Instant Pot Bolognese Sauce (Pressure Cooker Recipe)
The best, fastest, and easiest Instant Pot spaghetti bolognese sauce, made in under 40 minutes! A classic sauce to serve with your favorite pasta, zucchini noodles, or spaghetti squash. Top with freshly grated cheese and parsley.
1/2cupred wineor beef broth (any variety of red wine, no need for expensive options)
1/4cupchopped fresh parsley
Toppings:
grated parmesan cheese
grated pecorino romano cheese
fresh parsley
Instructions
Turn the Instant Pot to Saute (press the sauté setting button on the front of the pot). Once hot, add olive oil.
Add the vegetables, sprinkle with a pinch of salt, and saute until the onion begins to turn translucent (about 4 minutes).
Add the ground beef and cook until browned and cooked through (about another 4-5 minutes).
Add all the seasonings (salt, oregano, pepper, basil, dried parsley, paprika) except the bay leaves and stir to combine well.
Cancel saute mode. Make sure there aren't any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan as this will cause a burn notice while pressure cooking. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up any bits left on the bottom of the pot before proceeding.
Add the tomato paste and stir to combine.
Then add the crushed tomatoes and wine (or broth) to the top of the mixture. DO NOT stir. Add the bay leaves.
Place the lid on the Instant Pot, then turn to seal and close. Turn the pressure valve on top of the lid to Sealed.
Cook on manual, high pressure for 20 minutes.
When cooking is complete, let pressure release naturally from the pot for 10 minutes (no need to do anything). Then release the remaining pressure by turning the steam valve (on top of the lid) from Sealed to Venting. The remaining pressure will spew from the valve. Once the pressure has been fully released, open the lid.
Remove bay leaves and stir. Add the fresh parsley, and stir again. Taste and salt accordingly (adding more salt if needed). If you add pecorino romano cheese or parmesan cheese, these ingredients will also add to the saltiness of the dish.
Serve the sauce with cooked pasta (see notes below for how to authentically do this), zucchini noodles (low carb option), or spaghetti squash (low carb option).
Top the sauce, once served, with parmsean cheese or pecorino cheese and/or extra fresh parsley.
Notes
How to Mix with Pasta of Choice:
Cook the Pasta: While the sauce is pressure cooking, cook the pasta of choice on the stove-top. I recommend a thicker pasta that will hold up to thick sauces like this recipe: a wide pasta like tagliatelle is the traditional choice, spaghetti, or a tube-shaped pasta.
Separate Pasta From Water: When the pasta is al-dente (cooked, but with a firm bite), use a fine mesh sieve to remove the pasta from the cooking water. Do NOT dump the water.
Reserve 1/2 Cup Pasta Cooking Water: Use a measuring cup to scoop out some of the pasta water from the pot (about 1/2 cup).
Add Pasta & Cooking Water to Sauce: When the sauce is ready, add the cooked pasta directly to the Instant Pot, along with a very small amount of the pasta cooking water. The starchy water will bind the sauce to the pasta.
Toss to Combine: Combine the pasta and sauce, adding more water if needed.
Nutrition info below (macros) is based on using 85/15 ground beef and just the sauce (no pasta).