Instant Pot Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs

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Instant Pot Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs. Let me introduce to you, one of the best, most delicious, fast prep weeknight dinners for families. I am talking about instant pot spaghetti with frozen meatballs.

This is one of those instant pot family dinners you will want to make time and time again and so easy too. Just dump it in and come back when your time is up. Stir and enjoy. Then any leftovers can be reheated in the instant pot the following night.

instant pot spaghetti and frozen meatballs recipe
Instant Pot Spaghetti and Frozen Meatballs Recipe

Instant Pot Spaghetti & Meatballs

One of my favourite pressure cooker recipes for lazy weeknight dinners is Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Bolognese.

You cook both the spaghetti and the meat sauce together in the one pot, stir and then you have the spaghetti classic ready to serve.

When we last ate it, I said to Dominic that next time I wanted to experiment. To see if I could take the principles of spaghetti Bolognese in the pressure cooker and swap the Bolognese (or as you might call it meat sauce) for frozen meatballs and do an instant pot spaghetti and frozen meatballs version.

I kept the ratios the same. I kept the cook time the same. I kept the flavours the same. And OMG our instant pot spaghetti with frozen meatballs were AMAZING.

This recipe has now become another of my favourite instant pot frozen recipes. Sitting alongside instant pot frozen meatballs, instant pot frozen vegetable soup and instant pot frozen pot roast.

A great family dinner in the instant pot and its so easy and I can’t wait to share the recipe for spaghetti and frozen meatballs with you today.

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Can You Cook Frozen Meatballs In An Instant Pot?

Yes, you can. Cooking frozen meatballs in the instant pot is so easy, they taste just as good as fresh and there is zero prep involved.

We have previously cooked instant pot frozen meatballs on their own and have found that because of the stiffness because they are frozen, they are easier to cook in the instant pot compared to thawed meatballs.

Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs

You will find that spaghetti and frozen meatballs is a 100% life changer for you when it comes to making dinner.

I remember my late aunt and her spaghetti and meatballs. She was married to an American Italian and made amazing meatballs. In fact, our air fryer party meatballs is her recipe.

She would then serve them with a delicious tomato sauce and plenty of spaghetti.

But she didn’t have children and had the time to do this and that is why spaghetti and frozen meatballs is ideal for us busy people that don’t have all day to give to the kitchen.

We can load spaghetti, frozen meatballs, tomato sauce and seasonings into the instant pot and let the instant pot work its magic.

Uncooked Frozen Meatballs

I recommend using uncooked frozen meatballs in your instant pot pressure cooker. This is because meatballs are very fast cooking and then to get the ratio of cook time right for both the spaghetti and the meatballs, you will get the best results with frozen.

If you use thawed or cooked frozen meatballs, they are more likely to break up and blend into the spaghetti as you mix it up.

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Easy Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs Ingredients

Easy Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs

Spaghetti – You can use any spaghetti. I always have some spare in my pantry for when we need it for a recipe. Then you snap it in half for an even cook in the instant pot.

Meatballs – Any frozen uncooked meatballs will do the trick. Because I bulk buy a lot at Lidl I used fresh Lidl meatballs that were uncooked, that I had loaded into the freezer to cook from frozen. Though you can use any frozen meatballs of your choosing. Or why not make your own with your meal prep and then freeze for later?

Sauce – You can use tinned tomatoes, tomato sauce or anything similar. You can use your favourite brand or go unbranded. I am a big fan of using tinned tomatoes or my soup maker tomato sauce.

Seasoning – There is nothing worse than bland boring spaghetti and meatballs. I recommend oregano, thyme, basil, either one of these or all. Along with salt, pepper, and garlic. You can also add extra seasoning at the end if it doesn’t taste like it has enough flavour.

Then for the kitchen gadgets that we have used in this spaghetti and frozen meatballs in the instant pot, it has just been our instant pot pressure cooker. We have this one and it does an amazing job.

How To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?

instant pot spaghetti and frozen meatballs step by step
  • Sauté. We sauté the onion first in the instant pot, like you would on the stove. The biggest reason for this, is that it creates a non-stick to your instant pot and helps it go to pressure. Plus, we all love onions in our spaghetti dishes, don’t we?
  • Layer. Next add your layers. This is the most important step as its what assures that the meatballs are cooked, the spaghetti doesn’t stick together and that the spaghetti cooks properly. It starts with frozen meatballs, then spaghetti, then sauce and water.
  • Cook. Next you set the cook time and let the instant pot work its magic and create the best spaghetti and meatballs in the instant pot.
  • Release. After releasing pressure, you stir and serve.

