Instant pot mac and cheese, made in the instant pot mini. Fun recipe for a small batch of pressure cooker macaroni and cheese!
When I first bought my instant pot mini, I thought I would only use it in the winter for comforting soups and stews. I thought of it as a replacement for my slow cooker. But I was so wrong about that!
Since summer hit, I'm using my instant pot mini all the time! I love being able to make dinner without heating up the house.
This instant pot mac and cheese is probably my daughter's favorite thing to come out of my instant pot (besides the instant pot chicken stock that I make weekly).
Here's my collection of instant pot mini recipes. I also have to mention that this is the perfect portion of mac and cheese for a Thanksgiving for two side dish.
All of the ingredients for this instant pot mac and cheese are pictured above, except the vegetable broth.
I adapted the recipe from Epicurious, and it has a slightly strange method to it: the noodles are cooked in broth and butter at high pressure for 5 minutes, and then the rest is stirred in and allowed to melt slowly.
I happen to love this method, because as the pot comes to pressure, it gives me plenty of time to grate cheese and measure everything out. When the timer goes off, I do a forced pressure release, and dump everything in and walk away.
It's basically a hands-off side dish that is so welcome this time of year.
Reasons to love instant pot mac and cheese:
-it's all made in one pot
-it takes just 20 minutes to cook, start to finish!
-the macaroni noodles cook in broth, so if you're out of milk, you can still make this mac and cheese!
This instant pot mac and cheese recipe makes about 2-3 big bowls of macaroni and cheese. For my family of 3, we use it as a side dish two nights in a row. (My toddler hardly eats more than 5 of 6 bites of anything). We occasionally enjoy it alone with a salad and a glass of white wine! Or, sometimes we pick up barbecue from our favorite place and use this as a side dish.
For those wondering, I haven't tried to scale up this recipe for anything larger than my 3-quart Instant Pot Mini. Small-batch recipes are what I do on this site, but if you double the recipe succesfully, please let us all know; I'd love to hear about it in the comments section below! (You can also check the full-size recipe on Epicurious, from which I scaled this one down for help).
This is the instant pot mini that I use and love!
Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
Instant pot mini mac and cheese.
Ingredients
- 4 ounces (about 1 cup) macaroni noodles
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 4 ounces grated extra sharp cheddar
- 1 ounce (¼ cup) grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
Instructions
- In the pot of a pressure cooker or an instant pot mini, add the macaroni noodles, broth, butter and garlic powder. Give it a stir, and then clamp on the lid. Set the valve to 'SEALING.'
- Press 'PRESSURE COOK' and toggle to 'HIGH' pressure. Set the timer for 5 minutes.
- While the instant pot comes up to pressure and cooks, have all remaining ingredients pre-measured and ready to go into the pot.
- When the timer goes off, do a forced pressure release (be careful--use a towel to cover so you don't accidentally burn yourself).
- When the sealing valve drops, open the instant pot. Add all remaining ingredients (cheddar, Parmesan and sour cream), stir and let rest for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes the cheese should have melted and the macaroni and cheese mixture should be smooth. If not, turn on the 'KEEP WARM' function and heat until everything melts together.
- Serve immediately. Leftovers need to be reheated with a splash of milk.
Notes
I made this in the instant pot mini, but you can double the recipe both in the mini, or double it and make it in the 6 quart model, too.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 236Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 46mgSodium: 480mgCarbohydrates: 12gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 11g
Julie W. says
Hi Christina! I love your blog and approach to feeding a small family with just the right amount of food. My family's background is specializing in making enough food to feed an army then eating the food on repeat for consecutive lunches/evenings until everyone is fully over it. I would prefer to have only enough leftovers at times for lunch next day and your recipes allow me to fulfill that wish all the time, so thank you! Now that we have a little one, I've been checking out your recipes for Camille and love this IP Mac and cheese. I have a 6 qt Instant Pot and I double the recipe so there's enough for me, my husband, my son, and a little left over for my son's dinner the next night. I modify recipes frequently based on what is in my pantry so when I made this today I used smoked cheddar, a triple cheddar mix, and parmesan. I usually don't keep sour cream on hand but I almost always have greek yogurt so that was another substitution. I also use whatever pasta I have on hand but knowing that pasta size can change the cooking time slightly, I weigh out my pasta instead of relying on a cup. I've made this several times, always with varying ingredient substitutions or preparations (such as doing on the stove top instead of cleaning out my IP liner :)), and it has yet to fail me. Thank you for your dedication to your craft and willingness to share your recipes, tips, tricks, and craziness in life. You are amazing!
Lisette says
I have the six quart IP. So if I want to make this recipe I should double the ingredients?
Christina Lane says
I'm not sure, Lisette. I only tested it in the mini. I think some of the comments here address this issue.
Ashley says
I doubled this in my instant pot ultra and it is delicious! The measurements worked well. The only changes I made were using avocado oil in place of the butter and reducing the cook time for the noodles to 4 minutes. Afterwards, I added frozen spinach after the cheese had been melted and some shredded chicken. Even my boyfriend, who hates Mac and cheese, liked this. Thanks for the recipe!
Christina Lane says
Wow, Ashley, that sounds delicious! :)
Chelsea Marti says
Kind of want to try this recipe. It will be our first time making mac&cheese from scratch and also our first time using the Instant Pot Mini. My one concern is that my family doesn't eat sour cream. How important is it in this recipe? Can I leave it out or swap it for something else (like milk)? Also, by making that swap, does anyone know what the new calorie count/nutrition info would be? Thanks!
Christina Lane says
Hi Chelsea! Hooray for mac and cheese making! What about using plain full-fat Greek yogurt?
Chelsea Marti says
My family won't eat that either. They are very plain people, and basically anything healthy is out of the question. I'm lucky they are even letting me swap in whole wheat noodles. Would light/heavy whipping cream work, or like I said milk, or does it have to be sour cream or yogurt?
Christina Lane says
I think cream would work, since sour cream basically melts into cream anyway. It might need a touch more salt then.
Gretchen says
I managed to sucessfully make this in the 6 qt instant pot! I usually make a different recipe, but have gone low carb and wanted to make this for my daughter without her having to eat it for every meal for the next week so google led me here :) I used water instead of broth and added an extra 1/8 cup or so just to have a little more liquid, and it came to pressure and cooked up like it was supposed to! 5 minutes was perfect. Thanks!
Maria says
I made this, as written, in my 6 Qt. Instant Pot. It was super easy and tasted great. I am never making it on the stovetop again!
Christina Lane says
Thank you for letting us all know that it can be made in the regular instant pot, Maria :)
Deborah Wayne says
Has anyone tried this with gluten free pasta? I have an instant pot coming and would like to try this recipe.
Christina Lane says
As long as it has the same cooking time as regular pasta, it should work...though I haven't tried it!
Kathy H says
Made for dinner tonight - your recipe was spot on! Did 'guild the lily' by adding toasted panko crumbs (in a small skillet on the stove, moistened with a splash of olive oil while the cheeses were melting into the macaroni). We loved it - will be a regular in the future. Love that it was done in less than 15 minutes without heating up my kitchen! Thank you!
Christina Lane says
I'm coming over to your house for dinner next! :)
Spamantha says
I wonder if I could use spaghetti noodles?
Christina Lane says
Maybe decrease the cooking time? I'm not sure, I haven't tried it, sorry!
Shari says
New to IP world. Got a mini as a gift. I tried your mac & cheese for lunch today and it was wonderful. I doubled the recipe in the mini and it came out great. Trying easy recipes to get used to using the IP. I am looking forward to trying more of your recipes.