Made with layers of a hearty meat sauce, creamy ricotta filling, gooey cheese, and tender pasta, this Instant Pot Lasagna recipe delivers the classic flavors you know and love in under an hour.
Pasta of all shapes sizes and forms is my love language. But, if I had to pick an all-time favorite pasta dish, it would have to be lasagna. From Cottage Cheese Lasagna to Skillet Lasagna to Ravioli Lasagna to Instant Pot Lasagna Soup to even Instant Pot Taco Lasagna, I seriously adore lasagna.
But when I am craving classic, cheesy, rich lasagna, this Instant Pot Lasagna recipe is my go-to!
Reasons to Love Instant Pot Lasagna
- Classic Recipe Delivered Fast! Lasagna is typically a dish reserved for weekends or special occasions, as it is classically a dish that takes HOURS to make. However, thanks to the Instant Pot, you can make homemade lasagna in under an hour, without sacrificing ANY flavor.
- Insanely Delicious Results. Instant Pot Lasagna is made with all the classic star players. Layers of tender noodles, hearty meat sauce, creamy ricotta, and gooey cheese, marry together to create an amazing dish that satisfies.
- Less Work. There is no need to boil noodles and you can saute the meat of choice right in the inner pot, which translates to less overall prep work and fewer dishes to wash.
- Family-Favorite Meal. This Instant Pot Lasagna has quickly become a family and fan favorite! Your family will love the rich flavor and you will love the speed with which this recipe comes together.
What You Need for Instant Pot Lasagna
- Meat: Adding meat is optional, but if desired, I recommend using lean ground beef, ground turkey, or ground Italian sausage.
- Onion + Garlic: I recommend adding a minced yellow onion and minced garlic to the beef/sausage when sauteeing it to build layers of flavor. Omit both if you are not adding meat to your lasagna.
- Noodles: I recommend using oven-ready (no-boil) noodles for this lasagna recipe as they get super tender without the need to parboil them before assembling the lasagna.
- Spaghetti Sauce: Use your favorite homemade or jarred marinara or spaghetti sauce. Of course, Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce is a great option if you have it on hand.
- Ricotta Cheese: Use full-fat ricotta cheese for the richest, creamiest filling. Lasagna is not the time to use fat-free ricotta, as the excess moisture can cause your lasagna to be watery.
- Seasonings: Italian Seasoning, crushed red pepper flakes, and garlic powder flavor the ricotta cheese filling. Feel free to increase or decrease the red pepper flakes to control the level of spice.
- Egg: An egg is needed to help bind the ricotta filling together, making the layers thick and easy to slice. If you have an egg allergy, simply omit the egg but keep in mind your lasagna will not slice as nicely. But it will still taste delicious!
- Cheese: Use a combination of shredded mozzarella and grated parmesan to give this lasagna its rich, creamy flavor.
- Lasagna Pan: Instant Pot Lasagna utilizes pot-in-pot cooking. This means that you will assemble the lasagna in either a 7 by 3-inch spring form pan or a 7 by 3-inch oven-safe cake pan and place the pan on a metal rack over water inside the inner pot.
Substitutions
- Try Pepperoni. Omit the ground meat and instead add slices of pepperoni to the layers of the lasagna. It adds a great flavor and speeds up the recipe, as you can skip the step to saute the meat.
- Swap Ricotta for Cottage Cheese. If you would prefer to use cottage cheese, I recommend straining the cottage cheese over a fine-mesh strainer for a few hours to remove excess moisture.
- Regular Lasagna Noodles. If you don't have no-boil lasagna noodles on hand, feel free to use regular lasagna noodles that have been cooked according to package directions. Many readers have shared they have skipped pre-boiling the noodles but needed to add 10 minutes to the cooking time.
- Springform or Cake Pan? Use what you have on hand. A springform pan will allow you to remove the sides and make for an elegant presentation, but a lasagna made in a cake pan tastes just as delicious.
How To Make Instant Pot Lasagna
The following tips are provided to help you achieve perfect results. You will find the detailed instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step One: Saute Meat. If you are adding ground beef or ground sausage to your lasagna, you can saute the meat right inside the inner pot, preventing the need to wash an extra dish.
Step Two: Deglaze the Inner Pot. Any time you use the saute function, you must deglaze the inner pot to prevent a burn notice. Once the meat is browned, remove it from the pressure cooker using a slotted spoon, and then turn the Instant Pot OFF. Add water to the inner pot and scrape up any browned bits of meat with a spoon or spatula.
