This instant pot spaghetti sauce is delicious and comforting. It’s easy and can be on the table and in your family’s bellies in less than an hour.
Christopher’s favorite cuisine is Italian and although I love it and seek it out when I want some comfort food, my favorite is Mexican. But this instant pot spaghetti sauce is among my favorite ways to prepare and eat gravy.
Do I have to use an instant pot to make this?
No. Of course, the recipe is created for the instant pot (or any pressure cooker), but you can make this spaghetti sauce (I call it gravy) on the stove top.
Why should I make spaghetti sauce in a pressure cooker?
Since I’ve gotten my IP, I make my gravy in it exclusively. Why? Because it is fast! Stove top gravy takes hours, especially if you cook the sausages in the sauce, which believe me, is the best way. The sausages turn out so soft and juicy!!
You say ‘spaghetti sauce’ but that’s not spaghetti, so what gives?
I’m pretty vocal about not ‘liking’ spaghetti. It’s not the pasta I don’t like, per se. It is the ‘bite’ of spaghetti I object to. I want a mouthful of hearty pasta to chew on. Besides, I don’t want to have to twirl my fork! Does that make me lazy? Maybe. But these are my preferences. You can ladle the delicious instant pot spaghetti sauce on any pasta you want!
I give you permission. 😉
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Helpful tips
- Dice your onion. Sometimes it’s fun to have chunky gravy but for this dish, I want it smooth
- I use crushed tomatoes in this recipe, but you can use diced instead. I’ve made it both ways and both are delicious
- If you haven’t tried garlic paste, do look for it in your grocery as it saves time, is convenient and has a wonderful taste
- Don’t skimp on the garlic, unless you don’t like it
- Buy the best sausages you can afford
How to make this IP spaghetti sauce
Step one
Gather the ingredients – Onion, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic paste, sausages, oregano and basil.
Step two
Chop onion in small chunks. Get your instant pot out and press the sauté button.
Step three
Add olive oil and after it heats up, add onion and sauté for 3 minutes.
Step four
Add sausages, garlic, oregano, basil and salt and continue sautéing for 3 minutes.
Step five
Add the rest of your ingredients to the IP. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the instant pot container so you won’t get a burn notice.
Seal the lid and make sure the venting knob is turned to the sealed position. Press the ‘Pressure Cook’ button and set the timer to 15 minutes. The IP mode should be normal and the pressure set to high.
The IP will take between 10 – 15 minutes to come to pressure before the timer starts counting down.
Step six
After the IP beeps, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes or do a quick release. (Don an oven mitt before turning the venting knob to vent).
For this meal, I transfer most of the finished gravy to a serving bowl and add orecchiette pasta to our plates.
I ladle the gravy on the pasta and we’re ready to eat.
Looking delicious!
I hope you enjoyed this instant pot spaghetti sauce recipe!
What is your favorite meat to put in your spaghetti sauce? Or your favorite pasta? Leave me a comment as I would love to know.
Other popular sauces
And as always, may all your dishes be delish!
If you’ve tried this or any other recipe on the blog, I’d love the hear what you thought about it in the comments below. I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more of my delicious food and delightful cocktails!
Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion diced
- 6 sausages or more
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
- 6 ounces tomato paste
- 12 ounces water I use the tomato paste can
- 2 teaspoons garlic paste 2 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- See notes below for an amendment.
- Press the sauté button on the IP, add oil, then onions and sauté for 3 minutes.
- Add sausages and sauté for 3 minutes.
- Add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, water, oregano, basil, garlic, salt and bay leaf. After adding these ingredients, make sure to scrape the bottom of the instant pot to avoid any burn notice.
- Seal instant pot, make sure the venting knob is set to sealed and press the pressure cook button and set the timer for 15 minutes. The mode should be normal and the pressure set to high.
- IP will take between 10 – 15 minutes to come to pressure, and then the timer will start counting down.
- Once it beeps, either let the IP release the pressure naturally, or do a fast release but use an oven mitt before tapping the venting knob.
- Plate some pasta and either transfer the sauce to a serving bowl or serve directly out of IP container.
- Eat
- Smile
- Enjoy
Equipment
See all my favorite tools and gift ideas at my Amazon Store page!Check out Elaine’s Amazon Store!Notes
- Dice your onion. Sometimes it’s fun to have chunky gravy but for this dish, I want it smooth.
- I use crushed tomatoes in this recipe, but you can use diced instead. I’ve made it both ways and both are delicious.
- If you haven’t tried garlic paste, do look for it in your grocery as it saves time, is convenient and has a wonderful taste.
- Don’t skimp on the garlic, unless you don’t like it.
- Buy the best sausages you can afford.
Sally
This looks fabulous! I love my Instant Pot and am always looking for great recipes to make in it and this will definitely be one of them. Your tips and process photos are especially helpful.
Elaine
Thanks Sally, I appreciate it.
Jean
This was a poor recipe for the IP! I had to shut it off because “food burn” came on. Cleaned the pot and stirred in all ingredients with a whisk! Burned again!!! Moved into a large pot and cooked on the stove top!! Took much more time tonight!! Deleting this from my favorites. It sounded great! I did add 2 T sugar to cut acid and a bit more garlic!
Elaine
I’m sorry to hear that Jean. I’ve never gotten that message. Thanks for the feedback.