How Long To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?

When cooking spaghetti and meatballs in instant pot, its about getting the timing spot on. Then you can recycle this cook time for many pasta recipes in the instant pot.

For example, this is the same cook time I use for:

This is a 3 minute pressure cook. This can be either on the manual button or pressure cook depending on your pressure cooker model.

Then you let the instant pot do a 5 minute natural pressure release before releasing pressure.

This results in the best cooked instant pot pasta.

Instant Pot Pasta & Frozen Meatballs

You can also swap the spaghetti for any of your favourite medium sized pasta shapes. This is perfect for when you don’t have any spaghetti in, or have various bags of pasta that need using up and are taking up room in your pantry.

What Is The Ratio Of Water To Pasta In Instant Pot?

The water needed for pasta in the instant pot, is that it just covers the pasta. In a similar way to this pasta picture below:

What Is The Ratio Of Water To Pasta In Instant Pot

But I know you might be cautious at guessing the amount and in all our instant pot pasta recipes we do give the exact ratio for each recipe.

In this spaghetti and frozen meatballs recipe we suggest 225g of spaghetti (8oz) to 1 litre (just over 4 cups) of liquid.

What To Serve With Instant Pot Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs?

Spaghetti and frozen meatballs in the instant pot is just amazing served on its own. But what about some sides if you want the meal to stretch to feed more people?

I would recommend our homemade air fryer garlic bread. It is amazing and smells so good and is perfect for dipping into your pasta sauce.

Alternatively, you could try:

More Amazing Family Instant Pot Recipes

If you are looking for more ways to enjoy the instant pot at dinner time then check out these recipes:

Instant Pot Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs

Instant Pot Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs

Instant Pot Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs. Let me introduce to you, one of the best, most delicious, fast prep weeknight dinners for families. I am talking about instant pot spaghetti with frozen meatballs.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time6 minutes
Total Time11 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Instant Pot
Servings: 4
Calories: 882kcal

Ingredients

Kitchen Gadgets:

Instant Pot Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs Ingredients:

Instructions

  • Peel and slice an onion and sauté in the instant pot with extra virgin olive oil.
    How To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?
  • Cancel sauté and add the frozen meatballs.
    How To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?
  • Half your spaghetti and spread over the frozen meatballs making sure the meatballs are well covered in the spaghetti.
    How To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?
  • In a mixing bowl add tinned tomatoes, tomato sauce and mix in the seasonings.
    How To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?
  • Pour the mixture over the spaghetti and spread out with a spoon.
    How To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?
  • Then pour over your water to make sure everything is well covered. Then place the lid on the instant pot, set the valve to sealing and cook for 3 minutes on manual or pressure cook. Then do a 5 minute natural pressure release, before releasing the rest of the pressure.
    How To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?
  • When you open the lid, it will be like soup, give it a good stir with tongs and it will naturally thicken as you stir and then serve.
    How To Cook Spaghetti & Frozen Meatballs In Instant Pot?

Notes

Layers. Its important that you follow the layers instructions above and don’t stir before pressure cooking. Otherwise the meatballs and spaghetti will stick and it wont go to pressure.
Swaps. Did you know a true Italian doesn’t do spaghetti and meatballs? Instead, they do other pasta with meatballs because it sticks to the pasta better. You can also swap spaghetti for any other pasta.
Thanks for reading our instant pot spaghetti with frozen meatballs recipe on Recipe This. We have many more instant pot recipes for you to check out next. Though if you would like more frozen recipes, then I recommend you try our instant pot frozen chicken drumsticks next.

Nutrition

Calories: 882kcal | Carbohydrates: 68g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 48g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 20g | Cholesterol: 135mg | Sodium: 751mg | Potassium: 1503mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 1227IU | Vitamin C: 26mg | Calcium: 146mg | Iron: 5mg
Nutrition InfoPlease Note: Nutrition values are our best estimate based on the software we use at Recipe This and are meant as a guide. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.
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instant pot spaghetti and meatballs
Recipe This

Hi! I am Sam and along with my chef hubby Dom we love sharing with you easy everyday recipes using kitchen gadgets. We are also the authors of The Complete Air Fryer Cookbook, an amazing air fryer cookbook filled with 140+ everyday air fryer recipes. Beyond the air fryer we also love the instant pot, slow cooker, soup maker, ninja foodi, pie marker and several other kitchen gadgets. CLICKING HERE →

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