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Instant Pot spaghetti sauce is a quick and easy meat sauce that gives you all the flavor of a traditional, slow cooked sauce right in your pressure cooker.

spoon full of Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce

A good meat sauce is one of those recipes every home cook needs to master. There's nothing better to make on busy weeknights than a batch of pasta and tomato sauce. It's classic comfort food that almost everyone loves. This easy Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce is an amazing homemade sauce that has all of the flavor of a slow simmered sauce without the time it takes to make a the traditional recipe.

This sauce is keto too so you can serve it over Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash or some zucchini noodles. It's a great way to sneak some extra veggies into your kids dinner too!

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ingredients to make Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce

What You'll Need

  • Ground beef – 85/15 or 80/20 beef provides a nice blend between adding juiciness and flavor to the cooked meat and not being too greasy. Beef with a higher fat content will have extra fat to drain. Leaner beef may be less flavorful.
  • Chicken broth – Chicken broth adds just a little bit of extra flavor and smoothness to the spaghetti sauce. You could add beef broth or water in its place if you prefer.
  • Crushed tomatoes – Crushed tomatoes provide the bulk of the spaghetti sauce. Pick a can that does not contain Italian seasoning so you can control the seasoning of your sauce.
  • Diced tomatoes – Diced tomatoes add a bit of texture to the sauce.
  • Spices– Onion powder, garlic powder, an Italian seasoning blend and salt all add flavor to this recipe.
Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce in pressure cooker

New to using an Instant Pot? Make sure you read our beginner's guide on "How to Use an Instant Pot" to get started!

How Do You Make Spaghetti Sauce from Scratch?

Saute the ground beef – Set the Instant Pot to SAUTE. Once it heats up a bit, add the ground beef and brown for about 5 to 7 minutes. Make sure to stir it frequently to avoid burning. When the meat is browned (cooked through), press cancel and carefully drain the grease from the inner pot. Place the inner pot back into the Instant Pot.

Mix the spices – In a small bowl, combine the garlic and onion powder, Italian seasoning, and salt. You can use a small fork or spoon. Pour the mixed spices over the ground beef and stir until the meat is well coated.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the Instant Pot – Pour the chicken broth to the Instant Pot and stir. Use a wooden spoon to scrape the bottom of the inner pot. Scraping the inside of the inner pot helps to remove any bits of food stuck to the bottom. Next, pour in the crushed tomatoes but do NOT stir. Finally, pour in the diced tomatoes and, again, do NOT stir.

Set it and forget it – Once all the ingredients are in the pot, secure the lid on the Instant Pot. Make sure the valve is set to SEALING. Set the pressure to manual pressure cook on high for 10 minutes. Once the timer goes off, allow the pressure to naturally release for 15 minutes and then release the rest of the pressure.

Finish it up – Once the pressure is released, remove the lid and give the sauce a stir. If the sauce is too thin, you can set the Instant Pot to SAUTE and cook it for about 5 minutes to reduce some of the extra liquid.

Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce is great freezable keto meat sauce

Is this Sauce Keto?

Yes, 1 cup of this meat sauce has 4g net carbs so you can fit it into your keto diet. When making the sauce you'll need to ensure you are using crushed and diced tomatoes that have no sugar added. We used San Marzano brand tomatoes when making ours. They have a great flavor and no added sugars so they are perfect for a low carb spaghetti sauce!

How Do You Keep Tomato Sauce from Burning in the Instant Pot?

The Instant Pot needs to have a lot of liquid. The more liquid it has, the less likely it is to burn. This means you should not skip the chicken broth because the added liquid helps prevent you from getting the burn notice. If you do not want to add chicken broth because of the sodium level, you can use a reduced sodium variety or use water instead (though you might notice a bit less flavor with water).

When you add in the chicken broth, make sure you use a sturdy spoon to mix the beef and broth. Use the spoon to scrape the bottom of the pot to remove any stuck on bits. If too much beef is stuck to the pot, you could get the burn notice.how to make Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce

Can You Freeze It?

Yes! You can freeze spaghetti sauce for about 2 to 3 months in a freezer safe container. Before you place it in the container, make sure you let it cool completely. This helps prevent a build up of ice from condensation.

When you are ready to use it take it out of the freezer and let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Then pop it in the microwave for 3-4 minutes or pour it into a small pot and heat it on the stovetop over medium heat for 10 minutes or until warmed through. Make sure to stir it while it is heating so it doesn't burn on the bottom.

Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash to make keto spaghetti

Looking for More Easy Instant Pot Recipes?

  • Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash
  • Keto Instant Pot Roast
  • Instant Pot Chicken with Mushrooms
  • Keto Instant Pot Cabbage Rolls
  • How to Make Chicken Bone Broth in an Instant Pot
  • Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
  • More Instant Pot Recipes…

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Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce

Instant Pot spaghetti sauce is a quick and easy meat sauce that gives you all the flavor of a traditional, slow cooked sauce right in your pressure cooker.

  • 1 pound Ground beef, 80/20 or 85/15
  • 1 tablespoon Onion powder
  • 1 tablespoon Garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • 1 cup Chicken broth
  • 28 ounces Crushed tomatoes
  • 14.5 ounces Diced tomatoes

  • Set Instant Pot to SAUTE and brown the ground beef cooking it for approximately 5-7 minutes. Press CANCEL and drain the grease from the ground beef before putting it back in the pot.

  • In a small bowl combine the onion powder, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and salt. Pour over the ground beef and stir to combine.

  • Add the chicken broth to the ground beef and stir using a wooden spoon to scrape up any bits of food stuck to the bottom of the pan.

  • Pour the crushed tomatoes in, DO NOT STIR.

  • Pour the diced tomatoes on top, DO NOT STIR.

  • Lock the lid in place and turn the valve to SEALING. Set to high pressure for 10 minutes.

  • When done press cancel and let it do a natural release for 15 minutes before opening.

  • Remove the lid and stir the sauce. If it seems to thin you can set it to SAUTE and continue to cook for another 5 minutes or so.

Serving: 1 cup , Calories: 112 kcal , Carbohydrates: 5 g , Protein: 11 g , Fat: 5 g , Saturated Fat: 2 g , Trans Fat: 1 g , Cholesterol: 29 mg , Sodium: 278 mg , Potassium: 15 mg , Fiber: 1 g , Sugar: 3 g , Vitamin A: 1 IU , Vitamin C: 1 mg , Calcium: 1 mg , Iron: 8 mg

Nutrition Disclaimer: We are not certified nutritionists. Nutrition facts are an estimate and are provided as a courtesy. They are generated by an online API which recognizes ingredient names and amounts and makes calculations based on the serving size. Results may vary.