Should I Add?
Also Check: How To Delay Start Instant Pot
Spaghetti In Instant Pot
If youre new to using this high pressure pot, this is the first recipe you should make. If you follow the directions below youll never make it on the stovetop again.
Lets start with a few basic tips:
- Make sure to Bookmark our InstaPot recipes page. We add new ones each week!
For reference, this is the pressure cooker I have and use for all recipe creations.
With everything cooked in one pot it came out perfectly in just 10 minutes AND its been on the most popular Instant Pot recipes TWO years in a row!
You could make it vegetarian without meat, as is stated in the recipe card below, or cook porcupine meatballs in Instant Pot separately. Then serve them together and enjoy with parmesan cheese.
So yummy right??!! Its truly a grab your Instant Pot and set, then GO type of recipe.
My Spaghetti Keeps Sticking To The Side Of My Instant Pot
The easiest way to avoid this is to make sure that you break your spaghetti noodles in half before adding them into the instant pot , while also making sure to take a bit of extra time to press your noodles down into the water before sealing your instant pot.
Youre also going to want to resist the urge to give your spaghetti a stir before you cook the noodles as well. This also applies if youre planning on cooking a spaghetti sauce to go along with the noodles. Youll want to fully cook the sauce first, and then add in your pasta noodles afterwards, without stirring them.
Don’t Miss: Which Instant Pot Has The Recall
How To Make Pasta In The Instant Pot
Regardless of the type of pasta, the methodology is the same. To make 8 ounces of pasta you will need 1 cup of broth and 1 tablespoon of butter. I use water with Better than Bouillon rather than broth, but the same methodology is in place for cooking the pasta.
For the cooking time for the pasta, you cut the time in half in the cooking directions and subtract one minute. So, for pasta whose directions say 9-11 minutes, I cut 10 minutes in half and subtract one minute. It will cook for 4 minutes on high pressure.Now, the pasta like this thin spaghetti is ready for whatever you are making. I tend to make macaroni and cheese or cheesy spaghetti. If you want to make a cheesy spaghetti, go ahead and add milk or cream, parmesan, and mozzarella cheese to the Instant Pot Pasta.
Mix the cheese and cream into the pasta and you are ready to serve. I serve this pasta with a great grilled chicken, baked brown sugar and garlic chicken or even these pan-fried pork chops. The cheesy spaghetti pasta is a great side dish that my kids literally could eat their weight in.
I totally recommend using an Instant Pot Ultra. It has more settings and has been my preferred Instant Pot between the Ultra and Duo.
How To Cook Pasta In An Instant Pot
This article was co-authored by our trained team of editors and researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness. wikiHow’s Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards.There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 57,688 times.Learn more…
Everybody loves pasta, but nobody loves having to use half the pots and pans in the kitchen to get it ready. With an Instant Pot, all you need is a single piece of cookware and about 10 minutes. Just throw your pasta and sauce of choice into the Instant Pot, along with 3½-4 cups of water. Secure the lid and set the manual timer to 4-8 minutes. Once the pot beeps, release the pressure valve and give everything a good stir. Youll have dinner on the table in less time than it takes to boil a pot of water!
Recommended Reading: Tamales In Instant Pot
What Are Beef Cheeks
Beef cheeks are often overlooked but they are an incredibly flavorful and rich cut of meat that can be super tender when slow-cooked or pressure cooked. This cut is taken from the cheek of the animal and each cheek piece weighs around 12 ounces or 300-400 grams. Being a hard-working muscle, the beef cheek is dense and a little sinewy and requires a long cooking time to break down the fibres and melt the connective tissue. Beef cheeks are very nutritious and perfect for pressure cooking!
