Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese

 Have you jumped on the electric pressure cooker bandwagon yet? I hopped on 2 years ago and I’ve never looked back. My Instant Pot has made my life so much easier. Especially when we moved into our new house last year and I had to find a way to cook my meals for 3 months without a stove/oven. Nearly every meal for my family was made in my Instant Pot.

 Now there are a ton of recipes out there for macaroni and cheese made in an electric pressure cooker. So many that I wasn’t even going to bother sharing mine; but I was asked to bring this recipe to an activity at church and demonstrate how to make it, so I thought I might as well post it for all of you as well. To tell you the truth, I don’t make it the same every single time. But, I marked down the measurements for how I made it this time, and this is what you have.

The recipe is super easy. Basically, you just put the dry noodles in the Instant Pot (or other electric pressure cooker), cover with water and cook for 3 minutes. When it's done cooking, let it sit for 1 minute and then do a gradual quick release. When the pressure is gone, you just stir in some cream (milk, half and half, evaporated milk, what have you) and cheese until it's creamy. Add salt and pepper to taste and you're done. It couldn't be simpler, and the best parts (besides the taste of course): no big pot of water to drain, and no need to use a rue! I'm telling you, it's some sort of voodoo, but it works!

You can jazz it up with some other spices and/or aromatics, as I've done in the following recipe, but it's all based on your tastes. If you like to use smoked cheese, by all means put some smoked Gouda in there. You like onion and garlic? Add it in to your hearts content. You like Velveeta instead of cream cheese? Go for it. My kids like their mac and cheese to look bright like the stuff from the box, so sometimes I will add a dash of turmeric for color. It doesn't change the flavor, it just colors the cheese sauce to look more appealing to the kids. Seriously, you could add nearly anything from any other macaroni and cheese recipe that you love, and it would work here. I added some cooked bacon the other day and it was amazing! Once you learn how to do the method, the recipe is just an after thought.  Adapt it all you want.

Here's the recipe:

Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese

1 pound pasta
3 1/2 cups water 
2 Tbsp butter
2 oz cream cheese
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 cups cream, or dairy of choice (divided)
10 oz shredded cheddar cheese (about 3 cups)
salt and pepper to taste (I usually add 2 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper)

Put the dry pasta into the pot of your electric cooker. Cover with the water. Put the lid on and seal it. Cook on manual for 3 minutes. Let sit one minute, and then gradually release the pressure. Leave any remaining water in the pot. Keep the pressure cooker on "keep warm." Stir in the butter, cream cheese, ground mustard, onion powder, and garlic powder. When the butter and cream cheese are melted, add in 1 cup of cream. Gradually add in the shredded cheese, stirring to melt. Add cream to get the consistency you prefer. Add in salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
If there is any left over you can store it in the refrigerator. When you reheat it, you will need to add a splash of milk to thin out the cheese sauce.



I use affiliate links