Renee | The Good Hearted Woman
Spaghetti sauce in under an hour sounds very appealing, especially on busy weekdays. I’ve been experimenting with my Instant Pot quite a bit lately; I’ll have to put this recipe on my list to try!
Elaine
Thanks Renee! It’s so easy and delicious!
traci
Spaghetti sauce in the Instant Pot is one of my fav things to make! So easy, budget friendly, and of course…pasta is such a fav in our house!!! I’m pinning this right now 🙂
Elaine
Thank you Traci! I appreciate it!
Leslie
I love that you used sausages! The instant pot is the perfect appliance for making a tasty sauce.
Elaine
Thanks Leslie! I love my IP and this is so easy!
Shadi Hasanzadenemati
I love a quick and tasty spaghetti sauce! Perfect for this cold weather!
Elaine
Thanks Shadi! 🙂
Allison - Celebrating Sweets
This is another reminder that I need to use my Instant Pot WAY more often. Looks delicious!
Elaine
Thank you Allison!
Gloria
I do not have an instant pot, but I do have a pressure cooker…and of course a slow cooker. Making a HUGE batch of this is great at this time of year with all the fresh tomatoes. I would be freezing some…as long as my kids did not take it home first. Nothing beats homemade pasta sauce.
Elaine
Thanks Gloria! I agree. It’s fun to freeze the sauce because you are right, nothing beats homemade.
Eva
This sounds delicious. I rarely use salsiccia in my pasta sauces and your post reminded me I should do it more often. Garlic paste is not something I’m familiar with, I generally sauté the garlic together with the onion (if I use it). I’ll look it up, not sure I’ve seen it on sale around here.
Elaine
I’m addicted to garlic paste. I do use fresh sometimes still, but my paste is always at hand 🙂
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
I love a good homemade sauce and this one looks like a real winner! It looks super rich and that colour is so vibrant. I can think of so many uses for this one. I’m sure it will come in handy in the winter months when I’m craving all the comfort food 😉
Elaine
Thanks Dawn! I appreciate it!
Jackie @The Seaside Baker
What a fantastic recipe! Delicious and made in no time…the perfect meal for a busy family during the week!
Elaine
Thanks Jackie! That’s what I love about my IP. Quick and delish!
Ashley @ Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen
My Italian in-laws also call it gravy. I haven’t used my Instant Pot to make spaghetti sauce yet, but now I think I’ll have to give it a go! This looks delicious 🙂
Elaine
I like your in-laws Ashley, even though I don’t know them. 😉 Thank you!
Marisa Franca
Although I don’t have an Instant Pot I do have a slow cooker and I don’t mind cooking on top of the stove. The dish looks wonderful and I bet it smells heavenly. I’ll be trying this out this weekend.
Chris
Love, love, LOVE this dish. The best way to cook and eat sausages, according to moi. They stay moist and juicy. And gravy! Nothing more to say.
Gina
I so have to get an instant pot soon! This looks super yummy!
Elaine
Thanks Gina. I never thought I’d get one, but I’m glad I did.
Amanda M Mason
I have a family spaghetti recipe I’ve made for years on the stove top but I’ve not made my spaghetti sauce in the IP yet! I need to try yours out! Looks so divine and is the perfect comfort food!!
Elaine
Thanks so much Amanda!! 🙂
Sharon
This spaghetti sauce can be made in a jiff on a weeknight since it’s made in the instant pot. No need to wait for the weekend and hours of cooking.
Jackie @ The Seaside Baker
I love instant pot recipes like these that take recipes from my childhood like this and make it in a quarter of amount of time! Can’t wait to make this!
Elaine
Thank you Jackie! I actually can’t believe how much I like my IP. Never thought it would happen.
Natalie
This looks absolutely delicious! So tasty. It’s a great option for busy families. Btw spaghetti sauce is my kiddos favorite. I bet he would enjoy this recipe. Cooking with instant pots seams super easy especially when you have a large family.
Andrea
That’s the perfect sauce when you need something comforting after a busy day!
Elaine
Thanks Andrea! I agree – quick, easy and delicious!
Nicolas Hortense
Yum! it really is amazing how quickly and easily you can cook dishes like this with an instant pot.
Elaine
Thanks Nicolas! I totally agree.
Erin
If I double the recipe, should I change the cooking time?
Elaine
Thanks for the comment Erin. No, I believe it would be the same time. But watch out that you don’t overfill the Instant pot. In the metal insert, there is a line you shouldn’t go over.
Jean Servideo
I removed the sausage from the casings and as soon as the IP reached pressure, the “food burn” warning came on! I had also added a Tbsp of sugar. Had to release pressure and added some chicken broth, more water and resumed cooking. Hubby is Italian and insists any good gravy must be cooked all day! He loved his dinner! He was really surprised at the results obtained in 30 minutes.
Wondering where in grocery they stock garlic paste?
Elaine
Hi Jean, I get the garlic paste by the packaged fresh herbs. They are in plastic tubes. It’s fun to see you call it gravy too! I’m glad your hubby liked it especially since I understand having gravy cook all day as my family did as well. Interesting about the food burn light coming on as when I make it, there is plenty of liquid. Though I don’t remove the casings from the sausages, that’s a great idea. Thank you for your comment, I appreciate it and hope you find the garlic paste as I really enjoy using it.