Pressure Cooker Pasta With Sausage And Spinach

This fast pressure cooker pasta with sausage is an easy one-pot meal in your instant pot. Packed with leafy spinach, juicy Italian sausage and penne pasta your family will love this fast weeknight dinner recipe.

 

Delicious Pressure Cooker Pasta With Sausage And Spinach

I love a good hearty fast weeknight meal as much as the next person. Learning how to cook penne pasta in the instant pot right along with Italian sausage was a game changer!

Before I ever cooked this one pot pasta dish in my pressure cooker, I started with cooking just Italian sausage in the instant pot for dinner. The instant pot makes it really super easy to cook everything right in the same pot and cleanup is super easy.

The flavors of your final recipe will depend a lot on the quality of sausage and the type of sauce you choose. I usually opt for an italian style sausage for this recipe.

I prefer using pasta sauce that is from a glass jar and look on the label for a short ingredients list.

Can You Cook This Recipe All In One Pot?

Yes, you can cook this Italian sausage with pasta and spinach all in one pot without any accessories. Rinse out the pot after cooking the sausage or your pasta may become too greasy.

Do I Have To Cook The Sausage In Links?

Using sausage without the outside casing will give you more of a meat sauce than pasta with bites of sausage.

That being said it saves a few minutes of time to use raw sausage that is not in the casing. (you can buy a pound of ground sausage with no casing similar to ground beef or ground turkey.)

If you have raw sausages that are in casings, you can remove the casing and simply sautee the meat from inside until it is cooked all the way through. Then remove the meat, rinse the pot and add the pasta.

How Do I Cook Pasta In The Pressure Cooker or Instant Pot

To cook pasta in the pressure cooker or instant pot start by pouring your pasta into a clean pot. Then I add sauce on the top, followed by any water or broth.

DO NOT STIR THE PASTA! (I can’t say this loudly enough!) Sometimes this can cause the pasta to clump when you stir it.

Instead, gently push any noodles above the liquid under with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula. If your noodles don’t look submerged for some reason and are sticking up above the water line, add another half cup of water.

How Long Do I Cook Pasta In The Pressure Cooker OR Instant Pot?

The general rule of thumb I stick with when cooking pasta in the instant pot is to take the time the box says for cooking the pasta and divide by two. If the time works out to an odd number, I round down a minute.

Pasta texture in the instant pot will be more similar to a baked pasta in a casserole. Since we are cooking the pasta straight in the pasta sauce, it gives you a super flavorful noodle.

What Kind Of Pressure Release Do You Use On A Pressure Cooker Or Instant Pot?

A quick-release is when the instant pot is finished cooking and you immediately flip the switch and release the pressure. This lets the pressure out quickly so you can open it fast but can dry out some recipes.

A natural release is when you allow the pressure to naturally decrease in the machine on its own before opening it. This can take up to ten minutes before enough pressure has released and you can press the button to open the machine.

For this instant pot penne with sausage recipe, I used a release that was halfway in between! I allowed my pressure cooker to naturally release for five minutes and then released the pressure. This saved me time while still keeping the texture of the recipe inside.

Can I Add Cheese In The Instant Pot?

Want a cheesier baked-style pasta? After the instant pot is finished cooking mix four ounces of shredded mozzarella cheese into your pot then cover for a few minutes and let the leftover heat melt the cheese.

Don’t run the pressure on the pot! Most of the time dairy doesn’t cook well in the electric pressure cooker.

Instead let the cheese melt for a minute on the hot pasta after you’ve cooked everything. You can also sprinkle parmesan on at the table.

My family about lost their minds when I added the cheese. It was a big hit but the cheese isn’t necessary for this dish to be delicious.

Can You Cook This Pressure Cooker Pasta With Sausage Recipe Using Frozen Sausage?

Yes you can cook this recipe with frozen sausage! See how I cook frozen sausage in the instant pot. Then rinse out your pressure cooker and use the directions below from the point where you start cooking the penne pasta.

Can I Cook This Recipe With Chicken Sausage, Smoked Sausage or Veggie Sausage?

You can absolutely cook this recipe with chicken sausage or smoked sausage. Both chicken and smoked sausages are often already cooked through so you can skip the step where you pressure cook. If your sausage is raw inside it should take about the same amount of time as pork sausage.

How To Make This Recipe With Smoked Chicken Sausage, Smoked Sausage or Veggie Sausage

1. Slice the chicken sausage
2. Add the oil and brown the sausage on sautee mode in your instant pot.
3. Add the pasta, sauce and spinach and follow the recipe from there.

I do rinse the pot in between cooking the sausage and cooking the pasta. Rinsing is important if you use pork sausage or your pasta will have too much grease and bits can stick to the bottom of your pot causing a burn notice on an electric pressure cooker. No good!

Other types of sausage, like chicken or turkey, you may be able to skip rinsing the pot in between as they simply don’t have as much oil in them when you cook them.

What Kind Of Pasta Can I Use With This Recipe?

There are so many different shapes and sizes of pasta, and many of them can be used interchangeably in recipes!

For this pressure cooker pasta with sausage and spinach, I recommend using a thicker pasta shape that can hold its own next to the sauce and bites of sausage.

I recommend using shapes like penne/ziti (tube shapes), fusilli (spirals) or even farfalle (bow ties). A chunkier shaped pasta will have better results for this recipe than pasta with long strands.

What Instant Pot Do You Have?

I cook mostly in the Instant Pot Ultra right now, it’s an 8 quart.

What Do I Serve With Pressure Cooker Pasta With Sausage And Spinach

I personally like to serve a salad, raw veggies with dip, or sometimes fruit on the side for my family. It helps to round out our meal and it’s super easy for me to slide on to the table.

I Got A Burn Notice From My Instant Pot, What Do I Do? Help!

Press the cancel button, release the pressure (Carefully it’s hot!), open your pot. Then check these common issues with your instant pot before starting your machine again

When you sautee in the instant pot, sometimes small bits of food will stick to the bottom. Check the bottom of the instant pot and scrape off any bits that may be accidentally stuck with a wooden spoon. (A little water can help to get the food off sometimeS)

Tomato sauces often have thickeners included in the sauce, which can sometimes absorb more liquid than anticipated depending on the brand. Add an additional half cup of water to the bottom of your pot. Let your pot cool, and try again.

This pasta sauce is one of my favorites for instant pot cooking because the ingredient list is short!

Once you start cooking this instant pot pasta with sausage and spinach and everything works out just right? You’ll make it again and again, it’s so super yummy and it has that baked in the oven pasta taste!

Other Recipes You’ll Love

One Pot Turkey Spaghetti– Meaty, savory spaghetti made with ground turkey all in one pot for an easy and delicious stovetop dinner.

Cheesy Baked Ziti– Cheesy, gooey baked ziti is a cozy family meal that’s easy to share and delicious to eat.

Baked Ravioli– Use frozen or fresh ravioli to make the ultimate easy casserole that tastes like lasagna and only needs four ingredients!