Instant Pot EASY Basil Penne Pasta Dinner

Whip up this easy dish of creamy tomato sauce and hearty penne pasta in minutes. The Instant Pot’s pressure makes the pasta sauce creamier and more flavorful. You can keep the ingredients in your pantry for a last-minute dinner idea. 

If you follow me @taterttosandjello on Instagram you probably know I am a little obsessed with my Instant Pot. I seriously use it almost every single day. It just saves me so much time and works really well with our lifestyle.

I’ve made some pretty complicated dishes with our Instant Pot but I’ve found that the dishes that we make consistently and most often are the easiest ones. This is a dinner idea for those days when you are running out of time and need to come up with something quickly using mostly things in your pantry. You can keep the ingredients for this dinner in your pantry and you will know that you ALWAYS have a back-up dinner idea. That’s a great feeling!

You might wonder why I would make this dinner idea in my Instant Pot instead of just cooking it on the stovetop.

The reason I love this recipe in the Instant Pot is:

1. It requires no babysitting. Unlike cooking pasta on my stovetop, I don’t have to watch it and make sure it doesn’t boil over. I put it in the IP and I can go get the salad ready or help my gir;s’ with homework while it cooks.

2. The pressure in the Instant Pot makes the sauce cook more fully and gives it a creamier, thicker consistency. I used Walmart’s new Italia Napoletana which I love because it’s full of chunky cherry tomatoes.

This is a basic recipe that most people will love. My kids love pasta, my son is pescatarian and this is one we can all eat and enjoy together. But you can absolutely add chicken or meatballs too.

This is also a one-pot meal which makes clean up easier! All you have to do is add the pasta sauce, crushed tomatoes, penne pasta and 2 cups of water in the Instant pot. Then stir it around and put the lid on and set the pressure to 8 minutes. The Instant Pot will come up to pressure, cook the pasta and then come back down to normal pressure and you have the perfect meal for a busy night.

I added some garlic rolls and a salad and it was perfect for us!

Here’s the recipe for Instant Pot EASY Basil Penne Pasta:

5 from 1 vote

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Instant Pot EAST Basil Penne Pasta Dinner

Whip up this easy dish of creamy tomato sauce and hearty penne pasta in minutes. The Instant Pot's pressure makes the pasta sauce creamier and more flavorful. You can keep the ingredients in your pantry for a last-minute dinner idea. 

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes

Total Time 13 minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 1 bottle Pasta Sauce. I used Italia Napolitana from Walmart 24 ounces
• 1 container crushed tomatoes. 12 ounces
• 1/2 Tsp. crushed basil
• 2 cups water
• 1 package penne pasta, 1 pound.

Instructions

1. Put pasta sauce, crushed tomatoes, crushed basil, water and penne pasta in Instant Pot liner pot. Stir to mix.

2. Put lid on Instant Pot. Lock in place. Set time at high temperature for 8 minutes. 

3. Let Instant Pot come up to pressure and cook the pasta for 8 minutes. 

4. When Instant Pot is done cooking, let the pressure naturally release.

5. Open Instant Pot when pressure is down to normal. Put pasta in a serving dish. Serve! Top with Parmesan cheese. 

Give it a try! 

And here is why we love our Instant Pot and a few other Instant Pot recipes we love to make:

Tex Mex Pressure Cooker Soup

Instant Pot Crustless Quiche

Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Dip

The Easiest Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes

(I made these over the weekend – so good!!)

Instant Pot Creamy Tomato Bisque Soup

If you are looking into getting an Instant Pot, you can order it on Amazon and it will come right to your house.

They have great prices and sales too!

Have a YUMMY day!!

xoxo