Instant Pot Cheeseburger Mac and Cheese
by Chungah
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Homemade hamburger helper! Quick, easy, budget-friendly, and tastes SO much better than the boxed mix. A family (and childhood) favorite!
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Reasons to make cheeseburger mac and cheese in the Instant Pot
- Homemade hamburger helper. This tastes like that childhood favorite, made with better flavor and fresh ingredients. We’re talking real cheese, less preservatives, and less sodium.
- One pot convenience. With the help of the Instant Pot®, everything comes together in a single pot, even the uncooked pasta, making clean up an absolute breeze.
- Perfect for busy weeknights. With its fast cook time and hands-off cooking, this is one of the most handy recipes to have in your back pocket for those hectic weeknights. Not to mention, an instant hit for both kids and grown ups!
- Budget-friendly. This dinner comes together very economically using affordable pantry staples.
key ingredients for instant pot cheeseburger mac and cheese
Beef
80/20 ground beef is best, providing the most flavor and juiciness. For leaner options, opt for 90/10 ground beef, ground chicken or ground turkey.
Onion, bell pepper and garlic
For flavor boost! This is always our go-to during those busy nights, cutting down prep time even more.
Seasonings
We’re calling in pantry staples here – paprika, oregano, salt and pepper.
Beef stock and tomato sauce
These are the liquids to keep everyone happy and saucy for all the rich, deep flavors.
Pasta
Elbow macaroni is a classic, quintessential choice, trapping in all the sauce with every bite.
Cheese
Opt for freshly grated cheese for the best taste and texture, melting more smoothly for that dreamy, silky, creamy-cheesy goodness.
Heavy cream
Add your finishing touches with heavy cream, making the sauce even more rich, velvety, and creamy.
tips and tricks for success
- Use your favorite meat. Ground beef, chicken or turkey will all work very well here.
- Freshly grated cheese goes a long way. Pre-packaged shredded cheese contains anti-caking agents that can lead to gritty and grainy mac and cheese.
- Use melty cheese. Sharp and medium cheddar cheese are classic choices for homemade hamburger helper, but other melty cheeses can also be used such as Colby Jack, Monterey Jack, American Cheese, or Pepper Jack.
- Sneak in some veggies. This is a great recipe to sneak in some extra nutrition and veggies for those picky eaters including leafy greens such as spinach, kale, collard greens, swiss chard, or arugula.
- Add the cream slowly. Always add the heavy cream at the very end, pouring very slowly to prevent curdling.
what to serve with cheeseburger mac and cheese
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes
- Easy Garlic Parmesan Knots
- Garlic Parmesan Roasted Broccoli
- Italian Chopped Salad
- Best Chicken Caesar Salad with Homemade Croutons
Tools For This Recipe
6-qt Instant Pot®
Instant Pot Cheeseburger Mac and Cheese: Frequently Asked Questions
Not at all! Ground chicken or ground turkey can be used instead of ground beef.
Mushrooms, peas, carrots, broccoli, zucchini or leafy greens (ex. spinach) are all great additions.
Heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) has one of the highest fat contents with about 36-40% fat. Half and half or whole milk are suitable substitutes, but will yield a lighter result.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Absolutely! We have a recipe for that here.
Instant Pot Cheeseburger Mac and Cheese
Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- ½ medium sweet onion, diced
- ½ green bell pepper, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons paprika
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 3 cups beef stock
- 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 12 ounces elbow macaroni
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 ½ cups shredded medium cheddar cheese
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
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 bell pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in garlic, paprika and oregano until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir in beef stock, tomato sauce 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 cheese and heavy cream until cheese has melted, about 1-2 minutes; stir in parsley.
- Serve immediately.
Equipment
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Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Cabot Creamery. As always, I only partner with brands that I love and truly believe in, allowing me to create more quick and easy recipes to get us through the week without breaking the bank. All opinions expressed are my own.
This was EXCELLENT.
Hi! Have made lots of your recipes and my family loves them! If I was going to double this and use an 8qt Instant Pot- would the instructions stay the same? Thanks!!
very easy and very good. made exactly as recipe said and it came out perfect. Except I used colby jack and cheddar cheese.
If I want pasta al dente what would the cooking time be?
Is this supposed to look liquidy until the pasta sits a few minutes and has a chance to absorb more liquid?
I made it exactly as described above, and after opening the pot it is extremely soupy looking…??
I had the same thing happen, I’ll use half the broth next time
What I find to work well is to mix for a couple minutes after mixture has had the chance to cool some. The liquid absorbs back into the sauce and the sauce fills the inside of the noodles after some stirring (sort of how boxed mac looks very soupy until it mixes and sets). I actually used more broth than was called for, and when I was finished stirring and served, it set up so nicely I served it on a dinner place and the sauce did not run at all.
Yes, it’s a bit liquid..let it sit after adding cheese and cream.
Oh my! This was delicious. My husband loved it and deemed it a keeper. We have loved all your recipes I have tried so far… Bang Bang Shrimp Pasta, beef stew, blueberry vanilla muffins, etc. The only change I made was substituting penne for the macaroni since that’s what I had. I added one minute to cook time and it was perfect.
I’ve looked for Cabot mild Cheddar cheese, they do not sell it in our area (southern CA). Do you recommend another brand or just use any mild cheddar cheese?
You can use any mild cheddar variety, Mary. 🙂
It would be great if you included your macaroni al dente time in the recipe as a reference point for pasta we are using at home. For example, I have macaroni at home that ranges from 6 min to 13 min depending on the brand. I used a 9 min al dente for this recipe and cooked for 4 minutes with a quick release. The pasta was overcooked just slightly, but the recipe was still delicious. I will be making this again with the same pasta and will try for 2 minutes. Thanks for sharing a quick and simple weeknight meal!
I used trader joe’s macaroni, cook time 6 minutes. I cooked for 3 and the pasta was perfectly cooked but my dish was soupy?
Made this last night and it was perfect for a pregame quick and hearty meal for teens. I used what I had on hand: .8 lb meat, and halved all other ingredients. I didn’t have a can of sauce, so used part of a jar of Trader Joe’s pizza sauce. Despite this, it was really good! Not something I’d serve to company, but we’ll eat it a lot this winter. Thank you!
This is so delicious that I wish I had doubled it. All the ingredients are in perfect proportions!
This recipe looks like a keeper. The only issue I have with your site and others is using odd amounts of ingredients. Pasta comes in full pound packages, so why would you print this using 12 oz instead of 8 or 16 oz?
Hi Ken! This is a great recipe indeed and we hope you can give it a try! 🙂
To answer your question, we work very hard to develop and thoroughly test these recipes and they are created in relation to all other ingredients so it is very common that at least one of the ingredients does not turn out to be an even amount.
I ran into that too I wound up buying a kitchen scale it makes things so much easier in terms of measuring
Gluten free pastas come in 12oz packages, and are necessary for my Celiac fam, so I’m loving this! Generally it’s easy to eyeball other quantities, though!
I would love to make this but I don’t have an instant pot-just a crock pot. I have no room for another appliance. Is it possible that you could show the recipe and translate it into how to make it in a crock pot? It would be most appreciated!
Hi Donna! We have a Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese recipe that you could use as a reference for this recipe. But as always, please use your best judgment when making substitutions and modifications. Hope that helps!