Instant Pot Ground Beef and Pasta
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details.
So stinking easy and budget-friendly! The perfect ONE POT meal with a hearty meat sauce. Only 5 min in the Instant Pot!
Featured Comment
why i love this recipe
- One and done meal. Thanks to the magic of the Instant Pot, this pasta dinner comes together so easily with zero babysitting. Even the uncooked pasta cooks right in the pot with the rest of the ingredients, soaking up all the flavors as if it had been simmering for hours on end. This means less dishes, less clean up!
- Speedy budget-friendly comfort food. With its quick cook time and short ingredient list, this is truly the best kind of comfort food without breaking the bank, pleasing the entire family, even the little toddlers.
- Flexible recipe. This is an incredibly flexible recipe, using pasta you already have on hand, or throwing in any lingering greens and veggies (ex. carrots, broccoli, frozen peas and corn) for a heartier meal.
- Freezer-friendly. This freezes beautifully, thawing overnight and reheating over the stovetop for a lightening fast weeknight meal.
Ingredients
Ground beef
Lean ground beef (90%) is ideal here. Note: the fattier the beef, the beefier it will be!
Onion
Yellow, sweet or white onion is great here. Shallots can also be substituted.
Garlic
Garlic powder or garlic puree can also be used in a pinch.
Red wine
Use a dry red such as cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir or merlot. Red wine is a great way to deglaze the bottom of the Instant Pot, loosening up all the brown bits (where all the flavor is at!).
Marinara sauce
Since we’re doctoring up store-bought marinara sauce, be sure to use your favorite brand. Rao’s Roasted Garlic is always our go-to.
Beef stock
Beef stock is here to keep things happy and saucy. Always opt for unsalted or a lower-sodium variety.
Pasta
Campanelle pasta helps capture all the meaty saucy goodness in its curves and ruffled edges. Fusilli, cavatelli and gemelli are great options as well.
Parmesan
Finish your dish with a healthy dusting of freshly grated Parmesan. Freshly grated is always preferred, imparting the best flavors and melting capabilities for a smoother, velvety consistency.
Basil
Top with fresh basil or your favorite herbs such as thyme or rosemary.
tips and tricks for success
- Use your favorite meat. Italian sausage (sweet or spicy), ground beef, chicken or turkey will all work very well here.
- Choose a wine you will drink. A dry red wine (cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir or merlot) is great here – it does not have to be anything fancy or overpriced. Just something you don’t mind sipping on since you will have an open bottle.
- Use good-quality stock. The better quality your stock, the better your dish. Many brands love to pack in the salt so always opt for unsalted or a lower-sodium variety.
- Add in leafy greens. This is a great recipe to sneak in leafy greens for those picky eaters. Spinach, kale, collard greens, swiss chard, or arugula are all great options.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
what to serve with instant pot ground beef and pasta
Tools For This Recipe
6-qt Instant Pot®
Instant Pot Ground Beef and Pasta: Frequently Asked Questions
Not at all! Ground pork or ground turkey or even Italian sausage can be used in place of ground beef.
Additional beef stock can be used for red wine as a non-alcoholic substitute.
Fusilli, cavatelli and gemelli are great subs.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop.
Instant Pot Ground Beef and Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 small onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup dry red wine*
- 1 (25-ounce) jar marinara sauce
- 1 ¾ cups beef stock
- 8 ounces campanelle pasta
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- ¼ cup chopped fresh basil leaves
Equipment
Instructions
- Set a 6-qt Instant Pot® to the high saute setting. Heat olive oil; add ground beef and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the beef as it cooks; drain excess fat.
- Add onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir in wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Stir in marinara sauce, beef stock and pasta; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Select manual setting; adjust pressure to high, and set time for 5 minutes. When finished cooking, quick-release pressure according to manufacturer’s directions. Stir in Parmesan and basil.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
So good! I added red pepper flake and then cream at the very end! Fam loved it!
Another winner! This recipe saved the day at our house. It was quick, easy, and turned out delicious. Thanks so much for your recipes. They’ve made quarantined life so much easier!
This is by far the most amazing mac n cheese I have ever had in my life. I always used to make it in some other way, but now, I have definitely changed it. Thank you so much for sharing such an amazing recipe
So easy and delicious every time! I have made 3 times! Thank you!!