Why You Will Love Making Pasta In The Electric Pressure Cooker
- Your days of babysitting pasta are OVER. Add your ingredients, push some buttons, do some yoga
- NO MORE STARCHY WATER FOAMING OVER ONTO YOUR STOVETOP that’s the golden reason right there
- With this magical formula, you are almost guaranteed perfectly cooked pasta every time. As always, times may vary slightly depending on the brand, model, and altitude
- So easy your kid can do it. That’s worth the cost of an Instant Pot right there
Also Check: Why Does My Instant Pot Say Food Burn
Adjusting For Softer Or Firmer Pasta
I recommend starting with the formula above for the first time you make pasta in your Instant Pot. Then the next time, if you want a bit more bite, subtract a minute from the cook time. If you want it softer, add a minute until you get your perfect texture.
After a few times making pasta, youll know the perfect timing to cook your brand of pasta to your preferred taste.
If Instant Pot Spaghetti Is Your Thing Check These Out
As I mentioned above, this particular recipe is without a doubt one of the easiest ways I know of to quickly make spaghetti noodles with an instant pot. However, if youre more interested in a more comprehensive spaghetti meal recipe, complete with meat, sauce, and all of those other bells and whistles, weve got you covered there as well. Check out these two other instant pot spaghetti recipes from some of my favorite food blogs:
Recommended Reading: Are Instant Pot Lids Dishwasher Safe
How To Determine Cook Time For Instant Pot Pasta
To determine the best cook time, check the suggested package cook time. Take the lowest package time, divide it in half and subtract two minutes. Here are some examples so you can feel confident in choosing the best time.
- The Whole Wheat Spiral Pasta here says to cook for 7-9 minutes. Take the lowest time , decrease it to 6 to get an even number, divide in half and subtract 2 minutes = 1 minute cooking time
- The Brown Rice Macaroni Pasta here calls for 15-16 minutes. Take the lowest time , decrease it to 14 to get an even number, divide in half and subtract 2 minutes = 5 minutes cooking time
- The Whole Grain Penne pasta here has a cook time of 10-12 minutes. Take the lowest time , divide in half and subtract 2 minutes = 3 minutes cooking time
Whole Wheat / Alternative Pasta
There is no need to make any adjustment to the formula if using whole wheat or alternative pasta. Because this method of cooking pasta is based on the recommended cook time on the package, any type of pasta can be cooked this way.
We tested this method with several varieties of whole wheat pasta and with several varieties of alternative pasta .
Don’t Miss: Can You Put The Instant Pot Lid In The Dishwasher
Beef Cheeks Ragu Pasta
Once cooked, use a potato masher or knife and fork to shred the meat to turn this dish into a rich ragu sauce. Serve over cooked pasta of any kind but particularly good with pappardelle, tagliatelle or fettuccine and grated Parmesan cheese on top.
Stretch it out: You can enjoy half of the beef cheeks and the sauce with potatoes and veggies and reserve some for the ragu sauce if you need to stretch out the meat, you can always add more tomato sauce when making the pasta ragu.
Image by Sarah Tuck for Dish.co
How To Reduce Pasta Foam
I’ve learned some great tips and tricks from all of you in the comments below, here is a summary of the knowledge I’ve gathered over time:
- Add Fat
- Oil or butter will reduce foaming. I add about 1 tablespoon per 8 ounces of pasta
Also Check: Instant Pot Duo Baked Potatoes
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
- 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.
Instant Pot Firefighters Spaghetti
I made my own version of a recipe called firefighters chicken spaghetti that I found on Taste of Home. The original author says, Im always in the kitchen making dishes for my family, neighbors or the local fire department to try. My husband is a firefighter in our town, and this chicken spaghetti recipe is a favorite there. The original recipe requires boiling pasta on the stovetop, it uses pre-cooked chicken, calls for cream of chicken and mushroom soup and is baked in the oven. My version requires one pot, your Instant Pot. You can use pre-cooked or uncooked chicken. And I make my own creamy sauce with sour cream, seasonings and cream. Im sure both versions are great! But I guess it just depends on what you like and how you like to cook. I prefer the Instant Pot for easy clean up and easy hands off cooking.
Recommended Reading: What To Do If Your Instant Pot Says Burn
