5-Minute Instant Pot Mac & Cheese
A quick and tasty dinner the whole family can enjoy!
Equipment
- 1 Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 lb dry pasta (any style)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 Tbsp butter or margarine
- 2 ½ cups cheddar cheese
- ½ cup shredded parmesan cheese
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ½ to 1 cup milk
- steamable veggies (optional)
- cooked protein (optional)
- 1 Tbsp Frank's Red Hot Sauce (optional)
Instructions
- Add chicken broth, water, dry pasta, butter, salt, and pepper to the pressure cooker pot. No mixing required!
- Seal your pressure cooker and set to high (or manual) pressure for 5 minutes
- Adding optional ingredients to your mac? Now is a great time to pop your veggies into the microwave or slice your protein!
- While the pasta is cooking, measure out your cheeses and combine into a large bowl
- Once the timer dings, do a controlled pressure release. (Waiting too long after cooking finishes to release pressure will lead to soggy, overcooked pasta)
- Add the cheese mix to your cookpot in 3-4 handfuls, mixing in between until the cheese has fully melted
- Next, to create your simple cheese sauce add ½ a cup of milk to your cookpot and mix thoroughly. If the sauce appears too thick, add up to another ½ cup of milk
- Combine any optional ingredients (protein or veggies) with your finished pasta
- Kick back and enjoy a quiet (and warm!) meal without any kiddo complaints!
Notes
- Only have salted chicken broth? No problemo! Just skip adding the additional salt.
- Rather not buy 3 types of cheese? Substitute the parmesan and mozzarella cheese for 1 cup of Italian blend.
- Reminder: Mozzarella is a very STRINGY cheese. If your family prefers a more creamy texture, opt for ONLY cheddar cheese (3 1/2 cups) or your favorite cheese blend!