Talk about a great dish! This Instant Pot Fettuccine Bolognese is delicious, and it’s done in a fraction of the time it would take to make the meat sauce the old way. Instant Pot Bolognese will quickly become one of your favorite dinners to whip up in under 40 minutes.
The Instant Pot not only speeds up the cooking time, but it really infuses the flavors together, and it turns out just wonderful. Serve this up with some crusty bread, and you’ve got a great meal everyone will love. Keep this one in your favorites.
Your family is going to fall in love with the flavors so you may as well start planning to make this one again quick! We like to use the same recipe to make Homemade Lean Cuisines for quick and easy freezer lunches on the go and also using leftovers to make Frozen Pasta Meal Packs to use up the sauce or bigger noodles.
🍲 Why Make This Recipe
- Homemade
- Rich flavor
- Slow simmered flavor
- Cooks in a fraction of the time as traditional recipe
- Easy to make
- Stores well
- Reheats nicely
🍴 Ingredients
- Ground Sirloin
- Butter
- Tomato Sauce
- Stewed Tomatoes
🔥How To Make
The incredible flavors in this recipe are out of this world. The best part is you don’t have to spend the day in the kitchen preparing it but it’s going to taste like you did.
Step One: Turn on your Instant Pot to the SAUTE setting and melt the butter. Add the chopped sweet onion and cook until it’s golden brown and caramelized.
Step Two: Add the ground sirloin to the pressure cooker and brown. Make sure that there is no pink left in the ground sirloin.
It’s very important to make sure the sirloin is cooked well and done to ensure it’s safe to eat.
Step Three: After the sirloin is browned, turn off the saute. Pour in the tomato sauce, minced garlic, stewed tomatoes, tomato paste, water, seasonings, and brown sugar.
Combine until everything is mixed well. Add the fettuccine noodles.
Note: It’s essential to make sure that the fettuccini is completely covered, and none of it is sticking out above the sauce. Otherwise, it will not cook. You may need to break it into pieces or add up to ½ cup of water to ensure it’s covered.
Step Four: Add the lid and make sure the pressure valve is on the SEALED POSITION. Turn it onto manual for eight minutes. After it cooks, do a QUICK RELEASE to remove the pressure.
After the pressure has been released, take the lid off and give it a stir. Taste the sauce and see if it is how you like it. Add more seasonings or salt and pepper to meet your needs.
Step Five: Add to a bowl or plate and serve with a sprinkle of fresh parmesan or parsley. Serve with your favorite bread or garden salad.
Parsley is a wonderful addition to this dish but if you happen to run out, there are substitute options! Check the list before heading back to the store.
🍝 Meal Prep Instructions
There are so many ways to meal prep and for this recipe we have two options. Make sure to not skip Meal Prep 101 if haven’t started embracing this time saving and stress free option.
Option One: Cut the veggies and cook the sirloin early. Put them into containers to store in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook later in the week.
Option Two: Prepare the dish as directed. Then place it all in a large container or add it to individual serving sized containers.
This makes lovely leftovers (think weekday lunches!) and an easy meal prep option. It will last up to four days in the fridge.
When you are ready to serve, simply warm it up in the microwave until it’s hot. It will heat up pretty quickly, so stir it often and keep checking it. It’s important to cover it with a paper towel, so you don’t get food sprayed all over the microwave.
You can also warm it up in a skillet too. It’s a fast way to do it, but you should add a little bit of water if it seems dried out at all. This will keep it saucy and tasty. Warm it up low and slow. When it’s hot, it’s time to devour.
🧄 Freezer Prep Instructions
This is one of my favorite meals to prepare as a freezer meal but don’t forget to label them or keep track of what is in your freezer! We’ve covered it all in our Freezer Tips 101.
Option One: I make up a batch and divide it into containers. Make sure to use a tight-fitting lid to keep it from getting freezer burnt. You can save it in the freezer for 4 – 6 months! How incredible is that?
When you are ready to serve, place the fettuccine bolognese in the fridge overnight when possible. If not, you can microwave it and frequently stir until it’s hot. After you microwave the dish, you are ready to serve.
Option Two: Cook the ground sirloin and put into a freezer safe bag. Cut up the veggies and place in a separate bag.
When you are ready to make this dish, defrost the two and proceed with the dish as directed.
🧅 Using An Instant Pot
If you aren’t sure how to use your Instant Pot, be sure to check out the manual. It’s crucial to completely understand how to use a pressure cooker because it can be dangerous if not used properly.
Once you know how it’s supposed to work, make a few recipes. The more you use it, the less scary it becomes. I promise if you use it correctly, it’s a fantastic way to cook many recipes.
The part that most people get confused by is the quick release and natural release. A natural release means that the pressure is slowly and “naturally” released from the pot.