Step Three: Prepare Ricotta Filling. Prepare the ricotta cheese mixture by combining the ricotta with an egg, seasonings, and parmesan and set it aside for layering in the lasagna.
Step Four: Assemble Lasagna. Instant Pot Lasagna is assembled much like classic lasagna, by layering sauce, noodles, filling, meat, and cheese together in repeating layers. Keep in mind you will need to break the noodles to fit into the smaller round pan.
Step Five: Pressure Cook Lasagna. I recommend placing your lasagna on a foil sling to make it easy to remove from the Instant Pot. I also recommend covering the lasagna loosely with foil to prevent condensation from forming on the lasagna as it cooks. If you are opposed to using foil, cover it with parchment paper.
Step Six: Broil (Optional). It is not possible to achieve a golden, browned layer of cheese when making a lasagna using an instant pot. However, you can use an air fryer lid or broil the lasagna to achieve that golden exterior.
Serving Suggestions
Instant Pot Lasagna is best served after it has rested for 10-15 minutes after pressure cooking. This will help the lasagna stay intact when sliced and make for a prettier presentation. Once sliced, round out dinner with a Tossed Greek Salad or Caesar Salad. I also love serving it with garlic toast or Italian bread and olive oil bread dip on the side as well.
Make-Ahead and Storage Instructions
- Prepare in Advance: You can assemble, cover, and refrigerate the lasagna for up to 24 hours before pressure cooking. Just keep in mind that you would want to use a cake pan instead of a springform pan to prevent the lasagna from leaking into the refrigerator. When you are ready to cook the lasagna, remove it from the refrigerator, unwrap it, cover it with foil if desired, and pressure cook for 30 minutes instead of 27 minutes on high pressure.
- Refrigerate: Leftover cooled lasagna can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
- Freeze: Allow the lasagna to cool fully. Once cooled, slice the lasagna into individual slices. Wrap the individual slices of the lasagna in plastic wrap and foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then unwrap the foil and plastic wrap.
- Reheat: Heat slices of Instant Pot Lasagna on a heat-safe plate in the microwave, covered by a damp paper towel in 60-second intervals to warm through.
More Instant Pot Pasta Recipes
If you tried this recipe for Instant Pot Lasagna, be sure to leave a comment and a review below. I love to hear from you!
Instant Pot Lasagna
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- ½ pound ground beef or ground Italian sausage
- ½ medium yellow onion chopped
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning divided
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 16 ounces ricotta cheese
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅓ cup parmesan cheese freshly grated
- 6-8 no-boil or oven ready lasagna noodles
- 3 cups spaghetti sauce
- 2 cups shredded Mozzarella Cheese divided
Instructions
- If using meat: Hit saute on the pressure cooker, add in 2 teaspoons of olive oil, and let heat briefly. Once heated, add in the ground meat of your choice, along with the minced onion, 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon of minced garlic, and ½ teaspoon of kosher salt. Saute the meat and onion until the beef is fully browned, breaking it up as it cooks.
- Once the meat has cooked through, hit cancel to turn off the saute function and remove the meat mixture from the Instant Pot, setting it aside to use later.
- Pour 1-½ cups of water into the inner pot. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the inner pot. Add the metal rack/trivet over the water to place the lasagna pan on.
- In a medium bowl, combine ricotta cheese, egg, 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, and ⅓ cup of parmesan until combined.
- Assemble Lasagna. Spread a thin layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a 7 by 3-inch springform pan or a 7 by 3-inch oven-safe cake pan. Break the oven-ready lasagna noodles to fit to cover the bottom of the baking pan. Top with half the ricotta cheese mixture. Sprinkle with half the meat and onion mixture. Cover the meat mixture with a layer of spaghetti sauce, followed by a thin layer of shredded mozzarella cheese. Add another layer of lasagna noodles, followed by the remaining ricotta mixture, followed by the remaining meat mixture. Top with another layer of marinara sauce and then sprinkle with a light layer of mozzarella cheese. Add one final layer of lasagna noodles. Top with a generous layer of spaghetti sauce and mozzarella cheese.
- Place the lasagna pan on a tin foil “sling” to help lower and lift the lasagna out of the pressure cooker. Place the lasagna on the trivet. Loosely cover the lasagna with foil.
