Instant Pot Mac and Cheese

This Instant Pot Mac and Cheese recipe is cozy and cheesy: the ultimate comfort food! It’s quick and easy to make in a pressure cooker.

There’s nothing more comforting than a good bowl of macaroni and cheese. Have you ever tried it in your pressure cooker? It turns out that Instant Pot Mac and Cheese provides layer upon layer of comfort. The way the Instant Pot cooks noodles makes them soft and pliable, giving it a sort of family feel. It’s not al dente, but it almost tastes like a heightened version of boxed macaroni and cheese. The big selling point here? The method is very convenient: throw the ingredients into the pan and press Go! Nothing better than that. Here are all the intimate secrets of this method.

Ingredients for this Instant Pot Mac and Cheese recipe

This Instant Pot Mac and Cheese recipe Strength even better easier than cooking out of the box. (Maybe?) You only need a few ingredients, and if you’re stocking up on cheese and pasta, they might already be in your pantry. Here’s what you need:

• Short pasta: Of course you can use macaroni. But our favorite pasta shapes for macaroni and cheese are all other types of short pasta: clams, penne, fusilli, loops, orecchiette, and more. See below!
• Strong Cheddar Cheese: Make sure it hasn’t aged
• Monterey Jack Cheese
• milk
• onion powder
• garlic powder
• Italian flavored breadcrumbs (Optional)

Pasta cooks on low, not al dente in an Instant Pot

Here we are picky about cooking our pasta perfectly al dente. But here’s what you should know about macaroni and cheese in the Instant Pot:

• Cooking pasta in the Instant Pot results in a soft, not al dente consistency. But here’s the thing: it’s still delicious! Cooking pasta with a softer texture helps soak up sauces and has a more comforting, homely vibe. Think of it as a completely different way to cook up a pot of pasta!
• Leftover Instant Pot Mac and Cheese also works. Even if the noodles are soft, leftovers work too! Add some milk and warm it up in a pan and it’s almost like new.

How to Make Instant Pot Mac and Cheese: Basic Steps

There’s barely 5 minutes of hands-on time here! It takes about 25 minutes, but most of this Instant Pot Mac and Cheese recipe is self-serve. This makes it ideal for a quick weeknight dinner or to make up for the kids or as an accompaniment to a stunning main course. Here are the basic steps for this recipe:

• Pressure cook the noodles for 4 minutes. Keep in mind that there is approximately a 10-minute “warm-up” time before the Instant Pot reaches pressure. This part takes about 15 minutes in total.
• Fast release! If you’re an Instant Pot pro, you know: quick-release recipes are the best! That means you don’t have to wait for a natural release.
• Switch to slow cooker and stir in milk and cheese. Stir until they form a creamy sauce, just a minute or two.

Optional breadcrumbs!

If you’re a macaroni and cheese purist, there’s something so satisfying about topping this gooey, cheesy mess with crunchy breadcrumbs. The contrasting texture is extremely satisfying. But of course that is not necessary! We like to use seasoned Italian breadcrumbs because it adds a little herbal nuance. They’re easy to find at the store, or you can make your own breadcrumbs and add Italian seasonings.

Best Pasta for Macaroni and Cheese in the Instant Pot

You can use macaroni for Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese…but what’s the fun in that? In fact, our favorite pasta for this comfort food is everything But Macaroni. We like to use a unique pasta shape to keep things interesting. Cases are very popular here: and while they’re not unexpected, they have something that’s even more intimate than the typical Mac. Here are our favorite varieties of short pasta for macaroni and cheese, in order of preference:

1. Conchiglie (shellfish): what we used here
2. Corkscrew: Corkscrew Shapes
3. Orecchiette: ear shapes
4. Lilies (bells): lily shapes
5. Penne: long thin tubes with diagonal ends
6. Twins: twisted tube shapes
7. Rigatoni: thicker long tubes

Sides to serve with Instant Pot Mac and Cheese

If the idea of ​​using your Instant Pot for macaroni and cheese isn’t for cooking: let’s stay on topic! There are many ideas for adding nutrients and fiber to round out this pasta in a meal. Here are some no-cook side dishes to accompany:

1. Spinach salad: This spinach and apple salad is packed with healthy ingredients and topped with a tangy vinaigrette.
2. Vegetables and ranches: Keep it simple with ranch dip and carrot sticks. Perfect for kids (and adults, really).
3. Coleslaw: Try this best coleslaw with a flavorful and creamy dressing.
4. Celery salad: This apple and celery salad is surprisingly refreshing and makes a great counterpoint to pasta.
5. citrus salad: This easy citrus salad is gorgeous, with great color and a citrus zest.

More Instant Pot Pasta Recipes

Want to keep cooking pasta in your pressure cooker? Here are a few other ideas to try alongside this Instant Pot Mac and Cheese recipe:

A note on pressure cookers

All brands of pressure cookers are different! Here’s the brand we use: the Instant Pot 6 Quart Programmable Pressure Cooker. We also have 2 Instant Pot liners and use one for savory recipes and one for sweet recipes. This recipe is adapted for a 6 liter pressure cooker. Also, we cannot speak about the use of other brands and types of pressure cookers for this recipe. Use them at your own risk!

This Instant Pot Mac and Cheese recipe is…

Vegetarian.