Made this tonight. Uses whole lb of hamburger 2 jars of Francesco Ranaldi marinara and used shell macaroni. No red wine. Only added onion and garlic as directed with salt and pepper. On my pot I used the chili/bean setting since I don’t have a manual button. It came out perfect and was delicious! Served with a garden salad and garlic bread. Will certainly make this again. Loved that it could all be done in one pot
This is a favorite recipe of my family’s! It is so easy to make and so good! We have an 8 qt IP and use the same recipe and have no issues. Sometimes I use a full box of pasta to have leftovers and add more sauce and it still comes out great! In fact, all of the Damn Delicious IP recipes we have tried are phenomenal!
My boyfriend and I are wanting to make this dish but are wondering if you need a instant pot? Or if you can make this on the stove top. Have a wonderful day.
It looks like the IP is only used in order to boil the sauce to cook the noodles, so I don’t see why you couldn’t make this on the stovetop! You would likely just cook until the noodles are al dente.
I’m so happy with this recipe and will experiment as others have suggested.
One issue I have is the burn notice, I get it everytime and find pasta stick to the bottom of the pot.
Could I avoid this by adding pasta as the final ingredient, but not stirring it in ? Basically, could I dump it on top of the sauce mixture, close the lid and pressure cook for 5 mins ?
I usually add the liquid then the pasta(unstirred) then cover the pasta with the sauce. Stir when done…
This is a good tip. I am new to IP and I can use all the help I can get. Thanks!
I add 1/2 cup of the liquid when scraping up any burned bits, then don’t stir again. Dump the jarred sauce on top, dump pasta, pour rest of liquid over the pasta and push any pieces sticking out, under the liquid… but do not stir.
Pop the lid on and cook.
It all comes together beautifully with a quick stir when you open it, without scorching the food. I learned the hard way, after burning a few times! Ugh.
Hope this helps someone!
It tasted good but was a little runny; not sure if I did something wrong or if that’s the way it was supposed to be.
What size pot did use? I have an 8 qt coming to me this week and I’m saving recipes but not sure if it makes a big difference for the size pot if it’s too big.
This is perfection. Kudos!! I used farfalle, and it was cooked perfectly al dente! I even had frozen ground beef, so I cooked that first on a trivet with one cup of the beef broth from the recipe for 20 min. Then when it was done I removed beef and juice and started with onion and garlic and then added back beef and broke it up. Then added wine and the leftover broth juice and the remaining needed for the recipe. Then followed the remaining instructions as written. My family LOVED IT!
8 oz of pasta hardly seemed enough for 25 oz of sauce did I added 3-5 more. I used rotini
This dish was excellent and so easy!
I just made this recipe tonight. My hubby is working 12 hour days, 6 day’s a week during this horrific pandemic and I have been so alone and isolated!! Today I decided to make this recipe that I had all the ingredients for, and, WOW, my hubby now has something to look forward to after working so many hours!! It is out of this world delicious and so very easy!! Our beautiful daughter bought us this Instapot for Christmas this year, and this is the first time I have used it. I am so impressed with how easy it is to use and the difference in the flavor level so fast!! Thank u so much for posting this recipe!! I feel like it is what pushed me forward in this difficult time!!!
I love all your recipes and would love to make the beef and pasta recipe but I do not have and Instant Pot.Can make this dish in a regular pot? Please advise.
I absolutley love this recipe! It is so delicious and easy. I double
the amount of pasta and add about 1/4 more stock. Its so tasty with RAO’s tomato basil sauce. I highly recommend!
I’m going to double the pasta also…. do you use ¹/4 more of the total amt of stock (a little less than 1/2 cup) or 1/4 cup? Thank you!
Enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing
I made this dish last night and have to say that it was easy and absolutely delicious. I did not have wine but added a bit more tomato and beef stock. I’m sure it is even tastier with the wine added.
Making this today. I have a 6-quart. Can I double the amount of meat?
Looks great! What do you think cook time would be if using chickpea pasta?
The rule of thumb for cooking pasta in the Instant Pot is to cook it for half as long as the package instructions say, so you can try that.
I made this exactly as written, except I used 1/2 pound of meat instead of a pound. It came out beautifully. When I first took the lid off, it was a little too soupy, but I just sauteed it for a minute or two and the sauce thickened into a texture that coated the pasta well. The pasta was cooked al dente. It tasted great, but that also depends on the type of sauce you use. I use Victoria brand marinara, which is made with all real ingredients. No tomato paste or concentrate. I will definitely be making this again.
Divine!! It’s delicious and quick!!