Instant Pot Pasta with Sausage, Spinach and Tomatoes

Pasta inside Instant Pot with wooden spoon inserted.

Instant Pot Pasta with Sausage, Spinach and Tomatoes

A complete pasta dinner, made in your Instant Pot! You'll love this Instant Pot Pasta with Sausage, Spinach, and Tomatoes. You might have all the ingredients on hand already!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings servings

Calories 307kcal

Author Rachel Gurk

Ingredients

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 pkg. 19.5 ounce) turkey Italian sausage links, removed from casing
1/2 cup diced yellow onion, one small onion
1 clove garlic, minced
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth (see note)
12 ounces whole wheat penne pasta
1 can (28 ounce) diced tomatoes, no salt added
2 teaspoons dried oregano
6 ounces baby spinach
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, extra for garnishing
parsley, for garnishing

Instructions

Heat Instant Pot to “Sauté.” Add oil, sausage, and onion. Cook, breaking up sausage into small pieces, until sausage is no longer pink and onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes or until garlic is fragrant. Turn off Instant Pot.
Add chicken broth, pasta, diced tomatoes, and oregano. Stir to combine and make sure pasta is submerged in liquid.
Set Instant Pot to “Manual” for 5 minutes. Turn valve to Seal. When the timer goes off, turn valve to Vent to Quick release the pressure.
Keep Instant Pot on Warm and add spinach and place cover on (don’t turn to latch). Let wilt for 2-3 minutes, stirring as needed to help it along.
Add 1 cup mozzarella cheese and stir to melt. If the sauce appears thin, let set pasta set for 5-10 minutes, it will thicken.

Video

Notes

I like sweet Italian Sausage but you can use hot Italian sausage if you prefer a little heat.
Make sure to use low-sodium chicken broth in this recipe. It can get salty quickly because of the sausage and cheese so you want to control it where you can.
If you want to amp up the vegetables a little, add a diced sweet bell pepper or diced carrots when you sauté the sausage and onions.
If you're in a hurry, add the spinach on top of the pasta before you pressure cook it instead of wilting it afterwards. It won't retain its bright green color as well, but it will still taste great.
To make ahead or turn into a freezer meal: Make as directed and then pour into a greased 9x13 pan. Top with more mozzarella cheese (1/4-1/2 cup) and cover with foil. Freeze or refrigerate until ready to bake. Place cold pan in cold oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Cook for an hour, uncovering in the last 15 minutes, or until heated through and cheese is melted. It may require slightly longer cooking time if frozen. If cooking from frozen, you can also thaw overnight in fridge before baking.

Nutrition