There isn’t anything you need to do except wait until the pressure has released, and it beeps to let you know you can open the lid safely.
A quick release means that you are actually manually releasing the pressure quickly. NEVER do this with your bare hands. The steam is extremely hot, and you can get very burned.
Always use a wooden spoon or towel to turn the valve. Keep your hands and face away from the pot at all times to prevent serious burns or damage.
Occasionally, you will have a recipe that has a combination of natural and quick release. Often you will let it sit and release pressure for a certain amount of time then finish by removing the rest of the pressure quickly.
🍅 Substitutions
This recipe is pretty forgiving, and you can make several substitutions if you wish. The flavor will still be fabulous, even if you make some changes. Take a look at these ideas to consider.
- Meat – Substitute the ground sirloin for any of your other favorite ground meats. Ground turkey, chicken, pork sausage, Italian sausage, or ground beef are all lovely options. Sometimes we will do a variety of meats to add even more flavor.
- Noodles – If you are out of fettuccine noodles, don’t worry! You can switch them out with linguini or even spaghetti noodles. Both taste great and will give you a fantastic meal option.
- Cheese – While we used parmesan on top of our Instant Pot Fettuccine Bolognese, you can also use mozzarella, provolone, Swiss, or even cheddar. Try them all and see what you prefer.
🥄 Variations
I love all the different combinations I can make with this Instant Pot Fettuccine Bolognese recipe. You can add in all your favorites to fit your desires and add some pizzazz to your life. Try some of these ingredients:
- Mushrooms – I feel like adding mushrooms to anything Italian just makes sense! They give a terrific earthy flavor that is divine.
- Olives – Toss in a few black olives to the sauce as it cooks. It adds some color and gives you some nutrients like vitamin E, iron, calcium, and copper.
- Carrots – Chop up some carrots very finely and add them to the mix. This is a great way to sneak in some veggies, and no one will even realize it.
- Celery – I dice it up, so the celery is pretty small and unnoticeable. It adds flavor and makes the meal even more nutritious.
Do you love pasta recipes as much as we do? Try some of our other favorites:
Recipe FAQs
Bolognese is a bit different from a classic pasta sauce. Bolognese uses other vegetables and spices to offer that distinct flavor you know and love from this classic dish.
Simply place pasta in a fan layer in the pressure cooker. This will help ensure the pasta doesn’t stick together. If you just drop in, it can clump together.
You need to ensure all the pasta is fully in the water. If dry pasta is sticking out of the liquid your pasta will not soften the way it needs to in the pressure cooker.
Salad, garlic bread, breadsticks, side of vegetables, etc. Feel free to reach for your favorite side dishes to pair with pasta.
Related Recipes
Instant Pot Fettuccine Bolognese
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 1 lb Ground Sirloin
- 1 tbs Butter
- 1 Sweet Onion chopped
- 1 tbsp Garlic minced
- 32 oz Tomato Sauce
- 28 oz Stewed Tomatoes
- 6 oz Tomato Paste
- 2 cups Water
- 2 tbsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 tbsp Sweet Basil
- 1 tsp Oregano ground
- 1 tsp Garlic Salt
- 1 tsp Seasoned Salt
- 1 tsp Pepper
- ¼ cup Brown Sugar
- ½ lb Fettuccine
- 4 tsp Parmesan Cheese to top
- 2 tsp Parsley minced for top
Instructions
- Turn the Instant Pot on to the SAUTE setting, and melt the butter in the Instant Pot once it has warmed up.
- Add the chopped onion, and saute until caramelized, or golden brown.
- Add the ground Sirloin, and cook until well browned, and no pink is left. Turn off Saute setting.
- Add the minced garlic, tomato sauce (both cans), stewed tomatoes, tomato paste, water, Italian seasoning, sweet basil, ground Oregano, garlic salt, seasoned salt, seasoned pepper,and brown sugar. Stir all together until well mixed.
- Add the Fettuccine, and make sure it's completely covered and not sticking out of the sauce. (You can break it in half to make it easier to submerge in the sauce). (If you need to add a little more water, to make sure the Fettuccine is covered, add another ½ cup).
- Place the lid on the Instant Pot, and make sure the pressure valve is set to SEALING. Press the MANUAL button, and set the time for 8 minutes.
- When the Instant Pot is finished cooking, beeps and goes to OFF, go ahead and quick release the pressure, by turning the pressure valve from sealing to VENTING.
- When all the pressure has been released, and the FLOAT VALVE drops down, remove the lid from the Instant Pot, and stir the Fettuccine, and sauce. (This is where I taste the sauce, to see if it needs any more seasonings, or if it's just right). If you need to add anything, do it now, and stir well to blend.
- Serve on plates, or in pasta bowls, and top with Parmesan cheese, and a little Parsley. Pair with crusty bread, or even a side salad. Serve, and Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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