- Place the lid on the pressure cooker and be sure the lid is sealed. Hit manual/pressure cook and set to cook for 27 minutes on high pressure.
- After the cooking time has elapsed, let the pressure release for at least 10 minutes before doing a quick release of pressure.
- If desired, remove the lasagna from the pressure cooker and place the pan on a sheet pan. Remove the foil and broil for 3-6 minutes, watching carefully, to not burn. Alternatively, use an air fryer lid on the Instant Pot, set it to 360 degrees F, and air fry for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Let the lasagna rest in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove the sides of the pan if needed and slice and serve.
Equipment Needed
- aluminum foil
Kristan P
This was great! Could it be assembled and frozen for future cooking in instant pot? Would cooking time be the same?
Thanks!
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Kristan! I am so glad you loved this lasagna. I have not experimented with freezing this before cooking. I would THINK that it would work, but would need an additional 15 minutes cook time. If you try it out let us all know how freezing works out.
Julie
This was amazing. I used my homemade sauce and then followed the recipe. It was delicious. My only question is I let it cool for 15 mins and then pulled the spring form off...and it didn’t set up for long. But it was GOOD. Thank you for the recipe
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Julie! I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe. As for sitting up, your sauce may have been a bit more runny than mine, or you used slightly more, causing it not to sit up. In the future you can try letting rest longer or baking in a oven safe cake pan.
laura warren
I have a larger family, can you double the recipe or should I make 2 batches?
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Laura! I think it may be best to make 2 batches for this recipe--it will be too deep to cook through and possibly even overflow in your pressure cooker. Sorry!
Debbie Rae
Tried this recipe tonight, 01-03-19. Delicious! I substituted ricotta cheese w/ cottage cheese. Turned out great. I also used 6 cheese italian instead of mozzeralla cheese. I will make this again.
Kristen Chidsey
Thank you for sharing Debbie <3
Marcy
Love your pictures. I am sending your recipes to my daughter who doesn’t enjoy cooking but whose Fiance (who loves to cook) has struck a deal with her- she has to cook once a week. I’m sending the lasagne. She just asked me for a recipe. This looks easy and wonderful and she can follow your directions. Thanks for sharing!
Kristen Chidsey
Oh thank you so much Marcy! I hope your daughter starts to enjoy cooking through this challenge. 😉
Jill
If I have a 6 inch springform pan, do I need to adjust the cook time?
Thanks!
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Jill. My springform pan is 2 inches deep. As long as your pan is about the same depth, the cook time will be the same, just be aware you may have leftover ingredients 😊
Amy
Hi, do I HAVE to use a spring form pan? Or can i build it directly in the instant pot?
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Amy, you can not build right in instant pot as you need water for pressure to be built. You can use a 7 to 9 cup oven safe dish instead of a springform pan. I hope you enjoy.
Joan P
I made this and although it tasted good, it fell apart when I removed it from springform pan. Suggestions!!
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Joan, I am glad you enjoyed it! I would be sure to let the lasagna rest for at least 15 minutes before removing from the pan. Then, I would use a butter knife and run along the sides of the springform pan to be sure to loosen sides. I hope those tips help, we haven't had any issues removing the ring here, but I do let the lasagna rest quite a bit--typically while I make a salad and set the table 😉
Lynn Moody
Kristen, this looks so delicious! The only question I have, and I’m embarrassed to ask, is about the noodles. I’ve only made traditional lasagna by pre-cooking the noodles. I’m not familiar with “oven ready noodles”. Are these the kind that can be left uncooked prior to layering the ingredients? You also mentioned that someone had made your recipe with traditional noodles — does that mean pre-cooked noodles? I just can’t imagine being able to break and fit hard noodles in our small springform pans.
Kristen Chidsey
Lynn, no need to be embarrassed. I use oven ready noodles that do not need pre-cooked. They are found right next to regular noodles. And you just break the noodles and don't worry about how they break--just cover each layer evenly. If you watch the video on this recipe, you can see the noodles aren't laid down in a pretty fashion. And the person who used regular noodles, did not precook either. (But I have not tried this in this particular recipe) She just broke them up and layered to cover. Hope that helps!
Jillian Wade
This is the best Instant Pot lasagna recipe out there! I can't wait to make it again!
Kristen Chidsey
Wahoo!!! I am so glad you enjoyed this lasagna Jillian!