Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
Instant Pot Mac and Cheese is rich, creamy, and so easy! Let your pressure cooker do all the work. Perfect for a family dinner or a side for Thanksgiving when you’re short on oven space. Evaporated milk makes this pasta extra rich and creamy.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 servings
- Category: Instant Pot, Main Dish, Pasta
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 lb medium shell pasta, or other short noodle
- 4 cups water
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 12oz can evaporated milk
- 16 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded, see note
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Cook Pasta. Add pasta, water, and salt to your Instant Pot. Give everything a stir. Close the lid and set to sealing then cook on Manual High Pressure for 3 minutes. When done cooking, allow to Natural Release for 5 minutes before doing a controlled Quick Release.
- Stir in Milk. With the Instant Pot on warm, stir in the butter and evaporated milk.
- Stir in Cheese. When the butter is almost or fully melted, stir in the cheese, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, and a few big cranks of fresh ground pepper. Stir until cheese is melted and combined. Taste and adjust salt and pepper, if needed.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Sharp Cheddar Cheese - I used 2 8oz blocks of sharp white cheddar that I shredded myself. You can also use pre-shredded cheese in bags, but it doesn't always melt as smoothly. I like to use my food processor's shredding disc to make quick work of shredding cheese. Feel free to use a different cheese of your choice!
Controlled Quick Release - A controlled quick release is where you slowly press the valve to the venting position, starting by only going about halfway. Instead of just quickly moving to the venting position. By letting the steam escape slower, it helps prevent any water or pasta foam from shooting out.
I use the 8qt Instant Pot Duo and love it!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/6 of recipe
- Calories: 684
- Sugar: 6.2 g
- Sodium: 975.7 mg
- Fat: 31.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 68.5 g
- Fiber: 2.7 g
- Protein: 31.1 g
- Cholesterol: 85 mg
Keywords: Instant Pot Mac and Cheese, Pressure Cooker Mac and Cheese, Thanksgiving Mac and Cheese, Thanksgiving Side Dish
Find it online: https://kathleenscravings.com/instant-pot-mac-and-cheese/